Automate Droplet Snapshots on DigitalOcean

This n8n workflow provides a robust solution for automating the creation of snapshots for your DigitalOcean Droplets. By leveraging the DigitalOcean API, it ensures that your Droplets are regularly backed up, enhancing data safety and recovery capabilities.

What it does

This workflow simplifies the process of creating DigitalOcean Droplet snapshots with the following steps:

1. Schedules Execution: The workflow is triggered on a predefined schedule (e.g., daily, weekly) using the Cron node.
2. Fetches Droplet Information: It makes an HTTP request to the DigitalOcean API to retrieve a list of all your Droplets.
3. Filters Droplets (Placeholder): A Filter node is included, which can be configured to selectively choose which Droplets to snapshot based on specific criteria (e.g., tags, names, regions). Note: The current JSON does not include any specific filter conditions, so it will pass all droplets by default. You will need to configure this node to filter as desired.
4. Creates Snapshots (Placeholder): An HTTP Request node is included, which would be configured to make a POST request to the DigitalOcean API to create a snapshot for each filtered Droplet. Note: The current JSON does not include the specific API call for creating a snapshot. This node needs to be configured with the correct DigitalOcean API endpoint and payload to initiate snapshot creation.

Prerequisites/Requirements

• n8n Instance: A running n8n instance.
• DigitalOcean Account: An active DigitalOcean account.
• DigitalOcean API Token: A DigitalOcean Personal Access Token with read and write permissions for Droplets and Snapshots. This token will be used to authenticate API requests.

Setup/Usage

1. Import the Workflow:

   • Download the provided JSON file.
   • In your n8n instance, click "New" in the top left, then "Import from JSON".
   • Paste the JSON content or upload the file.

2. Configure DigitalOcean Credentials:

   • Locate the "HTTP Request" node (ID 19).
   • You will need to configure this node to use your DigitalOcean API Token for authentication. This is typically done by setting up an HTTP Header with Authorization: Bearer YOUR_DIGITALOCEAN_API_TOKEN.
   • It's highly recommended to use an n8n credential for your DigitalOcean API Token for security.

3. Configure the Cron Schedule:

   • Open the "Cron" node (ID 7).
   • Adjust the schedule to your desired frequency for snapshot creation (e.g., daily, weekly, specific times).

4. Configure Droplet Filtering (Optional but Recommended):

   • Open the "Filter" node (ID 844).
   • Currently, this node passes all items. To snapshot only specific Droplets, add conditions based on the data returned by the "HTTP Request" node (ID 19). For example, you might filter by name, tags, or region.

5. Configure Snapshot Creation HTTP Request:

   • The "HTTP Request" node (ID 19) is currently set up to fetch droplet information. You will need to add another HTTP Request node (or modify this one if you prefer a single node for both fetching and creating, which is less common) specifically for creating snapshots.
   • This new node should be placed after the "Filter" node.
   • Method: POST
   • URL: https://api.digitalocean.com/v2/droplets/{{$json.id}}/actions (assuming you're iterating over droplets and $json.id is the droplet ID)
   • Body (JSON):

     {
       "type": "snapshot",
       "name": "snapshot-{{ $json.name }}-{{ $now.toDate().toISOString().split('T')[0] }}"
     }
     

     This example creates a snapshot with a name like snapshot-my-droplet-2023-10-27. Adjust the name as needed.
   • Ensure this new HTTP Request node also uses your DigitalOcean API Token for authentication.

6. Activate the Workflow:

   • Once configured, activate the workflow by toggling the "Active" switch in the top right corner of the n8n editor.

This workflow provides a solid foundation for automating your DigitalOcean Droplet snapshots. Remember to thoroughly test the workflow in a non-production environment first.