diff --git a/misc/core.func b/misc/core.func
index d658d8efa..8bc8d5791 100644
--- a/misc/core.func
+++ b/misc/core.func
@@ -818,7 +818,10 @@ cleanup_lxc() {
   # Node.js npm
   if command -v npm &>/dev/null; then
     $STD npm cache verify 2>/dev/null || true
-    $STD npm cache clean --force 2>/dev/null || true
+    # Clean cache with fallback to manual removal if command fails
+    if ! $STD npm cache clean --force 2>/dev/null; then
+      rm -rf /root/.npm/_cacache 2>/dev/null || true
+    fi
   fi
   # Node.js yarn
   if command -v yarn &>/dev/null; then $STD yarn cache clean || true; fi