Deploy on Railway

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Overview

• ☁️ Instant cloud hosting - No server setup required
• 🔒 Secure by default - HTTPS included, auth token warnings
• 🌐 Global access - Connect from any Claude Desktop
• ⚡ Auto-scaling - Railway handles the infrastructure
• 📊 Built-in monitoring - Logs and metrics included

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One-Click Deploy

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Step-by-Step Deployment

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1. Deploy to Railway

1. Click the “Deploy on Railway” button above
2. Sign in to Railway (or create a free account)
3. Configure your deployment:
   • Project name (optional)
   • Environment (leave as “production”)
   • Region (choose closest to you)
4. Click “Deploy” and wait ~2-3 minutes

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2. Configure Security

1. Go to your Railway dashboard
2. Click on your n8n-mcp service
3. Navigate to “Variables” tab
4. Find AUTH_TOKEN
5. Replace with a secure token:

# Generate secure token locally:
openssl rand -base64 32

6. Railway will automatically redeploy with the new token

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3. Get Your Service URL

1. In Railway dashboard, click on your service
2. Go to “Settings” tab
3. Under “Domains”, copy your URL:
   https://your-app-name.up.railway.app
   
4. Add /mcp to the end for your MCP endpoint:
   https://your-app-name.up.railway.app/mcp
   

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4. Connect Claude Desktop

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "n8n-railway": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-remote",
        "https://your-app-name.up.railway.app/mcp",
        "--header",
        "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_SECURE_TOKEN_HERE"
      ]
    }
  }
}

~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

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Environment Variables

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Pre-configured Variables

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Optional Variables

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For n8n MCP Client Tool Integration

1. Go to Railway dashboard → Your service → Variables
2. Add variable: N8N_MODE = true
3. Save changes - Railway will redeploy automatically

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For n8n API Integration (Workflow Management)

1. Go to Railway dashboard → Your service → Variables
2. Add variables:
   • N8N_API_URL: Your n8n instance URL (e.g., https://n8n.example.com)
   • N8N_API_KEY: API key from n8n Settings → API
3. Save changes - Railway will redeploy automatically

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Architecture

Claude Desktop → mcp-remote → Railway (HTTPS) → n8n-MCP Server

1. Claude Desktop uses mcp-remote as a bridge
2. mcp-remote converts stdio to HTTP requests
3. Railway provides HTTPS endpoint and infrastructure
4. n8n-MCP runs in HTTP mode on Railway

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Single-Instance Design

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Security Features

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Rate Limiting

• Automatic brute force protection - 20 attempts per 15 minutes per IP
• Configurable limits via environment variables
• Standard rate limit headers for client awareness

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SSRF Protection

• Default strict mode blocks localhost, private IPs, and cloud metadata
• Cloud metadata always blocked (169.254.169.254, metadata.google.internal, etc.)
• Use moderate mode only if connecting to local n8n instance

WEBHOOK_SECURITY_MODE=strict          # Production (recommended)
# or
WEBHOOK_SECURITY_MODE=moderate        # If using local n8n with port forwarding

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Monitoring & Logs

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View Logs

1. Go to Railway dashboard
2. Click on your n8n-mcp service
3. Click on “Logs” tab
4. View real-time logs including:
   • Server startup messages
   • Authentication attempts
   • API requests (without sensitive data)
   • Errors and warnings

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Monitor Usage

• Memory usage (typically ~100-200MB)
• CPU usage (minimal when idle)
• Network traffic
• Response times

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Pricing

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Railway Free Tier

• $5 free credit monthly
• 500 hours of runtime
• Sufficient for personal use of n8n-MCP

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Estimated Costs

• n8n-MCP typically uses: ~0.1 GB RAM
• Monthly cost: ~$2-3 for 24/7 operation
• Well within free tier for most users

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Troubleshooting

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Connection Issues

• Ensure you’re using the exact configuration format shown above
• The URL should end with /mcp
• Use full HTTPS URL

• Check that your AUTH_TOKEN matches exactly (no extra spaces)
• Ensure the Authorization header format is correct: Authorization: Bearer TOKEN

• Verify your Railway deployment is running (check Railway dashboard)
• Ensure the URL is correct and includes https://
• Check Railway logs for any errors

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Windows: npx Command Not Found

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "n8n-railway": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "C:\\Program Files\\nodejs\\node_modules\\npm\\bin\\npx-cli.js",
        "-y",
        "mcp-remote",
        "https://your-app-name.up.railway.app/mcp",
        "--header",
        "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_SECURE_TOKEN_HERE"
      ]
    }
  }
}

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Railway-Specific Issues

• Railway uses AMD64 architecture - the template is configured for this
• Check build logs in Railway dashboard for specific errors

• Variables are case-sensitive
• Don’t include quotes in the Railway dashboard (only in JSON config)
• Railway automatically restarts when you change variables

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Updates

1. Check for updates on GitHub
2. Update image tag in Railway:
   • Go to Settings → Deploy → Docker Image
   • Change tag from current to new version
   • Click “Redeploy”

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Next Steps