Is your n8n ready for 3.0? (npm, npx or Docker)

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n8n 3.0 is due in October 2026. Its breaking-changes page says self-hosted n8n will no longer support installs run with npm or npx - those have to move to Docker before upgrading. Answer three questions and see what it means for you.

1. How do you run n8n?

npm install -g n8n (then n8n start)
npx n8n
Docker / Docker Compose
n8n Cloud
I don't know

2. What starts it?

a systemd service
pm2
I start it by hand / in a terminal
I don't know / not relevant

3. Which database?

the default (SQLite file)
Postgres
I don't know

Free PDF: the n8n 3.0 move checklist (2 pages: find out what you have, back up, move, verify, roll back).

Step by step: how to move n8n from npm to Docker before 3.0 (keep your credentials).

How to find out how you run n8n

which n8n; systemctl list-units --all | grep -i n8n; pm2 ls 2>/dev/null | grep -i n8n; docker ps 2>/dev/null | grep -i n8n

If docker ps shows n8n, you are on Docker. If which n8n prints a path and Docker shows nothing, you are on npm.

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