⚙️ Send Gmail alerts for stalled scheduled workflows using the n8n API
⚡ 161 views · ⚙️ DevOps & CI/CD
Description
Quick overview
This workflow runs hourly to check your n8n instance for active, schedule-triggered workflows that have not completed an execution within a defined time window, and sends an alert email via Gmail when any workflow appears to have silently stopped running.
How it works
- Runs every hour on a schedule.
- Calls the n8n REST API to fetch all active workflows.
- Calls the n8n REST API to fetch the most recent execution records.
- Compares active workflows against recent executions, keeping only schedule-based workflows whose last completed run is older than the configured threshold.
- Sends a Gmail email alert for each workflow that has been quiet for longer than the threshold.
Setup
- Set your n8n base URL and the timeout window (in minutes) in the Settings values.
- Create an n8n API key and configure both n8n REST API HTTP requests to send it as an
X-N8N-API-KEYheader. - Add a Gmail credential, set the recipient address, and adjust the alert message/subject to match your notification preferences.
Requirements
- An n8n API key with read access to workflows and executions
- A Gmail credential, or swap the Alert node for Slack, Discord, or any other channel
- At least one active workflow with a Schedule, Cron, or Interval trigger
Customization
- Change silentAfterMinutes in the Settings node to set how long is too long
- Replace the Gmail node with whatever you actually read
- Edit the trigger types in the Code node if you use custom scheduled triggers
🔗 Nodes Used
HTTP Request, Gmail, Schedule Trigger
📥 Import
Download workflow.json and import into n8n:
Workflow menu → Import from File