n8n-cli

name	n8n-cli
description	Use this skill when the task is to inspect, create, update, test, debug, or analyze n8n workflows and nodes with n8n-cli. Trigger on requests about workflow CRUD, node-level edits, connection changes, graph inspection, execution debugging, or webhook testing through this CLI.
license	MIT
metadata	{"author":"Gladium AI","version":"1.0.0","category":"developer-tools","tags":["n8n","cli","workflow-automation","golang","api","agent-tools"]}

n8n CLI

Use this skill to operate n8n-cli safely and consistently.

Use This Skill For

• Inspecting workflows, nodes, connections, executions, and graph structure
• Making parser-backed node edits without rewriting whole workflow JSON blobs
• Creating, updating, activating, deactivating, or deleting workflows
• Debugging webhook tests and execution failures
• Producing machine-readable workflow data for follow-up agent steps

Core Rules

• Prefer n8n-cli over raw n8n API calls when the task fits the CLI surface.
• Prefer --json when another agent or program will consume the result.
• Use explicit workflow IDs and node refs like n0, ref:n0, or id:<uuid> when possible.
• For mutating commands, prefer --dry-run first when validating a change or planning a patch.
• Do not expose or hardcode N8N_API_KEY; use env vars, config, or flags already configured by the user.
• Treat delete, deactivate, stop, and connection rewiring as destructive operations and verify intent before using them.

Quick Workflow

1. Verify config and target workflow.
2. Inspect the workflow with workflow get or workflow inspect.
3. Inspect nodes with node list and node get.
4. Apply surgical changes with node, connection, or workflow update.
5. Use graph inspect, execution, and test webhook to validate behavior.

Prerequisites

• n8n-cli available on PATH, or use the repo-local binary or go run .
• N8N_API_KEY configured
• N8N_BASE_URL configured when not using the default http://localhost:5678

For concrete command sequences, read references/workflows.md. For command coverage and flag patterns, read references/commands.md.

Standard Command Path

Inspect a workflow and its nodes:

n8n-cli workflow inspect <workflowId> --with-nodes --with-connections --json
n8n-cli node list <workflowId> --json
n8n-cli node get <workflowId> n0 --view details --json

Apply a targeted node change safely:

n8n-cli node update <workflowId> n0 --set parameters.url=https://api.example.com --dry-run --json
n8n-cli node update <workflowId> n0 --set parameters.url=https://api.example.com --json

Debug structure and runtime behavior:

n8n-cli graph inspect <workflowId> --with-adjacency --with-cycles --json
n8n-cli execution list --workflow-id <workflowId> --limit 20 --json

Troubleshooting

• Start with workflow inspect if the intended node or connection is unclear.
• Use node get --view json when you need exact native n8n payload shape.
• Use graph inspect when a workflow behaves incorrectly after rewiring or node deletion.
• Use test webhook and execution get --with-data when debugging runtime behavior.