node-gyp mystery

`npm install` fails on all packages with native extensions

> [email protected] install /home/tero/foo/bar/node_modules/bufferutil
> node-gyp rebuild

Usage: gyp_main.py [options ...] [build_file ...]

gyp_main.py: error: no such option: --no-parallel
gyp ERR! configure error 
gyp ERR! stack Error: `gyp` failed with exit code: 2
gyp ERR! stack     at ChildProcess.onCpExit (/home/tero/.nvm/versions/node/v4.2.3/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/node-gyp/lib/configure.js:355:16)
gyp ERR! stack     at emitTwo (events.js:87:13)
gyp ERR! stack     at ChildProcess.emit (events.js:172:7)
gyp ERR! stack     at Process.ChildProcess._handle.onexit (internal/child_process.js:200:12)
gyp ERR! System Linux 3.16.0-4-amd64
gyp ERR! command "/home/tero/.nvm/versions/node/v4.2.3/bin/node" "/home/tero/.nvm/versions/node/v4.2.3/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/node-gyp/bin/node-gyp.js" "rebuild"
gyp ERR! cwd /home/tero/foo/bar/node_modules/bufferutil
gyp ERR! node -v v4.2.3
gyp ERR! node-gyp -v v3.0.3
gyp ERR! not ok 

This seems really odd, but somehow indicative

$ grep 'no-parallel' /home/tero/.nvm/versions/node/v4.2.3/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/node-gyp/gyp/pylib/gyp/__init__.py 
  parser.add_option('--no-parallel', action='store_true', default=False,
$ /home/tero/.nvm/versions/node/v4.2.3/lib/node_modules/npm/node_modules/node-gyp/gyp/gyp --no-parallel
Usage: gyp_main.py [options ...] [build_file ...]

gyp_main.py: error: no such option: --no-parallel

Resolved

System gyp was interfering. Removing it (as instructed in nodejs/node-gyp#426 (comment)) resolved the issue.