Ubuntu 24.04 + n8n: General information

n8n is an application for workflow automation. With this application, you can connect different applications and services with model automated workflows using drag & drop. You can use n8n to create integrations, data pipelines, notifications, back-office automation, and much more without having to program everything yourself. A user interface is available for this, which you can open in your browser.

n8n allows you to connect to over 400 pre-built integrations, such as databases, CRMs, marketing platforms, and cloud storage. If a tool or app is not yet available as a node, you can establish a connection with an API. To do this, use an HTTP request node. Alternatively, you can create customised nodes.

You can find an overview of the available, ready-made integrations on the following n8n page:

Best apps & software integrations | n8n

n8n uses nodes to integrate services such as Slack, GitHub, Jira, Google Sheets, or HTTP APIs into workflows. Each node represents a specific step within a workflow, be it retrieving data, processing information, sending an email, and much more. You can link several nodes together to create complex workflows. Nodes are the most important building blocks and execute a series of actions. Examples

• Starting the workflow
• Retrieving and sending data
• Processing and editing data

Based on their function, n8n classifies nodes into four types:

App or Action Nodes: Add, remove, and edit data; request and send external data; trigger events in other systems
Trigger nodes: Start a workflow and provide the output data
Core nodes: Can be trigger or app nodes that provide functions such as logic, scheduling, or generic API calls
Cluster Nodes: Node groups that work together to provide functions in a workflow, especially for AI workflows

Nodes are connected to each other to create a workflow. The data is routed through the workflow via this connection. The entire chain of connected nodes is referred to as a workflow. Workflows are triggered when a trigger condition occurs, and are executed sequentially to fulfil complex tasks. n8n stores all workflows in a database (SQLite by default, alternatively PostgreSQL) and offers you the option of exporting individual workflows manually. You can find more information on this in the following n8n article:

Exporting and importing workflows

Queue mode in n8n is a deployment mode designed for scalability and high-throughput workflow execution. In this mode, workflow executions are delegated to worker processes, allowing you to efficiently process a large number of concurrent executions. Further information about n8n can be found on the following page of the manufacturer:

Queue mode

n8n is very versatile and can be useful for a wide range of applications. Here are some examples of applications:

Marketing and sales:

• Lead capture and CRM sync: For example, collect leads from forms and emails, and automatically transfer the filtered data to a CRM such as Salesforce.
• Email notifications: Automate email notifications for certain events, such as new leads or completed sales.

eCommerce:

• Order processing: Automate the notification and processing of new orders received in an online shop.

IT operations (DevOps):

• Server monitoring and management: Automate the monitoring of server metrics and trigger actions such as restarting a service.
• Automated deployment (CI/CD): Use n8n to deploy code or restart services, for example.
• Website checks: Use n8n to check the accessibility of your website.
• Automatic security measures: Use n8n to automatically detect suspicious access in system logs, and block suspicious IP addresses.

Data integration and synchronisation:

• API integration: automate integration between different APIs to synchronise data across different systems.
• Data pipelines: Process and transform data automatically from one source to another, e.g. from a database to a CSV file.

Project management:

• Task management automation: Automate tasks in tools based on project progress or customer actions.