n8n

n8n is an open-source workflow automation tool. Synapse integrates with n8n so agents can trigger n8n workflows as custom tools, combining Synapse's LLM reasoning with n8n's hundreds of app connectors.

How it works

1. You configure your n8n instance details in Synapse settings
2. n8n workflows are exposed as custom tools agents can call
3. The agent decides when to trigger a workflow based on the task at hand
4. n8n executes the workflow (connecting to Slack, Salesforce, Airtable, etc.) and returns the result
5. The agent incorporates the result into its response

Setup

Step 1 — Configure n8n in Synapse settings

Go to Settings → Integrations → n8n or edit settings.json:

{
  "n8n_url": "http://localhost:5678",
  "n8n_api_key": "n8n_...",
  "n8n_table_id": "optional-default-workflow-id"
}

Setting	Description
n8n_url	Your n8n instance URL (default: http://localhost:5678)
n8n_api_key	n8n API key (generate in n8n → Settings → API)
n8n_table_id	Optional default workflow ID to use when none is specified

Step 2 — Get your n8n API key

In n8n: Settings → API → API Keys → Create API Key

Step 3 — Register n8n workflows as custom tools

Go to Settings → Custom Tools → Add Tool → REST API and add your n8n webhook:

{
  "name": "create_jira_ticket",
  "generalName": "Create Jira Ticket",
  "description": "Create a Jira ticket with the specified title, description, and priority",
  "tool_type": "http",
  "method": "POST",
  "url": "http://localhost:5678/webhook/{workflow_id}",
  "headers": { "Content-Type": "application/json" },
  "body": "{ \"title\": \"{title}\", \"description\": \"{description}\", \"priority\": \"{priority}\" }",
  "parameters": [
    { "name": "title", "type": "string", "description": "Ticket title", "required": true },
    { "name": "description", "type": "string", "description": "Ticket description", "required": true },
    { "name": "priority", "type": "string", "description": "Priority: low, medium, high", "required": false }
  ]
}

Replace {workflow_id} with your n8n workflow's webhook path.

Step 4 — Set up the n8n workflow

In n8n:

1. Create a workflow with a Webhook trigger node
2. Add nodes for the actions (Jira, Slack, Salesforce, email, etc.)
3. Set the webhook to Production mode
4. Copy the webhook URL

Example workflows

Slack notification via n8n

Agent: "I need to notify the team about the production incident"
→ Calls trigger_slack_alert tool
→ n8n workflow sends formatted message to #incidents channel
→ Returns: "Message sent to #incidents"

Salesforce lead creation

Agent: "Create a lead for Alice Johnson at Acme Corp"
→ Calls create_salesforce_lead tool
→ n8n workflow creates the lead in Salesforce
→ Returns: "Lead created: https://salesforce.com/leads/001..."

Multi-step automation

Agent: "Close the support ticket #1234 and notify the customer"
→ n8n workflow: 
   1. Updates Zendesk ticket status
   2. Sends email to customer
   3. Posts closure note to Slack
→ Returns: "Ticket closed, customer notified"

n8n vs direct API tools

Approach	Use when
Direct REST API tool	Simple one-step API calls
n8n workflow	Multi-step automations, existing n8n flows, 400+ app integrations

Self-hosted vs n8n Cloud

Synapse works with both:

• Self-hosted n8n: set n8n_url to your local or VPS instance
• n8n Cloud: set n8n_url to your cloud instance URL (e.g. https://myworkspace.app.n8n.cloud)