SIGNAL GRID ACADEMY
All courses

Automation · Intermediate

No-Code Automation with n8n + AI

Drag-and-drop workflows that connect Claude to 400+ apps, self-hosted for free.

4 lessons 59 min Certificate
Steps for
Join free to track progress

Lesson 1 · 15 min · Windows

Install and open n8n

n8n is an open-source workflow tool. You connect boxes ("nodes"): a trigger, some steps, and actions.

Option A: quick start with Node.js

Windows steps
powershell
winget install OpenJS.NodeJS.LTS
npx n8n

Open http://localhost:5678 and create your owner account.

Option B: Docker (keeps data safe between restarts)

text
docker volume create n8n_data
docker run -it --rm --name n8n -p 5678:5678 -v n8n_data:/home/node/.n8n docker.n8n.io/n8nio/n8n
Windows steps

Install Docker Desktop first: winget install Docker.DockerDesktop (needs WSL2; the installer guides you).

Vocabulary

  • Trigger: what starts it (schedule, webhook, new email).
  • Node: one step (HTTP request, AI, Google Sheets).
  • Execution: one run; open it to see data flowing through each node.

Quick quiz

Pass 2 of 3
1. Which address opens n8n locally?
2. Why use the Docker volume (-v n8n_data:...)?
3. What starts a workflow?
Join free to take the quiz

Quick assignment

To do

Run n8n and create a 2-node workflow: a Manual Trigger and a 'Set' node with a message. Execute it and paste the output JSON.

Hint: Click 'Execute workflow' and open the Set node's output.

Join free to submit

Stuck or proud of what you built? Discuss this course in the forum.