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Managing Old Node.js Versions on Windows: My Problem & Solution

Problem

I needed to install and switch between older Node.js versions (like 10.12.0 and 12.19.0) on Windows.

I first tried using nvm-windows, but every time I installed an old version, it failed with errors like:

error installing 10.12.0: The system cannot find the file specified.
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The issue was that nvm-windows tries to download matching npm zip files, and those archives no longer exist for many old Node releases. This meant I couldn’t get the versions I needed without messy manual fixes.

Solution: Use Volta

Instead of fighting with nvm-windows, I switched to Volta, a modern JavaScript toolchain manager that works perfectly on Windows.

Here’s the complete process I followed:

1. Install Volta

Using winget (recommended):

winget install Volta.Volta
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Or download the latest .msi installer from Volta releases.

After installation, restart your terminal so Volta is added to your PATH.
Verify it works:

volta --version
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2. Install Old Node Versions

Now I could install older Node.js versions without errors:

volta install node@10.12.0
volta install node@12.19.0
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Check versions:

node -v
npm -v
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3. Pin Versions Per Project

For projects that depend on specific Node versions, Volta can “pin” the version:

cd my-legacy-project
volta pin node@10.12.0
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This adds the Node version to the project’s package.json. Now whenever I enter this folder, Volta automatically switches to Node 10.12.0.

Another project can have Node 12.19.0 pinned the same way, without conflicts.

✅ Final takeaway:
If you’re on Windows and need to run old Node.js versions, skip nvm-windows.
With Volta, installation is simple, switching is automatic, and everything just works.

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