Automation platform n8n¶

SeaTable empowers users and teams to store, manage, and visualize structured data efficiently, offering multiple data input options from manual entry to web forms and a comprehensive API. This flexibility ensures seamless data collection while allowing users to define automated workflows with triggers and actions.

However, for those seeking additional software solutions or more sophisticated automation workflows, n8n provides the perfect complement. By integrating SeaTable with n8n, users can unlock even more powerful automation capabilities.

n8n serves as an automation platform, enabling seamless connectivity between SeaTable and hundreds of other software products. Need to collect data from multistep web forms using JotForm, Typeform, or Form.io? No problem. Simply create your web forms and utilize n8n to seamlessly transfer survey results to SeaTable.

Give n8n a try, and we guarantee you'll fall in love with it just like we have!

Installation¶

This article shows you how to install n8n on your SeaTable server.

Change the .env file¶

Like with all additional components you first have to add the n8n.yml to the COMPOSE_FILE variable in your .env file.

Simply copy and paste () the following code into your command line:

sed -i "s/COMPOSE_FILE='\(.*\)'/COMPOSE_FILE='\1,n8n.yml'/" /opt/seatable-compose/.env

Generate secrets for your postgres database¶

Now let's create inital secrets and write them into the .env file.

echo -e "\n# n8n" >> /opt/seatable-compose/.env
echo "N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY=$(pwgen -s 40 1)" >> /opt/seatable-compose/.env
echo "POSTGRES_PASSWORD=$(pwgen -s 40 1)" >> /opt/seatable-compose/.env
echo "POSTGRES_NON_ROOT_PASSWORD=$(pwgen -s 40 1)" >> /opt/seatable-compose/.env

Start n8n¶

Now it is time to start n8n for the first time.

cd /opt/seatable-compose && \
docker compose up -d

Congratulations! Your n8n server is ready to use.

Initial setup¶

Create initial admin user¶

To set up your initial admin user, n8n offers a convenient Web UI accessible at https://<your-seatable-server-hostname>:6231.

n8n Setup Page

Please note that the Community Edition of n8n only permits the creation of multiple accounts with just one admin account. Further details regarding the features of this version will be elaborated later in this article.

Obtaining the Latest SeaTable Node¶

Regrettably, the current version of n8n comes with an outdated SeaTable node. To address this, it's advisable to install the most recent version of the SeaTable node as a community node. Simply navigate to Settings and then choose Community nodes. From there, you can add any community node from https://www.npmjs.com.

Click on install, input n8n-nodes-seatable, and proceed with the confirmation. Within seconds, you'll notice that the community node is successfully installed.

n8n SeaTable Community node

Limitations of the Current n8n Version¶

The installed n8n version on this server is the self-hosted free Community Edition, which aligns with the Starter Cloud version.

It offers:

Unlimited executions
Unlimited active workflows
No execution time limit
Support for all existing nodes

However, there are some limitations to be aware of:

Only one admin account is allowed
Variables are not supported (consider using SeaTable instead)
External Secrets and Environments are not supported
Single Sign-On (SSO) and LDAP is not supported
Log Streaming is not supported

For further information, visit the n8n forum.

If you find n8n useful (which you most likely will), consider purchasing an Enterprise license.

Next steps¶

Check the docs of n8n at https://docs.n8n.io/.