Transcription
n8n is changing the way we automate tasks. In this tutorial, I'll walk you through the easiest way to set up n8n at zero cost, perfect for beginners. Let's get started.
First, go to this website: render.com. It offers a free plan called "Hobby," and we are going to use that. Simply click on "Get Started," then enter your email address and a password to create an account. Now, we need to verify our email address. Here, I've received the email. So, I'll just tap on "Verify Your Email." This will redirect us to the Render dashboard. Here, we have the option to provide some information about ourselves, but it's completely optional. Simply click on "Skip to Dashboard."
Next, we need to select a plan. Since we're using the free plan, choose the first one named "Hobby." Scroll down and tap on "Select Plan." Now, we're ready to deploy n8n. Click on "New Web Service" and select "Existing Image." Here, you need to paste the n8n registry link that I provided in the video description. Once done, simply click on "Connect."
Now, scroll down. If you want to change the server location, you can do it here. I'm keeping it as "us-west" by default. Next, select the free plan. It does have some limitations, like spinning down after a period of inactivity, but don't worry. I found a cool solution to keep it active all the time, and I'll show you that at the end of the video.
Now, scroll down and tap on "Deploy Web Service." This will start the n8n installation process, which will take around 3 to 5 minutes. Now, the installation is almost complete. We just need to wait until the status changes from "In Progress" to "Live." Once it's done, here's the n8n dashboard link. Let's open it.
First, we need to set up our account. Enter your email ID, first name, last name, and password, then click on "Next." On the next screen, you'll be asked to enter some details, but this step is optional. Simply click on "Get Started."
Next, we can get a free license key to unlock all the advanced features of n8n. Just enter your email address and tap on "Send me a license key." You'll receive an email with the license key. Copy it, then go back to your n8n dashboard. Now, go to "Settings," enter the activation key, paste the license key here, and click "Activate." That's it! Now we have access to all the advanced features of n8n.
Okay, now we're good to go. We can start developing AI agents. As I mentioned earlier, there's a disadvantage: if our server remains inactive for 15 minutes, it will spin down and remove all data. This means we'd have to set up the n8n account again, and all our AI agents' data would be lost.
To prevent this, we can use a simple trick: setting up a cron job that sends a request to our server at regular intervals. For that, go to this free website: cronjob.org. Simply sign up for an account by entering your details to complete the registration. You'll also need to verify your email address. I've already created an account, so let me sign in.
Now, simply click on "Create Cron Job." Next, go back to your Render dashboard, copy the n8n link, and paste it here. Give a name to this cron job and set the execution schedule to "every 5 minutes." Now, let's run a quick test. Tap on "Start Test Run" and check the response. If it shows "200," that means it's successful. Close the test window and save the cron job.
Now, it's set to run every 5 minutes, meaning it will send a request to our server at regular intervals. This ensures that our instance stays active all the time and won't spin down. That's it! Everything is now completely ready. You can start creating AI agents right away.
We'll be uploading more tutorials on how to develop AI agents. If you found this video useful, feel free to like and subscribe to our channel. Thank you.