Adding a Domain Later

If you set up an instance with an IP address or need to change its domain, here is how you can add a new custom domain and enable SSL.

Sometimes you might want to test an n8n instance using just an IP address, and attach a domain later. Or perhaps you need to change the domain an instance is currently using. You can easily add a domain and issue a new SSL certificate without having to rebuild the instance.

Step 1: Update your DNS records

Before adding the domain to your instance, you must ensure it points to the correct server.

  1. Go to your domain registrar (e.g., Cloudflare, Namecheap, Route53).
  2. Create an A Record for your desired subdomain (like automate.yourdomain.com).
  3. Point it to the public IP address of the server hosting your n8n instance.

Step 2: Verify DNS in the Server tab

DNS propagation can take a few minutes. Before requesting an SSL certificate, you should verify the DNS is propagating correctly.

  1. Navigate to the Servers tab in your n8nmanager dashboard.
  2. Select the server where your instance is hosted.
  3. You can use the server details or any built-in tools to verify that the domain name resolves to the correct IP address.

Step 3: Enable SSL in the Instances tab

Once you are confident the DNS is fully propagated, you can apply the domain to the instance and generate the SSL certificate.

  1. Navigate to the Instances tab.
  2. Click on the specific n8n instance you want to update.
  3. Locate the domain settings and click on Enable SSL.
The agent will automatically configure Caddy with the new domain and request a Let's Encrypt SSL certificate. This process usually takes less than a minute. Once complete, your instance will be accessible via HTTPS on the new domain!