n8n Workflow Management

Interact with n8n automation platform via REST API.

Setup

First-time setup:

1. Install dependencies (virtual environment):

cd skills/n8n-1.0.2
python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt

2. Configure environment variables in ~/.zshrc (or ~/.bashrc):

export N8N_API_KEY="your-api-key-here"
export N8N_BASE_URL="https://your-n8n-instance.com"

3. Reload shell and verify connection:

source ~/.zshrc
./skills/n8n-1.0.2/scripts/n8n.sh list-workflows --pretty

Tip: Get your API key from n8n UI: Settings → API

Quick Reference

List Workflows

./scripts/n8n.sh list-workflows --pretty
./scripts/n8n.sh list-workflows --active true --pretty

Get Workflow Details

./scripts/n8n.sh get-workflow --id <workflow-id> --pretty

Activate/Deactivate

./scripts/n8n.sh activate --id <workflow-id>
./scripts/n8n.sh deactivate --id <workflow-id>

Executions

# List recent executions
./scripts/n8n.sh list-executions --limit 10 --pretty

# Get execution details
./scripts/n8n.sh get-execution --id <execution-id> --pretty

# Filter by workflow
./scripts/n8n.sh list-executions --id <workflow-id> --limit 20 --pretty

Manual Execution

# Trigger workflow
./scripts/n8n.sh execute --id <workflow-id>

# With data
./scripts/n8n.sh execute --id <workflow-id> --data '{"key": "value"}'

Python API

For programmatic access:

from scripts.n8n_api import N8nClient

client = N8nClient()

# List workflows
workflows = client.list_workflows(active=True)

# Get workflow
workflow = client.get_workflow('workflow-id')

# Activate/deactivate
client.activate_workflow('workflow-id')
client.deactivate_workflow('workflow-id')

# Executions
executions = client.list_executions(workflow_id='workflow-id', limit=10)
execution = client.get_execution('execution-id')

# Execute workflow
result = client.execute_workflow('workflow-id', data={'key': 'value'})

Common Tasks

Debug Failed Workflows

1. List recent executions with failures
2. Get execution details to see error
3. Check workflow configuration
4. Deactivate if needed

Monitor Workflow Health

1. List active workflows
2. Check recent execution status
3. Review error patterns

Workflow Management

1. List all workflows
2. Review active/inactive status
3. Activate/deactivate as needed
4. Delete old workflows

API Reference

For detailed API documentation, see references/api.md.

Troubleshooting

Authentication error:

• Verify N8N_API_KEY is set: echo $N8N_API_KEY
• Check API key is valid in n8n UI

Connection error:

• Check N8N_BASE_URL if using custom URL

Command errors:

• Use --pretty flag for readable output
• Check --id is provided when required
• Validate JSON format for --data parameter