n8nctl backup

n8nctl backup

Export workflows, tags, and variables to a directory (JSON or YAML)

Synopsis

Snapshot the active instance to disk for git-based versioning and backup. Writes one file per workflow plus tags.json, variables.json, a credentials inventory (metadata only — secrets are never exported), and a manifest.

n8nctl backup --out ./n8n-backup n8nctl --profile prod backup --out ./backups/prod --format yaml --externalize 5

n8nctl backup --out <dir> [flags]

Options

      --externalize int   externalize code fields longer than N lines (0 = off)
      --format string     workflow file format: json or yaml (default "json")
  -h, --help              help for backup
      --out string        output directory (required)

Options inherited from parent commands

      --api-key string    override the API key (prefer keyring via 'auth login')
      --base-url string   override the instance base URL (e.g. https://host/api/v1)
      --columns strings   comma-separated columns for table/csv output
      --dry-run           print the equivalent curl and send no request
      --jq string         apply a jq program to the result (e.g. '.[].id'); implies JSON input
      --no-color          disable colored output [env: NO_COLOR]
      --no-header         hide the table header row
  -o, --output string     output format: table|json|yaml|csv [env: N8NCTL_OUTPUT]
      --profile string    config profile (instance) to use [env: N8NCTL_PROFILE]
  -q, --quiet             suppress non-essential chatter
      --rps float         client-side rate limit in requests/sec (0 = use config/default)
      --show-token        do not redact the API key in --dry-run output
  -v, --verbose           verbose (debug) logging to stderr

SEE ALSO

• n8nctl - Control any n8n instance from the terminal via its public API