Automations: Workflow Catalogue and n8n Integration

Automations in Easy8 let you connect your projects to external tools and trigger actions automatically — without writing code. This article explains how administrators set up the Workflow Catalogue by connecting an n8n instance and installing built-in workflows, and how all users can use those workflows inside Easy8 Automation rules.

Beta: The Workflow Catalogue is currently in beta. The currently available built-in workflows are plug-and-play solutions. If you would like help with the initial setup, workflow selection, and deployment, our team can assist.

Target audience: Administrators (setup and catalog management) and end users (using workflows in automations).

Article type: How-to.

Understand the Workflow Catalogue
Connect your n8n instance
Install built-in workflows from the catalogue
Use a workflow in an Automation rule
Corner cases

Understand the Workflow Catalogue

The Workflow Catalogue is the in-app library of automation workflows available in your Easy8 instance. It is powered by n8n — an open-source workflow automation platform. Easy8 does not host or run n8n for you: you provide and operate your own n8n instance, and Easy8 acts as the bridge, letting you install and manage workflows on that instance directly from within Easy8.

The catalogue contains two types of content:

Type	Description
Built-in workflows	Pre-built workflows provided by Easy8, ready to install from the catalogue into your n8n instance
Custom workflows	Your own workflows, added to the catalogue by uploading their JSON via Add Custom Workflow

Once workflows are installed in your n8n instance, they can be used in Easy8 Automation rules (see Use a workflow in an Automation rule below).

Note: You must save your n8n connection settings before you can install workflows from the catalogue.

Connect your n8n instance

This section is for administrators. You need your own running n8n instance, its URL, and an API key before you start.

Open Global Menu → Workflow Catalogue.
Go to n8n Settings.
Enter the n8n instance URL — the base URL of your n8n deployment (e.g. https://n8n.yourcompany.com).
Enter the n8n API key — generate this in your n8n instance under Settings → API.
Click Save.

Easy8 stores the connection settings for use when installing workflows from the catalogue.

Cloud and on-premise: Every customer — both Cloud and on-premise — needs their own n8n instance. Easy8 does not provide, resell, or host n8n. Our team can help you connect an existing n8n instance to Easy8. If you do not yet have n8n, contact us and we will guide you through setting it up.

Install built-in workflows from the catalogue

Once n8n is connected, install the workflows you want to make available to your team.

Open Global Menu → Workflow Catalogue.
Browse the list of available workflows. Each entry shows the workflow name, a short description, and whether it is already Installed.
Open the workflow you want by clicking Show to view its detail page. Here you can see its details and the credentials it requires.
On the detail page, review the Required Credentials. These are automatically filled from the N8N Integration User — adjust them only if needed.
Click Create Credentials & Import Workflow (also labelled Import to n8n). Easy8 creates the credentials and deploys the workflow to your connected n8n instance automatically. The status changes to Installed.
Repeat for each workflow you want to make available.

Manual alternative: If you prefer to import a workflow by hand, use the Download button to download the workflow JSON, then import it into n8n manually (Import from File in your n8n instance). Note that Download only saves the file — it does not install anything.

Permissions: Access to the Workflow Catalogue is controlled by a single global permission, Manage Workflow Catalogue. A user either can manage the whole plugin (connect n8n, install and delete workflows) or cannot. There is no per-workflow visibility or access control.

Use a workflow in an Automation rule

This section is for all users. Installed workflows are not run from a standalone button on a task. Instead, an n8n workflow is added as an action inside an Easy8 Automation rule.

In Easy8, an automation rule has two parts: a trigger (when the rule should run) and one or more actions (what happens when it runs). To run an installed n8n workflow, you add it as an action.

Create a new Automation rule (or edit an existing one).
Choose a trigger — see the trigger patterns below.
In the Action step, switch from the Basic actions tab to the Advanced workflows tab (marked Beta).
Click Trigger workflow and select the installed workflow you want to run. Use Show detail to preview it.
Save the automation rule.

Custom payload (advanced, optional): The Custom payload field is optional and intended for advanced users. It lets you pass custom data to the workflow — for example custom field values, custom field IDs, or any other data that is not already sent through the webhook context. It is mainly aimed at the upcoming Level 2 and Level 3 workflows; for the current plug-and-play workflows you can leave it empty.

Your n8n workflows can be triggered through several automation mechanisms:

Entity button — a button on a task, project, or other entity
List button — a button on a list of records
Dashboard button — a button on a dashboard
Scheduled (time-based) rule — runs on a schedule
Event-based rule — runs when something happens (e.g. a status change)

When the trigger fires, Easy8 passes the relevant context (the current task, project, or other business data) to n8n, which runs the workflow. Depending on the workflow, the result may be a notification, a record created in an external system, an updated field, or a generated document.

Summary

The Workflow Catalogue connects Easy8 to your own n8n instance so teams can automate repetitive tasks without code. Every customer (Cloud and on-premise) provides their own n8n instance; Easy8 is the bridge, not the host.
Administrators connect n8n under Workflow Catalogue → n8n Settings and install built-in workflows from the catalogue by opening a workflow and importing it to n8n.
Once installed, a workflow is available as the Advanced workflows action when you build an Automation rule, triggered by an entity/list/dashboard button, a scheduled rule, or an event-based rule.

Corner cases

Error messages may not identify the specific field. If a workflow fails, the message shown is either a generic error or the error passed back from n8n, and it may not say which field caused the problem. Check that all required fields on the task or project are filled in before running the workflow again. If the error persists, ask your administrator to review the workflow configuration in n8n.

Automations: Workflow Catalogue and n8n Integration