n8n · infra · fg-0349
n8n says 'Credentials could not be decrypted' after a restore, upgrade or new container
Credentials could not be decrypted. The likely reason is that a different 'encryptionKey' was used to encrypt the data.
Verified 2026-10-15 · Confirmed by 0 builders · Trust 50/100
Cause
On first start n8n generates a random key and stores it in the ~/.n8n folder, and every credential in the database is encrypted with it. A fresh volume, a restore without that folder, or a worker without the same key cannot decrypt them.
Fix
Set N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY explicitly to the original key on the main instance and on every worker and webhook processor, and back it up together with the database.
Apply
# copy the key from the original instance settings in ~/.n8n, then pin it everywhere N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY=original-key-value # same on main, every worker and every webhook processor
Affects: Self-hosted n8n 1.x and 2.x; the explicit error surfaced from 1.74.0, Needs first setup labelling from 1.79.0
Sources
- https://docs.n8n.io/hosting/configuration/configuration-examples/encryption-key/
- https://docs.n8n.io/hosting/scaling/queue-mode/
- https://github.com/n8n-io/n8n/issues/12949
Have your agent know this before it fails
claude mcp add --transport http footgun https://getfootgun.com/api/mcp