Deploy the n8n Stack

This guide deploys the n8n stack from the maintained howl-cloud/awesome-hostess examples repo. You do not need to copy a long hostess.yml by hand. Clone the example, create the one required n8n secret, validate it, and deploy.

What You'll Deploy

The awesome-hostess/n8n module contains the Hostess deployment config and a short README:

hostess.yml

README.md

Service	Role
`db`	Hostess-managed Postgres database for workflows, credentials, users, and execution history
`redis`	Hostess-managed Redis used by n8n queue mode
`n8n`	Public n8n editor and webhook endpoint
`n8n-worker`	Private queue worker that processes workflow executions

The public service is n8n. It exposes the editor and webhook URLs over HTTPS. Postgres and Redis stay private inside the deployment network.

This example runs n8n in queue mode on Hostess. The main n8n service serves the UI and webhooks, while n8n-worker processes queued executions through Redis.

Prerequisites

Hostess CLI installed and authenticated with hostess login
openssl

Clone the example module

Clone the examples repo and move into the n8n module:

Terminal

git clone https://github.com/howl-cloud/awesome-hostess.git
cd awesome-hostess/n8n

All commands in the rest of this guide run from awesome-hostess/n8n.

Create the n8n encryption key

n8n uses N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY to encrypt credentials stored in Postgres. Generate one strong value and store it in Hostess before deploying:

Terminal

hostess secrets add N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY --value "$(openssl rand -base64 32)"

Keep this value stable. If you change or lose N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY, n8n can no longer decrypt credentials that were already saved in the database.

Validate the module

Validate the maintained hostess.yml before deploying:

Terminal

hostess validate

You should see:

✓ Configuration is valid

Deploy the stack

Deploy from the module directory:

Terminal

hostess deploy --env preview

If this is your first deployment from this directory, Hostess prompts you to create a project. The deployment output includes the public n8n URL:

✓ Deployment complete

  n8n: https://n8n-hostess-n8n-abc123.hostess.run

Open n8n

Open the n8n URL from the deployment output:

https://n8n-hostess-n8n-abc123.hostess.run

On a fresh deployment, n8n prompts you to create the owner account. After setup, you can create workflows, configure credentials, and receive webhooks at the same public host.

Smoke-test the deployment

Check n8n's public health endpoint:

Terminal

curl https://n8n-hostess-n8n-abc123.hostess.run/healthz/readiness

Then create a small manual workflow in the n8n editor and run it once. The web service writes workflow state to Postgres, and queued executions are processed by n8n-worker through Redis.

Hostess Configuration Highlights

The maintained hostess.yml wires n8n to Hostess-managed services with magic variables:

hostess.yml excerpt

services:
  db:
    type: postgres
    retention: permanent
    resources:
      preset: medium
      storage: 50Gi
    backups:
      schedule: daily
      retention: 14

  redis:
    type: redis
    retention: permanent
    resources:
      preset: small

  n8n:
    type: custom
    image: docker.n8n.io/n8nio/n8n:stable
    depends_on:
      db:
        condition: healthy
      redis:
        condition: healthy
    persistence:
      mount: /home/node/.n8n
      size: 10Gi
      owner: "1000:1000"
    ports:
      - port: 5678
        public: true
    resources: medium
    health:
      http: /healthz/readiness
      interval: 15s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 10
    env:
      N8N_PORT: "5678"
      N8N_LISTEN_ADDRESS: 0.0.0.0
      N8N_PROTOCOL: https
      N8N_HOST: ${n8n.external_host}
      N8N_PROXY_HOPS: "1"
      WEBHOOK_URL: ${n8n.external_url}
      N8N_EDITOR_BASE_URL: ${n8n.external_url}

      N8N_USER_FOLDER: /home/node/.n8n
      N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY: ${secret:N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY}
      N8N_ENFORCE_SETTINGS_FILE_PERMISSIONS: "true"
      N8N_RUNNERS_ENABLED: "true"
      EXECUTIONS_MODE: queue

      DB_TYPE: postgresdb
      DB_POSTGRESDB_HOST: ${db.host}
      DB_POSTGRESDB_PORT: ${db.port}
      DB_POSTGRESDB_DATABASE: ${db.database}
      DB_POSTGRESDB_USER: ${db.user}
      DB_POSTGRESDB_PASSWORD: ${db.password}
      DB_POSTGRESDB_SCHEMA: public

      QUEUE_BULL_REDIS_HOST: ${redis.host}
      QUEUE_BULL_REDIS_PORT: ${redis.port}
      QUEUE_BULL_REDIS_PASSWORD: ${redis.password}
      QUEUE_BULL_REDIS_DB: "0"

      GENERIC_TIMEZONE: UTC
      TZ: UTC
      N8N_METRICS: "true"
      N8N_DIAGNOSTICS_ENABLED: "false"

The worker service uses the same database, Redis, encryption, and queue settings, then starts n8n with:

command: ["worker"]

Use ${db.password} and ${redis.password} as exact environment values. Hostess injects them as secret-backed runtime values, so they should not be embedded inside longer connection strings.

Updating The Stack

Because this guide uses howl-cloud/awesome-hostess, stack updates come from the examples repo:

Terminal

cd awesome-hostess
git pull
cd n8n
hostess validate
hostess deploy --env preview

For changes that only affect the n8n app processes, deploy both app services together:

Terminal

hostess deploy --env preview -s n8n -s n8n-worker

For database, Redis, persistence, backup, or dependency changes, redeploy the full stack so Hostess evaluates the managed services and dependent app services together.

Notes

N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY is the only required user-provided secret in the maintained example.
The first n8n user is created through n8n's built-in owner setup flow and becomes the instance owner.
WEBHOOK_URL and N8N_EDITOR_BASE_URL use ${n8n.external_url}, so generated webhook URLs point at the Hostess public URL.
db uses permanent Postgres storage with daily backups and 14-day retention.
redis uses permanent Redis storage because queue state should survive restarts.
n8n workflow credentials live in Postgres and are encrypted with N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY.

What's Next

Managing Secrets - Rotate and scope n8n secrets safely
Backups & Restore - Protect Postgres workflow and credential data
Custom Domains - Put your own domain in front of n8n
Connect to Services - Debug Postgres or Redis from your machine

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