n8n Update Process - Quick Reference

Quick Steps to Update n8n

When there's a new n8n version available, follow these steps:

# 1. Update n8n dependencies automatically
npm run update:n8n

# 2. Validate the update
npm run validate

# 3. Commit and push
git add -A
git commit -m "chore: update n8n to vX.X.X

- Updated n8n from X.X.X to X.X.X
- Updated n8n-core from X.X.X to X.X.X
- Updated n8n-workflow from X.X.X to X.X.X
- Updated @n8n/n8n-nodes-langchain from X.X.X to X.X.X
- Rebuilt node database with XXX nodes
- All validation tests passing

🤖 Generated with [Claude Code](https://claude.ai/code)

Co-Authored-By: Claude <noreply@anthropic.com>"
git push origin main

What the Commands Do

`npm run update:n8n`

This single command:

Checks for the latest n8n version
Updates n8n and all its required dependencies (n8n-core, n8n-workflow, @n8n/n8n-nodes-langchain)
Runs npm install to update package-lock.json
Automatically rebuilds the node database
Shows you exactly what versions were updated

`npm run validate`

Validates critical nodes (httpRequest, code, slack, agent)
Shows database statistics
Confirms everything is working correctly

Important Notes

Always run on main branch - Make sure you're on main and it's clean
The update script is smart - It automatically syncs all n8n dependencies to compatible versions
Database rebuild is automatic - The update script handles this for you
Docker image builds automatically - Pushing to GitHub triggers the workflow

Time Estimate

Total time: ~3-5 minutes
Most time is spent on npm install and database rebuild
The actual commands take seconds to run

Troubleshooting

If validation fails:

Check the error message - usually it's a node type reference issue
The update script handles most compatibility issues automatically
If needed, check the GitHub Actions logs for the dependency update workflow

Alternative: Check First

To see what would be updated without making changes:

npm run update:n8n:check

This shows you the available updates without modifying anything.

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