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[OPS] Restore workflows from GitHub to n8n

This workflow implements the functionality of automatically restoring and synchronizing backup workflows from GitHub. By reading the workflow JSON files from a specified path in GitHub, it automatically compares them with the workflows in the current environment to avoid duplication, ensuring that only workflows that do not already exist are imported. This process simplifies the cumbersome manual import, enhances the management efficiency and security of workflows, and is suitable for enterprise IT teams, DevOps engineers, and development teams, ensuring a clean and orderly workflow environment.

Workflow Diagram
[OPS] Restore workflows from GitHub to n8n Workflow diagram

Workflow Name

[OPS] Restore workflows from GitHub to n8n

Key Features and Highlights

This workflow enables the automatic restoration of n8n workflows backed up in a GitHub repository. By reading workflow JSON files from a specified GitHub repository and path, it automatically compares them with the workflows currently existing in the n8n environment to avoid duplicate creation. Only workflows not yet present in n8n are imported, achieving efficient restoration and synchronized management of workflows.

Core Problems Addressed

  • Automates the restoration and synchronization of n8n workflows, eliminating the complexity and errors of manual imports
  • Prevents duplicate creation of workflows with the same name, ensuring a clean and orderly workflow environment
  • Centralizes workflow restoration from a version control repository, enhancing backup management standardization and security

Use Cases

  • Enterprises or teams that back up n8n workflows on GitHub and need to restore them periodically or on demand to the n8n environment
  • Rapid synchronization of workflow configurations across multiple deployment environments
  • Workflow management under version control for easy rollback and migration
  • Backup and restoration of workflows within automated operations and DevOps processes

Main Process Steps

  1. Manual Trigger: Start the workflow by manual execution
  2. Configure Global Variables: Set the GitHub repository owner, repository name, and the path where workflows are stored
  3. Retrieve GitHub File List: List all workflow files under the specified path
  4. Fetch File Contents Individually: Read and decode the JSON content of each workflow file
  5. Get Existing n8n Workflows: Retrieve all workflow names currently present in the n8n instance
  6. Merge and Compare: Filter workflows that exist in GitHub but not yet in the n8n instance
  7. Conditional Check: Determine if the workflow already exists to avoid duplicates
  8. Create New Workflows: Import the filtered workflows into the n8n environment
  9. No Action for Duplicates: Skip already existing workflows to maintain environment uniqueness

Involved Systems or Services

  • GitHub: Serves as the file repository for workflow backups
  • n8n: The target platform for automated workflow restoration and management

Target Users and Value

  • DevOps Engineers and Automation Operators: Easily manage and restore workflows, improving operational efficiency
  • Enterprise IT Teams: Achieve standardized backup and version control of workflows, ensuring business process stability
  • n8n Platform Users: Simplify workflow migration, restoration, and synchronization, reducing operational complexity
  • Development Teams: Quickly synchronize version-controlled workflows across different development or testing environments

This workflow provides n8n users with a convenient, secure, and efficient solution for workflow restoration. By leveraging GitHub’s version control capabilities, it automates workflow backup restoration and environment synchronization, significantly enhancing the professionalism and reliability of workflow management.