n8n Installation Guide for Linux VPS

This guide walks you through setting up n8n on a Linux VPS using Docker, Docker Compose, and Traefik for SSL termination.

Prerequisites

A Linux VPS (Ubuntu/Debian recommended)
SSH access to your VPS with sudo privileges
A domain name pointing to your VPS
Basic familiarity with command line

Step

Step 1: Create DNS Record

Before installing n8n, you'll need to set up a DNS record for your domain:

Get your server's public IP.
In your domain's DNS settings:
- Create an A record with:
  - Host: The subdomain you plan to use (e.g., n8n)
  - Value: Server's IP address
  - TTL: 3600 (default)

Verify setup (may take up to 1 hour):

dig +short subdomain.yourdomain.com  # Should return your IP

Example: To make n8n accessible at n8n.example.com, create an A record for n8n pointing to your server IP.

Step 1A

Go to your terminal and generate a public and private key. Add the public key to your VPS provider.

ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096
ssh root@server_ip

Step 2: Download and Run the Installation Script

Download the installation script directly from GitHub, make the script executable and execute the script:

SQLite

curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dennisrongo/n8n-scripts/refs/heads/master/n8n-install.sh -o n8n-install.sh && chmod +x n8n-install.sh && ./n8n-install.sh

Postgres

curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dennisrongo/n8n-scripts/refs/heads/master/n8n-pg-install.sh -o n8n-postgres-install.sh && chmod +x n8n-postgres-install.sh && ./n8n-postgres-install.sh

The script will:

Install Docker and Docker Compose
Create a project directory at ~/n8n-traefik
Set up the necessary configuration files
Create Docker volumes for data persistence
Prompt you to edit the .env file
Offer to start the containers

Step 3: Configure Your Environment

When prompted, edit your .env file with the following information:

DOMAIN_NAME: Your actual domain (e.g., yourdomain.com)
SUBDOMAIN: The subdomain for n8n that you set up in Step 1 (e.g., n8n)
SSL_EMAIL: Your email address for SSL certificate registration
GENERIC_TIMEZONE: Your preferred timezone

Example configuration:

DOMAIN_NAME=yourdomain.com
SUBDOMAIN=n8n
SSL_EMAIL=your-email@example.com
GENERIC_TIMEZONE=UTC

This would make n8n accessible at https://n8n.yourdomain.com.

Step 4: Start the n8n Service

If you didn't start the service during the script execution, you can start it manually:

cd ~/n8n-traefik
sudo docker-compose up -d

The -d flag runs the containers in detached mode (background).

Step 5: Verify the Installation

Check if the containers are running:

sudo docker-compose ps

View the logs:

sudo docker-compose logs -f

Access n8n in your web browser at https://n8n.yourdomain.com (replace with your actual domain).

Managing Your n8n Installation

Stopping n8n

cd ~/n8n-traefik
sudo docker-compose down

Restarting n8n

cd ~/n8n-traefik
sudo docker-compose restart

Updating n8n

cd ~/n8n-traefik
sudo docker-compose pull
sudo docker-compose down
sudo docker-compose up -d

Backup n8n Data

The data is stored in a Docker volume. To back it up:

sudo docker run --rm -v n8n_data:/source -v $(pwd):/backup alpine tar -czf /backup/n8n-backup.tar.gz -C /source .

This creates a backup file n8n-backup.tar.gz in your current directory.

Troubleshooting

Check Container Status

sudo docker-compose ps

View Container Logs

sudo docker-compose logs -f

SSL Certificate Issues

If you have SSL certificate issues:

Make sure your domain is properly pointing to your VPS IP address
Check the Traefik logs for certificate-related errors:

sudo docker-compose logs traefik

Restart After Server Reboot

If your server reboots, the Docker containers should restart automatically (due to restart: always in the compose file). If they don't:

cd ~/n8n-traefik
sudo docker-compose up -d

Security Considerations

The n8n admin interface is publicly accessible. Consider setting up authentication.
Review and customize the Traefik configuration for your security requirements.
Keep your server and Docker images updated.

Script Contents

For reference, the installation script performs the following tasks:

Installs Docker and Docker Compose
Creates configuration files (docker-compose.yaml and .env)
Sets up Docker volumes for data persistence
Guides you through configuration and startup

Complete Cleanup

If you need to completely remove n8n and all associated data:

# Stop and remove containers
cd ~/n8n-traefik
sudo docker-compose down

# Remove the Docker volumes
sudo docker volume rm n8n_data traefik_data

# Remove Docker images (optional)
sudo docker rmi docker.n8n.io/n8nio/n8n traefik

# Remove the installation directory
cd ~
rm -rf ~/n8n-traefik

Warning: This will permanently delete all your n8n workflows, credentials, and configurations. Make sure to back up any important data before proceeding.

Developer

This installation script and guide were created by Dennis from Lean Code Automation.

By following this guide, you should have a working n8n installation with automatic HTTPS support through Traefik. Happy automating!

chaudhuree/n8n-scripts