Install node.js via APT on Debian Squeeze

Abstract: add SID APT source, configure APT Pinning to give squeeze packages priority over SID ones, rebuild the nodejs package under squeeze.

• Add SID APT source by creating /etc/apt/sources.list.d/sid.list (use your nearest mirror):

deb http://ftp.us.debian.org/debian/ sid main
deb-src http://ftp.us.debian.org/debian/ sid main

• Configure APT pinning by creating /etc/apt/preferences.d/sid:

Package: *
Pin: release a=unstable
Pin-Priority: 50

• Install libv8-3.1.8.22 manually:

apt-get install libv8-3.1.8.22

• Download the nodejs package sources, dependencies and build them:

cd
apt-get source nodejs
apt-get build-dep nodejs
cd nodejs-*
debuild -nc -uc

• Install the generated package

dpkg -i nodejs_*.deb nodejs-dev*.deb

• Profit :-)