volta which

The volta which command locates the actual binary that will be called by Volta. It has the following syntax:

Locates the actual binary that will be called by Volta

USAGE:
    volta which [FLAGS] <binary>

FLAGS:
        --verbose    Enables verbose diagnostics
        --quiet      Prevents unnecessary output
    -h, --help       Prints help information

ARGS:
    <binary>    The binary to find, e.g. `node`, `npm`, `yarn`, `npx`, or a package binary

Examples

Finding Node.js Binary

# Find the location of the Node.js binary
volta which node

This might output something like:

/Users/username/.volta/tools/image/node/14.17.0/bin/node

Finding Package Manager Binaries

# Find the location of npm
volta which npm

# Find the location of yarn
volta which yarn

# Find the location of npx
volta which npx

Finding Package Binaries

If you've installed a global package with Volta, you can find its binary:

# Find the location of the typescript compiler
volta which tsc

# Find the location of eslint
volta which eslint

Use Cases

The volta which command is useful when you need to:

1. Determine the exact binary that Volta will execute when you run a command
2. Debug issues related to tool resolution
3. Use a tool's binary path in a script or configuration
4. Understand how Volta resolves tools in your current project or environment

How It Works

When you run volta which, Volta performs the same resolution process it uses when you run a command:

1. If you're in a project with pinned tools, it finds that specific version
2. Otherwise, it uses your default version
3. It returns the path to the exact binary that would be executed

The volta which command works with:

• Node.js runtime (node)
• Package managers (npm, yarn, pnpm)
• Package manager executables (npx)
• Package binaries installed globally or in the current project

Differences from Unix which

While similar to the Unix which command, volta which is specifically designed to work with Volta's tool resolution:

• It understands project-level pinning
• It accounts for Volta's shim system
• It shows the actual binary location, not just the shim

When you run a command like node, you're actually running Volta's shim, which in turn executes the correct binary. volta which shows you the path to that binary.