Mintplex-Labs/anything-llm · critical · Error

Failed to load pdf-parse. Please install it with eg. `npm in

Error message

Failed to load pdf-parse. Please install it with eg. `npm install pdf-parse`.

What it means

Thrown by PDFLoader.getPdfJS in collector/processSingleFile/convert/asPDF/PDFLoader/index.js:90 when the dynamic import of "pdf-parse/lib/pdf.js/v1.10.100/build/pdf.js" rejects. The catch wraps the original error (which is also console.error'd) and rethrows this friendlier message. The original cause is usually that pdf-parse is not installed, was hoisted incorrectly, the pinned internal path changed in a newer pdf-parse release, or the module file is missing from node_modules.

Source

Thrown at collector/processSingleFile/convert/asPDF/PDFLoader/index.js:90

          source: this.filePath,
          pdf: {
            version,
            info: meta?.info,
            metadata: meta?.metadata,
            totalPages: pdf.numPages,
          },
        },
      },
    ];
  }

  async getPdfJS() {
    try {
      const pdfjs = await import("pdf-parse/lib/pdf.js/v1.10.100/build/pdf.js");
      return { getDocument: pdfjs.getDocument, version: pdfjs.version };
    } catch (e) {
      console.error(e);
      throw new Error(
        "Failed to load pdf-parse. Please install it with eg. `npm install pdf-parse`."
      );
    }
  }
}

module.exports = PDFLoader;

View on GitHub (pinned to 526360e320)

Solutions

1. Run `npm install pdf-parse` (or the project's documented install command) in collector/.
2. Pin pdf-parse to the version the loader expects so lib/pdf.js/v1.10.100/build/pdf.js exists — check the package.json the project ships.
3. Rebuild the Docker image from a clean layer to ensure node_modules is complete.
4. Inspect the original error printed above the friendly message — it names the actual module path that failed.

Example fix

// before — throws on missing/renamed submodule path
const pdfjs = await import("pdf-parse/lib/pdf.js/v1.10.100/build/pdf.js");

// after — guard version, fall back to top-level export
async getPdfJS() {
  try {
    return await import("pdf-parse/lib/pdf.js/v1.10.100/build/pdf.js")
      .then((m) => ({ getDocument: m.getDocument, version: m.version }));
  } catch {
    const pdfjs = require("pdf-parse"); // top-level fallback
    return { getDocument: pdfjs.getDocument, version: pdfjs.version };
  }
}

// Verify the deep submodule path exists before relying on PDF parsing
const fs = require("fs");
const path = require("path");
function pdfParseReady() {
  try {
    return fs.existsSync(
    path.join(process.cwd(), "node_modules/pdf-parse/lib/pdf.js/v1.10.100/build/pdf.js")
    );
  } catch { return false; }
}

try {
  await new PDFLoader(filePath).load();
} catch (e) {
  if (/Failed to load pdf-parse/.test(e.message)) {
    // surface an actionable, installable error to the user; do not silently skip the file
    throw new Error("PDF support is not installed on the collector. Run the project's install command, then retry.");
  }
  throw e;
}

When it happens

Trigger: Loading any PDF when pdf-parse is missing from node_modules; running against a pdf-parse version that no longer ships lib/pdf.js/v1.10.100/build/pdf.js; a broken/partial npm install; Docker image built without dev/optional deps; monorepo hoisting left the deep path unresolvable.

Common situations: Fresh clone where `npm install` was skipped or run with --production/--omit=optional; pdf-parse bumped to a version that restructured its internals; container image pruned node_modules; pnpm/yarn-workspace hoisting hid the submodule path.

Related errors

• @vscode/ripgrep not installed

AI-assisted analysis of Mintplex-Labs/anything-llm@526360e320 (2026-08-13). Data as JSON: /api/errors/b76647fd514cb340. Report an issue: GitHub.