Cross-env is a valuable npm package designed to solve a common headache for cross-platform development: setting environment variables in a way that works consistently across different operating systems. Both versions 5.0.0 and 5.0.1 share the same core functionality of enabling developers to define and utilize environment variables within their scripts, ensuring smooth execution regardless of whether the target environment is Windows, macOS, or Linux.
Examining the metadata of versions 5.0.0 and 5.0.1 reveals minimal functional disparities. Both versions list identical dependencies, relying on "is-windows" and "cross-spawn" to achieve their cross-platform compatibility. Similarly, the "devDependencies" section, used for testing and development tooling, is a mirror image across both releases. This includes tools like "eslint" for code linting, "jest-cli" for unit testing, and Babel-related packages for JavaScript transpilation.
The primary distinguishing factor lies in the release date. Version 5.0.1 was published on June 8, 2017, approximately a month after version 5.0.0, which was released on May 11, 2017. This suggests that version 5.0.1 likely represents a patch release, addressing minor bugs or improving stability without introducing significant new features or dependency updates. For developers, upgrading from 5.0.0 to 5.0.1 is recommended to ensure they are using the most stable and refined version of the package, although the practical impact of the update is expected to be minimal. Ensure running scripts setting environment variables consistently across platforms using Cross-env.
All the vulnerabilities related to the version 5.0.1 of the package
Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) in cross-spawn
Versions of the package cross-spawn before 7.0.5 are vulnerable to Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) due to improper input sanitization. An attacker can increase the CPU usage and crash the program by crafting a very large and well crafted string.
