@n8n-as-code/openclaw-plugin

OpenClaw-native access to the n8n-as-code workflow stack.

Use OpenClaw to build, update, validate, and manage n8n workflows with the same n8nac CLI and AI context model used across the wider n8n-as-code project.

Install

openclaw plugins install @n8n-as-code/openclaw-plugin

Restart the gateway, then run the setup wizard:

openclaw n8nac:setup

The wizard asks for your n8n host URL and API key once, saves them via n8nac init-auth, selects your project, and generates an AI context file (AGENTS.md) in the workspace (~/.openclaw/n8nac/).

Usage

Once setup is done, just talk to OpenClaw:

"Create an n8n workflow that sends a Slack message when a GitHub issue is opened"

"Pull workflow 42 and add an error handler to it"

"What operations does the Google Sheets node support?"

The plugin injects the full n8n-architect instructions into every conversation so the AI knows the exact n8nac workflow (init-check → pull → edit → push → verify).

CLI commands

| Command | Description | |---|---| | openclaw n8nac:setup | Interactive setup wizard | | openclaw n8nac:status | Show workspace status |

Options for n8nac:setup:

--host <url>          n8n host URL (skip prompt)
--api-key <key>       n8n API key (skip prompt)
--project-index <n>   Project to select non-interactively

Workspace

All files live in ~/.openclaw/n8nac/:

~/.openclaw/n8nac/
  n8nac-config.json     ← project binding (written by n8nac init-project)
  AGENTS.md             ← AI context (written by n8nac update-ai)
  workflows/            ← .workflow.ts files (your n8n workflows)

Agent tool

The plugin registers the n8nac tool with these actions:

| Action | Description | |---|---| | setup_check | Check initialization state | | init_auth | Save n8n credentials | | init_project | Select n8n project | | list | List all workflows | | pull | Download a workflow by ID | | push | Upload a workflow file | | verify | Validate live workflow against schema | | skills | Run any npx n8nac skills subcommand | | validate | Validate a local .workflow.ts file |

Local development

This section covers how to load the plugin from source during development so that changes take effect immediately without an npm publish cycle.

1. Link the plugin directory

OpenClaw's --link flag registers a local path instead of installing a copy. jiti is used to run TypeScript directly, so no build step is needed.

openclaw plugins install --link \
  /home/etienne/repos/n8n-as-code/plugins/openclaw/n8n-as-code

What this does:

• Adds the path to plugins.load.paths in ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json
• Registers a source: "path" install record bound to the plugin ID n8nac
• No file copy — OpenClaw loads index.ts directly from the source tree

2. Verify the plugin is registered

openclaw plugins info n8nac

You should see status loaded and the tool n8nac in the tools list.

3. Run the setup wizard

openclaw n8nac:setup

Enter your n8n host and API key when prompted. The wizard writes ~/.openclaw/n8nac/n8nac-config.json and generates AGENTS.md.

4. Iterate on the code

• Edit any .ts file in plugins/openclaw/n8n-as-code/
• Restart the gateway to reload: openclaw stop && openclaw start (or the equivalent service restart on your setup)
• The before_prompt_build hook, tool schema, and CLI commands all reload on gateway start

5. Check gateway logs

tail -f ~/.openclaw/logs/openclaw-$(date +%Y-%m-%d).log | grep n8nac

The plugin prefixes all api.logger calls with [n8nac].

6. Inspect the n8nac workspace

~/.openclaw/n8nac/
  n8nac-config.json   ← written by init-project
  AGENTS.md           ← written by update-ai
  workflows/          ← .workflow.ts files

To reset and redo setup from scratch:

rm -rf ~/.openclaw/n8nac && openclaw n8nac:setup

7. Unlink when done

openclaw plugins uninstall n8nac

Source

Part of the n8n-as-code monorepo.