n8n, Express, Postgres Workflow Automation
Compose stack: visual workflows, a small Express API, and two Postgres databases
This starter wires n8n (workflow automation UI), an Express HTTP service, and PostgreSQL through Docker Compose. n8n uses its own database; Express uses a separate one, so automation metadata and app data stay logically split. The README positions it for integrations, internal APIs, and prototyping in a containerized dev setup.
When it is useful
You want low-code automation next to a custom Node API, you are demoing how webhooks or schedules can call your own routes, or you need a local lab before hardening for production. n8n’s integration catalog is large, but your workflows and credentials are still yours to govern.
What you can do
- Design visual flows in n8n to call external services, run schedules, or hit your Express endpoints as sketched in the README.
- Extend the sample Express routes for bespoke logic, then let automation call them.
- Store structured data in Postgres from either side, respecting the two-database split the compose file defines.
- Start everything with the documented compose and environment template in the GitHub repository.
Limits
- Production concerns (secrets, backups, upgrades, access control, and rate limits) are not fully handled by a demo compose file alone.
- Integration availability and pricing follow each third-party vendor; the README’s examples are illustrative.
- Heavy or regulated workloads need review beyond what a starter repo can promise.
