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Production Deployment with PostgreSQL

The default deployment uses ephemeral storage with SQLite, which means:

  • ⚠️ Workflows and data are lost when the container restarts
  • ⚠️ Not suitable for production use

Why Not Azure Files with SQLite?

SQLite requires proper file locking, which doesn't work reliably on Azure Files (or any network file share). You'll encounter:

  • SQLITE_BUSY: database is locked errors
  • Permission errors (EPERM: operation not permitted)
  • Data corruption risks

Production-Ready Solution: PostgreSQL

For production deployments, use Azure Database for PostgreSQL instead of SQLite.

Option 1: Quick PostgreSQL Setup

Add these parameters to your n8n container app:

env: [
  {
    name: 'DB_TYPE'
    value: 'postgresdb'
  }
  {
    name: 'DB_POSTGRESDB_HOST'
    value: '<your-postgres-server>.postgres.database.azure.com'
  }
  {
    name: 'DB_POSTGRESDB_PORT'
    value: '5432'
  }
  {
    name: 'DB_POSTGRESDB_DATABASE'
    value: 'n8n'
  }
  {
    name: 'DB_POSTGRESDB_USER'
    value: '<username>'
  }
  {
    name: 'DB_POSTGRESDB_PASSWORD'
    secretRef: 'postgres-password'
  }
]

Option 2: Full Bicep Module (Recommended)

Create infra/modules/postgres.bicep:

@description('Azure region for all resources')
param location string

@description('Unique suffix for resource names')
param resourceToken string

@description('Tags to apply to all resources')
param tags object = {}

var serverName = 'psql-n8n-${resourceToken}'

resource postgresServer 'Microsoft.DBforPostgreSQL/flexibleServers@2023-12-01-preview' = {
  name: serverName
  location: location
  tags: tags
  sku: {
    name: 'Standard_B1ms'
    tier: 'Burstable'
  }
  properties: {
    version: '16'
    administratorLogin: 'n8nadmin'
    administratorLoginPassword: newGuid() // Generate random password
    storage: {
      storageSizeGB: 32
    }
    backup: {
      backupRetentionDays: 7
      geoRedundantBackup: 'Disabled'
    }
    highAvailability: {
      mode: 'Disabled'
    }
  }
}

resource database 'Microsoft.DBforPostgreSQL/flexibleServers/databases@2023-12-01-preview' = {
  parent: postgresServer
  name: 'n8n'
}

// Allow Azure services to connect
resource firewallRule 'Microsoft.DBforPostgreSQL/flexibleServers/firewallRules@2023-12-01-preview' = {
  parent: postgresServer
  name: 'AllowAzureServices'
  properties: {
    startIpAddress: '0.0.0.0'
    endIpAddress: '0.0.0.0'
  }
}

output serverFqdn string = postgresServer.properties.fullyQualifiedDomainName
output databaseName string = database.name
output adminUsername string = postgresServer.properties.administratorLogin

Then update infra/modules/n8n-app.bicep to include the database connection environment variables.

Option 3: Use Container Apps Built-in Service Connector

# After deploying the base infrastructure
az containerapp connection create postgres-flexible \
  --resource-group <your-rg> \
  --name <your-container-app-name> \
  --target-resource-group <your-rg> \
  --server <postgres-server-name> \
  --database n8n \
  --client-type dotnet

Alternative: External PostgreSQL

You can also use:

  • Azure Database for PostgreSQL Flexible Server (recommended)
  • Azure Database for PostgreSQL Single Server (legacy)
  • Any external PostgreSQL instance (e.g., Supabase, Neon, etc.)

Just provide the connection details via environment variables.

Cost Considerations

Service Estimated Cost/Month
Container App (B1ms equivalent) ~$15
PostgreSQL Burstable B1ms ~$12
Storage Account (if needed) ~$2
Total ~$29/month

Migration Path

If you have existing workflows in the ephemeral deployment:

  1. Export workflows from the UI (Settings → Workflows → Export)
  2. Deploy the PostgreSQL-backed version
  3. Import workflows to the new deployment