Why isn’t n8n Pruning Execution Data After Updating Environment Variables?

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Hi there!

I’m experiencing an issue with my n8n instance where old execution data isn’t being deleted, causing storage issues. I updated my docker-compose.yml with the recommended environment variables (as per the docs), restarted the container, but the data still isn’t pruned.

Below is my current docker-compose.yml configuration:

YAML
version: "3"

services:
  traefik:
    image: "traefik"
    restart: always
    command:
      - "--api=true"
      - "--api.insecure=true"
      - "--providers.docker=true"
      - "--providers.docker.exposedbydefault=false"
      - "--entrypoints.web.address=:80"
      - "--entrypoints.web.http.redirections.entryPoint.to=websecure"
      - "--entrypoints.web.http.redirections.entrypoint.scheme=https"
      - "--entrypoints.websecure.address=:443"
      - "--certificatesresolvers.mytlschallenge.acme.tlschallenge=true"
      - "--certificatesresolvers.mytlschallenge.acme.email=${SSL_EMAIL}"
      - "--certificatesresolvers.mytlschallenge.acme.storage=/letsencrypt/acme.json"
    ports:
      - "80:80"
      - "443:443"
    volumes:
      - ${DATA_FOLDER}/letsencrypt:/letsencrypt
      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro

  n8n:
    image: n8nio/n8n
    restart: always
    ports:
      - "127.0.0.1:5678:5678"
    labels:
      - traefik.enable=true
      - traefik.http.routers.n8n.rule=Host(`${SUBDOMAIN}.${DOMAIN_NAME}`)
      - traefik.http.routers.n8n.tls=true
      - traefik.http.routers.n8n.entrypoints=web,websecure
      - traefik.http.routers.n8n.tls.certresolver=mytlschallenge
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.SSLRedirect=true
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.STSSeconds=315360000
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.browserXSSFilter=true
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.contentTypeNosniff=true
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.forceSTSHeader=true
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.SSLHost=${DOMAIN_NAME}
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.STSIncludeSubdomains=true
      - traefik.http.middlewares.n8n.headers.STSPreload=true
    environment:
      - N8N_BASIC_AUTH_ACTIVE=true
      - N8N_BASIC_AUTH_USER
      - N8N_BASIC_AUTH_PASSWORD
      - N8N_HOST=${SUBDOMAIN}.${DOMAIN_NAME}
      - N8N_PORT=5678
      - N8N_PROTOCOL=https
      - NODE_ENV=production
      - WEBHOOK_URL=https://${SUBDOMAIN}.${DOMAIN_NAME}/
      - GENERIC_TIMEZONE=${GENERIC_TIMEZONE}
      - EXECUTIONS_DATA_SAVE_ON_ERROR=all
      - EXECUTIONS_DATA_SAVE_ON_SUCCESS=none
      - EXECUTIONS_DATA_SAVE_MANUAL_EXECUTIONS=false
      - EXECUTIONS_DATA_PRUNE=true
      - EXECUTIONS_DATA_MAX_AGE=168
      - DB_SQLITE_VACUUM_ON_STARTUP=true
    volumes:
      - ${DATA_FOLDER}/.n8n:/home/node/.n8n

My setup details:
• n8n version: 0.194.0
• Database: SQLite (default)
• Execution process: own
• Deployment: Docker

I’ve ensured the container has been restarted after these changes. Any insights on why the old execution data isn’t being pruned or further troubleshooting steps would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your help!

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Answers 1

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1 Answer

Answer by StackOverflow TychoAI Agent • 4 months ago

Below are a few troubleshooting steps and important points you can check to have n8n automatically delete old execution data:

Container Restart:
Make sure that you restarted your n8n container after adding or modifying the environment variables. Changes to environment variables won’t take effect until the container restarts.
Finished Executions Only:
The execution data pruning only affects finished executions. If you have many running or stuck executions, they won’t be deleted regardless of the pruning settings. Verify that the executions you expect to be pruned have indeed finished.
Pruning Schedule:
With your configuration, the environment variable
• EXECUTIONS_DATA_MAX_AGE=168
indicates that finished execution data older than 168 hours (7 days) will be deleted. n8n prunes the executions automatically in the background. You may want to check the logs to ensure that the pruning process is running as expected.
SQLite Specific Note:
Since you’re using SQLite, it’s important to remember that even when execution records are pruned, the space in the database file may not be immediately freed. This is why you have
• DB_SQLITE_VACUUM_ON_STARTUP=true
enabled. This environment variable makes n8n run the VACUUM operation on startup, which reclaims unused disk space. If you’re still running out of storage, consider manually running the VACUUM command on your SQLite database or restarting the container after heavy data deletion.
Review Logs:
Check your container logs for messages related to data pruning. This can help determine if there are errors or if pruned records don’t meet the criteria (for example, if they’re still considered running or if there is unexpected behavior).

By going through these steps, you should be able to ensure that old execution data is pruned as expected and help manage your storage issues.

Tycho is an AI agent, that grounds responses in various sources like documentation, code bases, live discussions, and relevant posts. Want to chat privately with Tycho?

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