Editing Openai/696bccda-36cc-8000-b805-9be682a21332


{{DISPLAYTITLE:Git restore and Next.js fix}}

''This conversation was exported from ChatGPT''<ref>{{cite web|title=Git restore and Next.js fix|url=https://chatgpt.com/share/696bccda-36cc-8000-b805-9be682a21332|publisher=ChatGPT|access-date=2026-01-18}}</ref>

== gpt-5-2-thinking ==
=== User: Help this person out? ===
Help this person out?

I recently started working on my first vibe doing project using Cursor,  I've poured about 4 days into this and spent a good bit of money on LLM access.

Yesterday I somehow broke the project whilst committing more changes to git, i can no longer run the app and I lost my train-of-thought trying to fix it and my agent kind of ranaway with destroying the project. I'm certain this version is fucked.

I'm trying to restore to an earlier version that I saved on git hub, but this is my first time restoring a project from GIT and I cant get it working again.

I downloaded the project from git hub and replaced the folder locally, but now when i try and start the app with 'npm run dev' it tells me next is not a recognized internal or external command.

I'm sure/hoping this will be an easy fix and I've just done something incorrectly.

If anyone can help guide me to get my project back up and running I will be eternally grateful.

=== Assistant: Yep — and it probably is an easy fix. ===
Yep — and it probably is an easy fix.

That error:

: next is not recognized as an internal or external command

means your local project doesn’t have Next.js installed / available, or you’re running the command from the wrong folder, or node_modules wasn’t installed after you replaced the folder.

Here’s the clean, reliable way to get them back to a working state.

==== 1) Make sure they’re in the right folder ====

In a terminal inside the project root (the folder that contains package.json), run:
* Windows (PowerShell/cmd): ``<code>bash dir <syntaxhighlight>- Mac/Linux: </syntaxhighlight>bash ls <syntaxhighlight>
They should see a package.json. If not, they’re one directory too high/low.

==== 2) Reinstall dependencies (this is the most likely fix) ====

When you download/replace a repo folder, it usually does not include </code>node_modules/<code>, and without it Next won’t exist locally.

Run:

</syntaxhighlight>bash
npm install

<syntaxhighlight>
Then try again:

</syntaxhighlight>bash
npm run dev

<syntaxhighlight>
If that works, done.

==== 3) If it still says “next not recognized”, verify Next exists in dependencies ====

Open package.json and look for something like:

</syntaxhighlight>json
"dependencies": {
  "next": "...",
  "react": "...",
  "react-dom": "..."
}

<syntaxhighlight>
If </code>next<code> is missing, then the repo/version they restored to doesn’t include it (or they restored the wrong folder).

===== Fix: install Next (and React if needed) =====

Run:

</syntaxhighlight>bash
npm i next react react-dom

<syntaxhighlight>
Then:

</syntaxhighlight>bash
npm run dev

<syntaxhighlight>
==== 4) Make sure npm run dev is actually calling Next correctly ====

In package.json, confirm scripts look like:

</syntaxhighlight>json
"scripts": {
  "dev": "next dev",
  "build": "next build",
  "start": "next start"
}

<syntaxhighlight>
If dev points to something else, that could be the issue.

==== 5) If they used Cursor / agents, also check Node version ====

Next projects can fail if Node is too old.

Check:

</syntaxhighlight>bash
node -v
npm -v

<syntaxhighlight>
If Node is old (common issue on Windows), install a current LTS (Node 18 or 20+ usually).

==== 6) The right way to “restore an earlier GitHub version” (so it doesn’t happen again) ====

Instead of downloading a zip and replacing folders, do this:

===== If they already have the repo locally =====

</syntaxhighlight>bash
git log --oneline

<syntaxhighlight>
Find the commit hash of the last good version, then:

</syntaxhighlight>bash
git checkout <commit-hash>
npm install
npm run dev

<syntaxhighlight>
(That puts them in a “detached HEAD” state, but it’s perfect for recovery/testing.)

If they want to restore and continue work from there:

</syntaxhighlight>bash
git checkout -b restore-working

<syntaxhighlight>
===== If they don’t have it locally =====

Clone fresh:

</syntaxhighlight>bash
git clone <repo-url>
cd <repo-folder>
npm install
npm run dev

<syntaxhighlight>
==== 7) Quick diagnostic checklist (what I’d ask them to paste) ====

If they’re still stuck, have them paste:
# The </code>package.json<code> scripts section
# The output of:

</syntaxhighlight>bash
where next

<syntaxhighlight>
(Windows) or

</syntaxhighlight>bash
which next

<syntaxhighlight>
(Mac/Linux)
# The output of:

</syntaxhighlight>bash
npm run dev

</code>`<code>

(full error)

===== Likeliest outcome =====

They replaced the folder and didn’t run </code>npm install`, so Next isn’t present locally → next not recognized.

If you want, paste their package.json scripts + the exact error text and I’ll tell you exactly which branch of the fix applies.

== References ==
<references />


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