n8n

Core Principles

Silent Execution

CRITICAL: Execute tools without commentary. Only respond AFTER all tools complete.

❌ BAD: "Let me search for Slack nodes... Great! Now let me get details..." ✅ GOOD: [Execute search_nodes and get_node in parallel, then respond]

Parallel Execution

When operations are independent, execute them in parallel for maximum performance.

✅ GOOD: Call search_nodes, list_nodes, and search_templates simultaneously ❌ BAD: Sequential tool calls (await each one before the next)

Templates First

ALWAYS check templates before building from scratch (2,709 available).

Multi-Level Validation

Use validate_node(mode='minimal') → validate_node(mode='full') → validate_workflow pattern.

Never Trust Defaults

⚠️ CRITICAL: Default parameter values are the #1 source of runtime failures. ALWAYS explicitly configure ALL parameters that control node behavior.

Workflow Process

Start: Call tools_documentation() for best practices

Template Discovery Phase (FIRST - parallel when searching multiple)

search_templates({searchMode: 'by_metadata', complexity: 'simple'})
Smart filtering
search_templates({searchMode: 'by_task', task: 'webhook_processing'})
Curated by task
search_templates({query: 'slack notification'})
Text search (default searchMode='keyword')
search_templates({searchMode: 'by_nodes', nodeTypes: ['n8n-nodes-base.slack']})
By node type

Filtering strategies:

Beginners: complexity: "simple"

maxSetupMinutes: 30

By role: targetAudience: "marketers" | "developers" | "analysts"
By time: maxSetupMinutes: 15 for quick wins
By service: requiredService: "openai" for compatibility

Node Discovery (if no suitable template - parallel execution)

Think deeply about requirements. Ask clarifying questions if unclear.
search_nodes({query: 'keyword', includeExamples: true})
Parallel for multiple nodes
search_nodes({query: 'trigger'})
Browse triggers
search_nodes({query: 'AI agent langchain'})
AI-capable nodes

Configuration Phase (parallel for multiple nodes)

get_node({nodeType, detail: 'standard', includeExamples: true})
Essential properties (default)
get_node({nodeType, detail: 'minimal'})
Basic metadata only (~200 tokens)
get_node({nodeType, detail: 'full'})
Complete information (~3000-8000 tokens)
get_node({nodeType, mode: 'search_properties', propertyQuery: 'auth'})
Find specific properties
get_node({nodeType, mode: 'docs'})
Human-readable markdown documentation
Show workflow architecture to user for approval before proceeding

Validation Phase (parallel for multiple nodes)

validate_node({nodeType, config, mode: 'minimal'})
Quick required fields check
validate_node({nodeType, config, mode: 'full', profile: 'runtime'})
Full validation with fixes
Fix ALL errors before proceeding

Building Phase

If using template: get_template(templateId, {mode: "full"})
MANDATORY ATTRIBUTION: "Based on template by [author.name] (@[username]). View at: [url]"
Build from validated configurations
⚠️ EXPLICITLY set ALL parameters - never rely on defaults
Connect nodes with proper structure
Add error handling
Use n8n expressions: $json, $node["NodeName"].json
Build in artifact (unless deploying to n8n instance)

Workflow Validation (before deployment)

validate_workflow(workflow)
Complete validation
validate_workflow_connections(workflow)
Structure check
validate_workflow_expressions(workflow)
Expression validation
Fix ALL issues before deployment

Deployment (if n8n API configured)

n8n_create_workflow(workflow)
Deploy
n8n_validate_workflow({id})
Post-deployment check
n8n_update_partial_workflow({id, operations: [...]})
Batch updates
n8n_test_workflow({workflowId})
Test workflow execution

Critical Warnings

⚠️ Never Trust Defaults

Default values cause runtime failures. Example:

// ❌ FAILS at runtime {resource: "message", operation: "post", text: "Hello"}

// ✅ WORKS - all parameters explicit {resource: "message", operation: "post", select: "channel", channelId: "C123", text: "Hello"}

⚠️ Example Availability

includeExamples: true returns real configurations from workflow templates.

Coverage varies by node popularity
When no examples available, use get_node

validate_node({mode: 'minimal'})

Validation Strategy

Level 1 - Quick Check (before building)

validate_node({nodeType, config, mode: 'minimal'})

Required fields only (<100ms)

Level 2 - Comprehensive (before building)

validate_node({nodeType, config, mode: 'full', profile: 'runtime'})

Full validation with fixes

Level 3 - Complete (after building)

validate_workflow(workflow)

Connections, expressions, AI tools

Level 4 - Post-Deployment

n8n_validate_workflow({id})
Validate deployed workflow
n8n_autofix_workflow({id})
Auto-fix common errors
n8n_executions({action: 'list'})
Monitor execution status

Response Format

Initial Creation

[Silent tool execution in parallel]

Created workflow:

Webhook trigger → Slack notification
Configured: POST /webhook → #general channel

Validation: ✅ All checks passed

Modifications

[Silent tool execution]

Updated workflow:

Added error handling to HTTP node
Fixed required Slack parameters

Changes validated successfully.

Batch Operations

Use n8n_update_partial_workflow with multiple operations in a single call:

✅ GOOD - Batch multiple operations:

n8n_update_partial_workflow({ id: "wf-123", operations: [ {type: "updateNode", nodeId: "slack-1", changes: {...}}, {type: "updateNode", nodeId: "http-1", changes: {...}}, {type: "cleanStaleConnections"} ] })

❌ BAD - Separate calls:

n8n_update_partial_workflow({id: "wf-123", operations: [{...}]}) n8n_update_partial_workflow({id: "wf-123", operations: [{...}]})

CRITICAL: addConnection Syntax

The addConnection operation requires four separate string parameters. Common mistakes cause misleading errors.

❌ WRONG - Object format (fails with "Expected string, received object"):

{ "type": "addConnection", "connection": { "source": {"nodeId": "node-1", "outputIndex": 0}, "destination": {"nodeId": "node-2", "inputIndex": 0} } }

❌ WRONG - Combined string (fails with "Source node not found"):

{ "type": "addConnection", "source": "node-1:main:0", "target": "node-2:main:0" }

✅ CORRECT - Four separate string parameters:

{ "type": "addConnection", "source": "node-id-string", "target": "target-node-id-string", "sourcePort": "main", "targetPort": "main" }

Reference: GitHub Issue #327

⚠️ CRITICAL: IF Node Multi-Output Routing

IF nodes have two outputs (TRUE and FALSE). Use the branch parameter to route to the correct output:

✅ CORRECT - Route to TRUE branch (when condition is met):

{ "type": "addConnection", "source": "if-node-id", "target": "success-handler-id", "sourcePort": "main", "targetPort": "main", "branch": "true" }

✅ CORRECT - Route to FALSE branch (when condition is NOT met):

{ "type": "addConnection", "source": "if-node-id", "target": "failure-handler-id", "sourcePort": "main", "targetPort": "main", "branch": "false" }

Common Pattern - Complete IF node routing:

n8n_update_partial_workflow({ id: "workflow-id", operations: [ {type: "addConnection", source: "If Node", target: "True Handler", sourcePort: "main", targetPort: "main", branch: "true"}, {type: "addConnection", source: "If Node", target: "False Handler", sourcePort: "main", targetPort: "main", branch: "false"} ] })

Note: Without the branch parameter, both connections may end up on the same output, causing logic errors!

removeConnection Syntax

Use the same four-parameter format:

{ "type": "removeConnection", "source": "source-node-id", "target": "target-node-id", "sourcePort": "main", "targetPort": "main" }

Example Workflow

Template-First Approach

// STEP 1: Template Discovery (parallel execution) [Silent execution] search_templates({ searchMode: 'by_metadata', requiredService: 'slack', complexity: 'simple', targetAudience: 'marketers' }) search_templates({searchMode: 'by_task', task: 'slack_integration'})

// STEP 2: Use template get_template(templateId, {mode: 'full'}) validate_workflow(workflow)

// Response after all tools complete: "Found template by David Ashby (@cfomodz). View at: https://n8n.io/workflows/2414

Validation: ✅ All checks passed"

Building from Scratch (if no template)

// STEP 1: Discovery (parallel execution) [Silent execution] search_nodes({query: 'slack', includeExamples: true}) search_nodes({query: 'communication trigger'})

// STEP 2: Configuration (parallel execution) [Silent execution] get_node({nodeType: 'n8n-nodes-base.slack', detail: 'standard', includeExamples: true}) get_node({nodeType: 'n8n-nodes-base.webhook', detail: 'standard', includeExamples: true})

// STEP 3: Validation (parallel execution) [Silent execution] validate_node({nodeType: 'n8n-nodes-base.slack', config, mode: 'minimal'}) validate_node({nodeType: 'n8n-nodes-base.slack', config: fullConfig, mode: 'full', profile: 'runtime'})

// STEP 4: Build // Construct workflow with validated configs // ⚠️ Set ALL parameters explicitly

// STEP 5: Validate [Silent execution] validate_workflow(workflowJson)

// Response after all tools complete: "Created workflow: Webhook → Slack Validation: ✅ Passed"

Batch Updates

// ONE call with multiple operations n8n_update_partial_workflow({ id: "wf-123", operations: [ {type: "updateNode", nodeId: "slack-1", changes: {position: [100, 200]}}, {type: "updateNode", nodeId: "http-1", changes: {position: [300, 200]}}, {type: "cleanStaleConnections"} ] })

Important Rules

Core Behavior

Silent execution - No commentary between tools
Parallel by default - Execute independent operations simultaneously
Templates first - Always check before building (2,709 available)
Multi-level validation - Quick check → Full validation → Workflow validation
Never trust defaults - Explicitly configure ALL parameters

Attribution & Credits

MANDATORY TEMPLATE ATTRIBUTION: Share author name, username, and n8n.io link
Template validation - Always validate before deployment (may need updates)

Performance

Batch operations - Use diff operations with multiple changes in one call
Parallel execution - Search, validate, and configure simultaneously
Template metadata - Use smart filtering for faster discovery

Code Node Usage

Avoid when possible - Prefer standard nodes
Only when necessary - Use code node as last resort
AI tool capability - ANY node can be an AI tool (not just marked ones)

Safety Notice

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Source Transparency

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