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Recipe: back up all your workflows automatically every night

Every night, n8n saves a copy of each of your workflows as a file in its own folder on your server. If you break or delete a workflow, you import yesterday's file and it is back.
Time needed 25 minutes
You need An n8n agent from LusoVPS (Sign in to n8n) and access to the LusoVPS client area (for the Files tab)
Result Every night at 2:00, one file per workflow in the folder backups, for example 2026-11-15_My first AI agent.json, ready to import

This is the finished workflow:

The finished workflow

Schedule Trigger (every day at 2:00) → Get many workflows (the n8n step reads all your workflows) → Convert to File (one JSON file per workflow) → Write file to disk (saves the files in the backups folder). It does not use AI, so it needs no Claude key.

This recipe does automatically what Download a workflow and import it back does by hand, for all workflows at once.

The API key is a password

In step 2 you create an n8n API key: with it, a program can read your workflows (and, with more rights, change them). Keep it secret, give it Read only rights, and remove it when you stop using this recipe: Settings → n8n API → ... next to the key → Revoke → Revoke. n8n warns: Workflows, scripts, and integrations using this key will stop working immediately. This can't be undone.

Keep a copy somewhere else too

The backups are on the same server as n8n. They survive an update of the agent, but they are lost with the server (for example after a Reinstall, which deletes everything). Download the folder to your computer from time to time (step 7).

1. Make a folder for the backups

n8n can only write into a folder that already exists. Create it once in the client area:

  1. In the LusoVPS client area, open your n8n service and click the Files tab. It opens in Agent files (/home/node/.n8n-files), the folder n8n can use. More about this tab: Terminal and files in the browser.

  2. Click New folder (1), type backups (2) and click OK.

    Create the backups folder

The folder appears in the list. Its full name is /home/node/.n8n-files/backups.

2. Create an n8n API key

The n8n step talks to your n8n through its API, so it needs a key.

  1. In n8n, open Settings (bottom left) and click n8n API (1). Click Create API key (2).

    Settings → n8n API

  2. Fill in the window:

    Create API Key

    1. Label: a name to recognise the key, for example Nightly backup.
    2. Expiration: the choices are 7 days, 30 days (the default), 60 days, 90 days, Custom and Never. When the key expires, the backup stops working. We chose Never; if you choose a date, put a reminder in your calendar to make a new key.
    3. Scopes: Read only (View workflows and data without making changes.). The backup only needs to read. In our test this was enough.
    4. Click Save.

  3. n8n shows the key once: Make sure to copy your API key now as you will not be able to see this again. Click the copy button next to it, then Done.

    The key is shown once

3. Save the key in n8n (credential)

  1. Click the house icon (Overview), open Credentials and click Create credential.
  2. Type n8n, choose n8n API and click Continue.

  3. Fill it in:

    The n8n API credential

    1. API Key: paste the key from step 2.
    2. Base URL: type exactly http://127.0.0.1:5678/api/v1 (this is n8n talking to itself, inside your server).
    3. n8n saves and tests it: Connection tested successfully.

Use 127.0.0.1, not your n8n address

In our test, both https://yourname-n8n.agents.lsvps.net/api/v1 and http://localhost:5678/api/v1 failed with Couldn't connect with these settings (More details: ECONNREFUSED). http://127.0.0.1:5678/api/v1 worked.

4. Run it every night

  1. Create a new workflow (+ at the top of the menu on the left → New workflow) and name it, for example Nightly workflow backup.

  2. Click Add first step → On a schedule and set it:

    Every day at 2am

    1. Trigger Interval: Days (and Days Between Triggers: 1).
    2. Trigger at Hour: 2am (a quiet time). Trigger at Minute: 0.

More about schedules and time zones: Run a workflow on a schedule.

5. Read all workflows (n8n step)

  1. Close the panel. Click the small + at the right of the Schedule Trigger, search for n8n and click n8n. Under WORKFLOW ACTIONS, choose Get many workflows:

    The n8n actions

  2. Check the settings and click Execute step:

    Get many workflows

    1. Credential: the n8n account from step 3.
    2. Resource: Workflow, Operation: Get Many.
    3. Return All: on (it was on already).
    4. OUTPUT: one item per workflow. We had 4 items, our 4 workflows.

6. Turn each workflow into a file and save it

  1. Close the panel. Click the + at the right of Get many workflows, search for Convert to File and choose Convert to JSON. Set it:

    Convert to File

    1. Operation: Convert to JSON.
    2. Mode: Each Item to Separate File (one file per workflow).
    3. Options → Add option → Format: on (the file is easier to read).
    4. After Execute step, the OUTPUT (Binary view) shows one file per workflow, a few kB each.

  2. Close the panel. Click the + at the right of Convert to File, search for Read/Write Files from Disk and choose Write File to Disk. We renamed it Write file to disk. Set it:

    Write File to Disk

    1. Operation: Write File to Disk.
    2. File Path and Name: click Expression and paste the line below. Under the box, n8n shows the result, for example /home/node/.n8n-files/backups/2026-11-15_Nightly workflow backup.json.
    3. Input Binary Field: data (the default, the file made by Convert to File).
    /home/node/.n8n-files/backups/{{ $now.toFormat('yyyy-MM-dd') }}_{{ $('Get many workflows').item.json.name.replace(/[^A-Za-z0-9 _-]/g, '_') }}.json

    The first {{ }} writes today's date, so each night makes new files and older ones stay. The second takes the name of the workflow and replaces characters that are not safe in a file name (for example ( and )) with _.

7. Test it and check the files

  1. Close the panel and click Execute workflow at the bottom of the canvas. All four steps get a green tick (see the picture at the top).

  2. In the client area Files tab, open the backups folder (click Refresh if it was already open):

    The backup files

    1. The folder: /home/node/.n8n-files/backups.
    2. One file per workflow, with the date in front. Website chat (Padaria Sol) became 2026-11-15_Website chat _Padaria Sol_.json.

  3. To keep a copy on your computer, tick a file and use the Download button of the Files tab.

When the test works, click Publish at the top right so the schedule runs every night. We tested this recipe with Execute workflow only; the nightly run uses the same steps.

What is in the files, and how to restore one

We opened 2026-11-15_My first AI agent.json: it has the steps, their settings and the connections, and for the Claude step only the name of the credential (Anthropic account), not the key. Like an exported workflow (details), it does contain everything you typed into the steps.

To restore a workflow: download its file, create a New workflow, click ... next to the name → Import → From file and choose the file (details). We did this with the backup of My first AI agent: the steps came back, under the same name. Rename it or delete the old one so you do not end up with two workflows with the same name.

Check that it worked

  • Execute workflow gives four green ticks, and Write file to disk shows one item per workflow.
  • The backups folder in the Files tab has one file per workflow with today's date.
  • After publishing: the next morning there are files with the new date, and the Executions tab has a run that Succeeded.

Make it yours

  • Clean up old backups: the files add up (ours were 2 to 5 KB each). Delete old ones now and then in the Files tab: tick them, click Delete, and confirm with Delete (This cannot be undone.).
  • Only published workflows: Get many workflows has a filter Return Only Published Workflows (under Filters). We did not use it in our test.
  • Get an alert when it fails: set an error workflow (Get a Telegram message when a workflow fails), for example for an expired API key.

Common problems

Write file to disk: The file or directory does not exist

The backups folder does not exist. Create it in the Files tab (step 1) and run again. This is what we got before we made the folder:

The error without the folder

The credential says: Couldn't connect with these settings (ECONNREFUSED)

The Base URL is wrong. Use http://127.0.0.1:5678/api/v1 (see the note in step 3).

Get many workflows fails after some weeks

Check the Expiration of the key in Settings → n8n API. If it expired, create a new key and paste it in the n8n account credential.

I cannot see the files in the Files tab

Make sure you are in Agent files → backups, then click Refresh. If the tab says it closed after 30 minutes without use, click Reconnect.

Next steps