How to disable telemetry in n8n?

To disable telemetry in n8n, access the n8n.yml configuration file and set the telemetry.enabled option to false. This prevents n8n from collecting and sending usage data while still allowing you to use the application's full functionality.

 

Comprehensive Guide to Disable Telemetry in n8n

 

Step 1: Understand what n8n telemetry is

 

n8n collects telemetry data by default to help improve the product. This includes:

• Usage statistics
• Feature adoption metrics
• Error reports
• System information

The telemetry doesn't include your personal data, workflow content, credentials, or other sensitive information, but you might still want to disable it for privacy reasons or organizational policies.

 

Step 2: Locate your n8n configuration file

 

The location of your configuration file depends on how you installed n8n:

• For Docker installations: You'll need to modify your docker-compose.yml or create a configuration file that's mounted to the container
• For npm installations: The config file is typically in your n8n installation directory
• For desktop installations: The config file is in the application data directory

The default locations are:

• Linux: ~/.n8n/
• Windows: %APPDATA%\n8n
• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/n8n/

 

Step 3: Edit the n8n.yml configuration file

 

If the n8n.yml file doesn't exist yet, you'll need to create it. Navigate to the appropriate directory and:

# For Linux/macOS
touch ~/.n8n/n8n.yml

# For Windows (using PowerShell)
New-Item -Path "$env:APPDATA\n8n\n8n.yml" -ItemType File

Open the file with a text editor of your choice and add the following configuration:

telemetry:
  enabled: false

Make sure to respect the YAML indentation as shown above.

 

Step 4: Disable telemetry using environment variables

 

If you prefer to use environment variables, you can set the N8N_TELEMETRY variable to false:

• For Docker installations:

# In your docker-compose.yml file
version: '3'
services:
  n8n:
    image: n8nio/n8n
    environment:
    - N8N\_TELEMETRY=false
    # other configuration...

• For npm installations, add to your .env file:

N8N\_TELEMETRY=false

• For command line execution:

# Linux/macOS
export N8N\_TELEMETRY=false
n8n start

# Windows
set N8N\_TELEMETRY=false
n8n start

 

Step 5: Disable telemetry through the n8n UI (newer versions)

 

In newer versions of n8n, you can disable telemetry directly through the user interface:

1. Log in to your n8n instance
2. Click on your user profile in the top-right corner
3. Select "Settings" from the dropdown menu
4. Navigate to the "General" tab
5. Find the "Telemetry" section
6. Toggle the "Share anonymous usage data" option to OFF
7. Click "Save" to apply the changes

 

Step 6: Verify telemetry is disabled

 

To confirm that telemetry is disabled:

1. Restart your n8n instance after making the configuration changes
2. Check the logs during startup for any telemetry-related messages
3. You can use network monitoring tools to ensure no data is being sent to telemetry endpoints

n8n typically logs confirmation that telemetry is disabled during startup.

 

Step 7: Handling telemetry settings in multi-user environments

 

If you're running n8n in an organization with multiple users:

• Server-level settings (n8n.yml or environment variables) will override individual user preferences
• Make sure to communicate the telemetry policy to all users
• Consider documenting your telemetry settings in your organization's privacy policy

 

Step 8: Dealing with upgrades

 

When upgrading n8n:

• Check if your telemetry settings have been preserved
• Some major version upgrades might reset configuration files
• Docker image updates might need environment variables to be set again

It's good practice to verify your telemetry settings after each upgrade.

 

Additional options for more granular control

 

For more advanced control, you can selectively disable certain types of telemetry. In your n8n.yml file:

telemetry:
  enabled: true
  features:
    usage: false   # Disables usage tracking
    errors: false  # Disables error reporting

This allows you to, for example, allow feature adoption metrics but disable error reporting.

 

Troubleshooting common issues

 

Issue 1: Telemetry still active after disabling

 

If telemetry appears to still be active:

• Ensure you've saved the configuration file correctly
• Verify that the file is in the correct location
• Make sure n8n has been restarted after changing the configuration
• Check if there are multiple configuration sources that might be conflicting

 

Issue 2: Configuration file syntax errors

 

YAML is sensitive to indentation. If n8n fails to start or ignores your settings:

• Validate your YAML syntax using an online YAML validator
• Ensure there are no tab characters in the file (use spaces instead)
• Check the n8n logs for any configuration-related errors

 

Issue 3: Permission problems

 

If you encounter permission issues when modifying the configuration:

• Verify you have write permissions to the configuration directory
• For Docker installations, ensure the container has the correct file ownership and permissions
• For system-wide installations, you might need administrator/root privileges

 

Conclusion

 

Disabling telemetry in n8n is straightforward but depends on your installation method. Whether you prefer configuration files, environment variables, or the UI method, you now have multiple options to control what data n8n collects from your instance. Remember that while disabling telemetry respects your privacy, telemetry data helps the n8n team improve the product based on real-world usage patterns.