Setup n8n on a Linux Server - Build Powerful Workflow Automations

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Introduction

n8n is a leading visual editor for fast iteration where you can build automation workflows and see results instantly. Perfect for both everyday automations and complex AI agent workflows.

Self Hosting support and Low Code Editor makes n8n every Dev's favourite. If you want maximum control, customizations and want to keep costs down over time, the Self-Hosted option is an excellent choice for you.

Planning to host n8n yourself? We’ll walk you through every step on how to set it up and configure it, along with everything you need to keep in mind.

Use cases of n8n

n8n can be used in many different everyday scenarios and is suitable for anyone who wants to automate tasks, use low code editor, build AI agents, lead automations, supercharge CRM, IT operations, security operations, backend prototyping, and much more! n8n is perfect for both beginners and experts.

n8n offers 1367+ integrations such as Google Sheets, Telegram, MySQL, Slack, Discord, Postgres with trending automation combinations like HubSpot and Salesforce, Twilio and WhatsApp, GitHub and Jira, Asana and Slack, Asana and Salesforce, Jira and Slack and so many community templates.

Prerequisites

While n8n is lightweight at its core, resource usage can increase overtime based on the amount of workflows usages, API calls, data-heavy nodes. We recommend the following hardware requirements to host n8n on your VPS.

Hardware	Minimum	Recommended
CPU	1 vCPU Cores	2 vCPU Cores
RAM	2 GB	4 GB
Disk space	20 GB	50 GB

Preparation

Before starting, we need to install Docker and update the system packages. We already have a guide on Installing Docker. Make you complete this before getting started with the installation.

Installation

After you've installed Docker on your server, run the following command to verify the installation:

docker --version
docker compose version

Create an `.env` file

Create a project directory to store n8n local files and n8n environment configurations and navigate inside:

mkdir n8n-compose
cd n8n-compose

Inside the n8n-compose directory, create an .env file using nano .env and include the following code with n8n environment configuration.

# DOMAIN_NAME and SUBDOMAIN together determine where n8n will be reachable from
# The top level domain to serve from
DOMAIN_NAME=zap.cloud

# The subdomain to serve from
SUBDOMAIN=silver-octopus-xxxxx

# The above example serve n8n at: https://silver-octopus-xxxxx.zap.cloud

# Optional timezone to set which gets used by Cron and other scheduling nodes
GENERIC_TIMEZONE=Europe/Berlin

# The email address to use for the TLS/SSL certificate creation
SSL_EMAIL=hello@zap-hosting.com

info

To find the DOMAIN_NAME and SUBDOMAIN, head over to your ZAP-Hosting Product Page and access your VPS, and locate your Hostname.

Enter the zap.cloud part in DOMAIN_NAME and the previous part in SUBDOMAIN (i.e silver-octopus-xxxxx).

HTTPS Requirement

Do not use a bare IP address in the .env file. n8n requires an HTTPS connection to access the website, and SSL certificates are only issued for domains, not for bare IP addresses.

If you want to host n8n on your own Domain instead, make a subdomain for n8n by creating A record using your Domain DNS manager pointing to the VPS IP you're using.

Name	Type	Value	TTL	Priority
n8n (Subdomain)	A	IPv4 Address	1440	0

Create local files directory

Inside the project directory, create another directory called local-files for sharing files between the n8n instance and the host system:

mkdir local-files

Create Docker Compose file

Create the Docker Compose file compose.yaml using nano compose.yaml and paste the following content into it:

services:
  traefik:
    image: "traefik"
    restart: always
    command:
      - "--api.insecure=true"
      - "--providers.docker=true"
      - "--providers.docker.exposedbydefault=false"
      - "--entrypoints.web.address=:80"
      - "--entrypoints.web.http.redirections.entryPoint.to=websecure"
      - "--entrypoints.web.http.redirections.entrypoint.scheme=https"
      - "--entrypoints.websecure.address=:443"
      - "--certificatesresolvers.mytlschallenge.acme.tlschallenge=true"
      - "--certificatesresolvers.mytlschallenge.acme.email=${SSL_EMAIL}"
      - "--certificatesresolvers.mytlschallenge.acme.storage=/letsencrypt/acme.json"
    ports:
      - "80:80"
      - "443:443"
    volumes:
      - traefik_data:/letsencrypt
      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro

  n8n:
    image: docker.n8n.io/n8nio/n8n
    restart: always
    ports:
      - "127.0.0.1:5678:5678"
    labels:
      - traefik.enable=true
      - traefik.http.routers.n8n.rule=Host(`${SUBDOMAIN}.${DOMAIN_NAME}`)
      - traefik.http.routers.n8n.tls=true
      - traefik.http.routers.n8n.entrypoints=web,websecure
      - traefik.http.routers.n8n.tls.certresolver=mytlschallenge
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.SSLRedirect=true
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.STSSeconds=315360000
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.browserXSSFilter=true
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.contentTypeNosniff=true
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.forceSTSHeader=true
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.SSLHost=${DOMAIN_NAME}
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.STSIncludeSubdomains=true
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.STSPreload=true
      - traefik.http.routers.n8n.middlewares=n8n@docker
    environment:
      - N8N_ENFORCE_SETTINGS_FILE_PERMISSIONS=true
      - N8N_HOST=${SUBDOMAIN}.${DOMAIN_NAME}
      - N8N_PORT=5678
      - N8N_PROTOCOL=https
      - N8N_RUNNERS_ENABLED=true
      - NODE_ENV=production
      - WEBHOOK_URL=https://${SUBDOMAIN}.${DOMAIN_NAME}/
      - GENERIC_TIMEZONE=${GENERIC_TIMEZONE}
      - TZ=${GENERIC_TIMEZONE}
    volumes:
      - n8n_data:/home/node/.n8n
      - ./local-files:/files

volumes:
  n8n_data:
  traefik_data:

This installs n8n, issues SSL certificate, configures and make n8n live on the Domain.

Start n8n

To start n8n, run this command:

sudo docker compose up -d

To stop n8n, run this command:

sudo docker compose stop

Accessing n8n

After starting n8n, the next step is to access it with a web browser. Enter the URL ( or Hostname if you used it) to get into the setup page. Here, you have to create an Admin account before proceeding.

Password Notice

Make sure you remember your password for future use!

Next, a small Survey would pop up prompting you to enter some basic details.

Optionally, you get free access to some paid features which requires you to enter your email and receive an email with the License Key. If you you're interested, enter your email address and request for a License Key.

A License Key would appear instantly in your email. Copy that Key and paste in your Settings > Usage and Plans > Enter Activation Key.

Creating first Workflow

After that, you'll be able to visit the Dashboard and start using n8n right away!

Now, you can start with a blank Canvas or work with a premade template. Your n8n installation is all set!

Conclusion and more Resources

Cheers! you've successfully installed n8n on your server and can start using it right away. We also recommend taking a look at the following resources, which could provide you with additional help and guidance during your server configuration process

n8n.io - Official Website
docs.n8n.io - n8n Documentation

Got specific questions that aren't covered here? For further questions or assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact our support team, which is available daily to assist you! 🙂

Introduction​

Use cases of n8n​

Prerequisites​

Preparation​

Installation​

Create an .env file​

Create local files directory​

Create Docker Compose file​

Start n8n​

Accessing n8n​

Creating first Workflow​

Conclusion and more Resources​