# N8N Era — Full Technical & Operations Specifications

> N8N Era is a US-based automation agency in Nashville, Tennessee. We build and host custom n8n workflow systems for small and mid-market businesses. This document details our technical standards, deployment structures, schema examples, and integration architecture.

---

## 1. Core Architecture and Hosting Standards

We host n8n inside our clients' own cloud networks. We do not use shared hosting. This ensures clients own their data and workflow files completely.

### Recommended Deployment Stack
- **Virtual Private Server (VPS)**: AWS EC2, Google Cloud Compute Engine, or DigitalOcean Droplet (2 vCPUs, 4GB RAM minimum).
- **Database**: PostgreSQL (v15 or higher) hosted separately or as a dockerized service with automated daily backups.
- **Reverse Proxy**: Caddy Server or Nginx with automated Let's Encrypt SSL configuration.
- **Queueing Engine**: Redis (used for active executions when running in queue mode).
- **Process Manager**: Docker & Docker Compose.

### Sample Docker-Compose Setup
```yaml
version: '3.8'

services:
  postgres:
    image: postgres:16-alpine
    container_name: n8n_db
    environment:
      - POSTGRES_USER=n8n_admin
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=secure_database_password
      - POSTGRES_DB=n8n_data
    volumes:
      - pg_data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
    restart: always
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "pg_isready -U n8n_admin -d n8n_data"]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 5

  n8n:
    image: n8nio/n8n:latest
    container_name: n8n_app
    depends_on:
      postgres:
        condition: service_healthy
    environment:
      - DB_TYPE=postgresdb
      - DB_POSTGRESDB_HOST=postgres
      - DB_POSTGRESDB_PORT=5432
      - DB_POSTGRESDB_DATABASE=n8n_data
      - DB_POSTGRESDB_USER=n8n_admin
      - DB_POSTGRESDB_PASSWORD=secure_database_password
      - N8N_HOST=n8n.clientdomain.com
      - N8N_PORT=5678
      - N8N_PROTOCOL=https
      - NODE_ENV=production
      - WEBHOOK_URL=https://n8n.clientdomain.com/
      - GENERIC_TIMEZONE=America/Chicago
    ports:
      - "5678:5678"
    volumes:
      - n8n_storage:/home/node/.n8n
    restart: always

volumes:
  pg_data:
  n8n_storage:
```

---

## 2. Integration Engineering Standards

Every workflow built by N8N Era must adhere to these technical rules:

### A. Modular Design
- **Single Responsibility**: Each workflow does one task (e.g. Lead Intake, Data Sync, Invoice Creation).
- **Sub-workflows**: We use the `Execute Workflow` node to separate complex logic into modular sub-workflows.
- **Static Configurations**: All global IDs, endpoints, and credentials reside in custom environment variables or a configuration workflow.

### B. Error Handling & Resilience
- **Try-Catch Blocks**: Every API request node has alternative branches for failed calls.
- **Automatic Retries**: Webhook and HTTP Request nodes are set to retry 3 times with exponential backoff if a 5xx response is received.
- **Active Notifications**: Global error triggers route alerts directly to Slack or email.
- **Execution Logging**: Execution metadata is stored in PostgreSQL for 14 days for troubleshooting.

### C. Version Control and Backups
- **GitHub Sync**: We link all workflows to a private GitHub repository.
- **Automated Exports**: A nightly cron job exports all n8n workflows as JSON files and commits them to git.
- **Database Backups**: PostgreSQL databases are backed up nightly to secure AWS S3 buckets.

---

## 3. Data Schema & JSON Payload Examples

### A. Lead Intake Flow (Webhook Input Schema)
This JSON payload is sent from lead forms to the n8n webhook listener:
```json
{
  "event_type": "lead_submission",
  "timestamp": "2026-06-01T07:00:00Z",
  "source": "website_contact_form",
  "lead_details": {
    "first_name": "John",
    "last_name": "Doe",
    "email": "john.doe@company.com",
    "phone": "+16155550199",
    "company_name": "Nashville Retail Corp",
    "annual_revenue": 1200000,
    "employee_count": 25,
    "message": "Looking to automate our Shopify inventory sync to HubSpot."
  }
}
```

### B. Normalized CRM Lead (Webhook Output Schema)
After processing and formatting, n8n sends this payload to HubSpot:
```json
{
  "properties": {
    "email": "john.doe@company.com",
    "firstname": "John",
    "lastname": "Doe",
    "phone": "+16155550199",
    "company": "Nashville Retail Corp",
    "lead_source": "N8N Era Automation Intake",
    "annualrevenue": "1200000",
    "numberofemployees": "25",
    "automation_requirements": "Shopify inventory sync to HubSpot",
    "lead_score": 85,
    "auto_assigned_owner": "Sales Rep Nashville"
  }
}
```

---

## 4. Automation Use Cases & Setup Details

### A. CRM Automation
- **Triggers**: Webhook from Web Form, Stripe charge, or Ad Network lead alert.
- **Workflow Action**: Check if contact exists in HubSpot or Salesforce. If yes, update properties; if no, create new lead. Run company enrichment, score the lead, and alert the sales team on Slack.
- **Average Run Time**: < 1.5 seconds.

### B. Client Onboarding Automation
- **Triggers**: Contract status marked "Signed" in PandaDoc or DocuSign.
- **Workflow Action**: Create client folder in Google Drive. Copy templates for project boards in Asana or ClickUp. Create HubSpot deal card. Send onboarding intake email.
- **Average Run Time**: < 5 seconds.

### C. Ecommerce Inventory & Order Sync
- **Triggers**: Nightly cron at 01:00 or real-time Shopify order webhook.
- **Workflow Action**: Pull sales data. Map inventory counts to QuickBooks. Reconcile warehouses. Email alert to logistics team if stock drops below threshold.
- **Average Run Time**: Under 30 seconds for bulk inventory checks.

---

## 5. Contact & Booking
- **Site URL**: https://n8nera.dev
- **Contact Page**: https://n8nera.dev/contact/
- **Support Email**: n8nera@gmail.com
- **WhatsApp Support**: +92 327 3059124

---

## 6. Full Pages Index
- Homepage: https://n8nera.dev/
- Services: https://n8nera.dev/services/
- n8n Automation: https://n8nera.dev/services/n8n-automation/
- Workflow Automation: https://n8nera.dev/services/workflow-automation/
- Business Process Automation: https://n8nera.dev/services/business-process-automation/
- CRM Automation: https://n8nera.dev/services/crm-automation/
- Client Onboarding Automation: https://n8nera.dev/services/client-onboarding-automation/
- Ecommerce Automation: https://n8nera.dev/services/ecommerce-automation/
- Customer Support Chatbots: https://n8nera.dev/services/customer-support-chatbots/
- About: https://n8nera.dev/about/
- Case Studies: https://n8nera.dev/case-studies/
- Blog: https://n8nera.dev/blog/
- Blog Posts:
  - Self-Hosted n8n vs. Zapier ROI Comparison: https://n8nera.dev/blog/n8n-vs-zapier-roi-comparison/
  - n8n vs. Make for Enterprise Workflow Automation: https://n8nera.dev/blog/n8n-vs-make-enterprise-comparison/
  - How to Automate Client Onboarding with n8n: https://n8nera.dev/blog/how-to-automate-client-onboarding/
  - What Processes to Automate First: https://n8nera.dev/blog/what-processes-to-automate-first/
- Contact: https://n8nera.dev/contact/
- Nashville HQ: https://n8nera.dev/nashville/
- Automation Glossary: https://n8nera.dev/automation-glossary/
- Sitemap: https://n8nera.dev/sitemap/
- API Catalog: https://n8nera.dev/api-catalog/
- Agent Skills: https://n8nera.dev/agent-skills/
- MCP Server Card: https://n8nera.dev/mcp-server-card/
- Refund Policy: https://n8nera.dev/refund-policy/
- Cookie Policy: https://n8nera.dev/cookie-policy/
- RSS Feed: https://n8nera.dev/rss.xml
- Atom Feed: https://n8nera.dev/atom.xml
- LLMs Short Reference: https://n8nera.dev/llms.txt
- AI Crawler Rules: https://n8nera.dev/ai.txt
- Robots Rules: https://n8nera.dev/robots.txt