Triggers Reference
Complete guide to all trigger nodes — manual, webhook, schedule, and third-party integrations.
Written By pvdyck
Last updated About 5 hours ago
Triggers Reference
Triggers are the starting point for any workflow. They determine how and when your agent begins execution.
Core Triggers
Manual Trigger
ID: 0508271 | Use: On-demand execution
The Manual Trigger starts a workflow when you click "Execute" in the n8n editor or call the execution API directly.
When to Use:
- Testing and debugging workflows
- One-off data processing tasks
- Workflows triggered via the indie.money UI execute button
Limitations: None. Full support.
Webhook Node (Trigger)
ID: 3989784 | Use: HTTP-based triggering
The Webhook trigger provides a unique HTTPS URL that starts your workflow when an external service sends an HTTP request to it.
What It Does:
- Respond immediately (synchronous) or use Respond to Webhook node (async)
- Accept GET and POST methods by default; HEAD, PUT, PATCH, and DELETE when explicitly configured in the webhook node
- Access query parameters via
$json.queryand payload via$json.body
Key Limitations:
- 1 webhook per workflow — Each agent has exactly one webhook URL
- No HMAC signature verification — Any caller with your URL can trigger the workflow
- Auth options: None (default), Basic Auth, Header Auth, and JWT Auth
- No streaming responses — SSE/chunked transfer encoding is not supported. Cloudflare Workers buffer the full response before returning it. Use the Respond to Webhook node for a single JSON/text response instead.
Security: Protect your webhook URL like a secret. If compromised, regenerate it from the Producer Dashboard.
Schedule Trigger
ID: 2737197 | Use: Time-based automation
The Schedule Trigger runs workflows automatically at defined time intervals or cron expressions.
Supported Intervals:
- Every N minutes (minimum: 1 minute)
- Every N hours or days
- Specific days of week
- Custom cron expression
Limitations: 1-minute minimum interval. Sub-second scheduling is not supported.
Execute Workflow Trigger
ID: 8296662 | Use: Workflow-to-workflow calls
The Execute Workflow Trigger allows one workflow to invoke another as a sub-workflow. Used with the Execute Workflow node for service composition patterns.
See: Service Composition for details.
Third-Party Triggers
These triggers start your workflow when specific events occur in external services. All require Secure Vault authentication.
Authentication: All third-party triggers require Secure Vault OAuth or API key authentication.
Limitations:
- Secure Vault authentication required for all
- Webhook-based; real-time only
- Event filtering depends on the service's capabilities