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Cristian Sifuentes
Cristian Sifuentes

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Fixing the *Lucide-React* `chrome.js` Error on Windows: A Developer’s Survival Guide

#react #devops #programming #frontend

Fixing the *Lucide-React* raw `chrome.js` endraw Error on Windows: A Developer’s Survival Guide

Fixing the Lucide-React chrome.js Error on Windows: A Developer’s Survival Guide 🎨⚡

If you’re building a React project with Vite + lucide-react and suddenly hit this:

X [ERROR] Could not resolve "./icons/chrome.js"
X [ERROR] Could not resolve "./chrome.js"
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Don’t panic.

This is a known hiccup with lucide-react on Windows. The culprit?

That innocent file:

node_modules/lucide-react/dist/esm/icons/chrome.js
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…it sometimes gets quarantined by Windows Defender/antivirus, or newer lucide builds have trouble shipping the Chrome icon on Windows environments. 🪟🐞

Let’s break down how to fix it — with options from quick hacks to long-term solutions.

Option A — Upgrade & Reinstall (the clean fix)

Most of the time, simply upgrading to the latest lucide-react release will get you back in business.

npm i lucide-react@latest
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Then wipe and reinstall your dependencies:

rm -rf node_modules package-lock.json
npm cache clean --force
npm i
npm run dev
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👉 The lucide team ships continuously. As of writing, 0.541.0 is live.

Option B — Restore/Unblock the File in Windows

Windows Defender can be a little overprotective and silently quarantine chrome.js.

Steps:

  1. Open Windows Security → Virus & Threat Protection → Protection History
  2. Restore or whitelist chrome.js (or the whole project folder).
  3. Reinstall your dependencies: 
rm -rf node_modules
npm i
npm run dev
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After this, Vite should stop complaining.

Option C — Drop the “Chrome” Brand Icon

Here’s a twist:

Lucide doesn’t actually support brand icons anymore. The maintainers recommend Simple Icons for that.

So, if you’re importing { Chrome } anywhere, swap it for another neutral icon:

import { Globe } from "lucide-react"; // instead of Chrome
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Cleaner, safer, and future-proof.

Option D — Quick Fallback: Pin a Stable Version

If you just need your project running fast (demo, hackathon, class deadline):

npm i lucide-react@0.263.1
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That version is known to play nicely across Windows setups.

Extra Sanity Checks

  • OneDrive + Node Modules = Chaos

    If your project lives under OneDrive/Documents, Defender may constantly lock files.

    → Move it to C:\dev\my-app or any unsynced path.

  • Search for Chrome imports

    Make sure you’re not pulling in Chrome anywhere:

  # Linux/Mac
  grep -R "Chrome" -n src

  # Windows PowerShell
  Select-String -Path . -Pattern "Chrome"
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Wrap-up

If you’re battling the dreaded Could not resolve './icons/chrome.js' error, you’ve got four lifelines:

  • Option A: Upgrade + reinstall (best practice)
  • Option B: Restore from Defender quarantine
  • Option C: Stop using the Chrome brand icon
  • Option D: Pin a known-good version

💡 Pro tip: Always favor Option A first. If your build still breaks and you must use the Chrome logo, either restore the file (Option B) or swap the icon (Option C).

🔥 That’s it — a developer’s field guide to squashing this pesky lucide-react bug on Windows.

Drop a 💬 in the comments if you found another creative fix!

✍ Written by: Cristian Sifuentes – Full-stack dev crafting scalable apps with [.NET - Azure], [Angular - React], Git, SQL & AI integrations. Dark mode, clean code, and atomic commits enthusiast.

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