n8n-io/n8n · error · Error

nodes.json not found at ${nodesJsonPath}

Error message

nodes.json not found at ${nodesJsonPath}

What it means

generateNodeDefinitions() is the post-build CLI that turns a package's dist/types/nodes.json into node definitions. Its first action is fs.existsSync(nodesJsonPath); if the file is missing it throws immediately with the resolved path so you know exactly what it looked for.

Source

Thrown at packages/@n8n/workflow-sdk/src/generate-types/generate-node-defs-cli.ts:65

		const pkg = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(sdkPackageJsonPath, 'utf-8')) as { version: string };
		return pkg.version;
	} catch {
		return 'unknown';
	}
}

/**
 * Generate node definitions from a nodes.json file.
 * Skips generation if the input hash matches the stored sentinel.
 * Testable core logic extracted from CLI entry point.
 */
export async function generateNodeDefinitions(
	options: GenerateNodeDefinitionsOptions,
): Promise<void> {
	const { nodesJsonPath, outputDir, packageName } = options;

	if (!fs.existsSync(nodesJsonPath)) {
		throw new Error(`nodes.json not found at ${nodesJsonPath}`);
	}

	const content = await fs.promises.readFile(nodesJsonPath, 'utf-8');

	// Hash-based skip: check if output is already up to date
	const sdkVersion = getSdkVersion();
	const inputHash = computeInputHash(content, sdkVersion);
	const hashFilePath = path.join(outputDir, HASH_SENTINEL_FILE);

	try {
		const existingHash = await fs.promises.readFile(hashFilePath, 'utf-8');
		if (existingHash.trim() === inputHash) {
			console.log('Node definitions up to date (hash match), skipping generation.');
			return;
		}
	} catch {
		// Hash file doesn't exist — proceed with generation
	}

View on GitHub (pinned to 5ac6606e81)

Solutions

1. Run the package build first (e.g. pnpm build for the node package) so dist/types/nodes.json exists.
2. Invoke the CLI from the package root, or pass an explicit absolute nodesJsonPath.
3. Check the printed path with ls to confirm where nodes.json actually is and adjust the option.

import * as fs from 'fs';
if (!fs.existsSync(nodesJsonPath)) {
  throw new Error(`Build dist/types/nodes.json is missing at ${nodesJsonPath}. Run the package build first.`);
}
await generateNodeDefinitions({ nodesJsonPath, outputDir, packageName });

When it happens

Trigger: Running n8n-generate-node-defs before the package build has emitted dist/types/nodes.json; running it from the wrong working directory; passing a custom nodesJsonPath option that points nowhere; build failed silently so nodes.json was never written.

Common situations: Fresh checkout where build was skipped; CI running the generate step out of order; custom packaging scripts that override nodesJsonPath; monorepo where the CLI is invoked from the repo root instead of the package dir.

Related errors

• Failed to parse node types from ${jsonPath}: ${error instanc
• Workflow directory not found: ${workflowDir}
• --build-cwd directory does not exist: ${args.buildCwd}
• Disk source needs the n8n repo (run from inside it) or --wor
• ${claudeConfigPath} not found

AI-assisted analysis of n8n-io/n8n@5ac6606e81 (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/c75cacb65c2b5144. Report an issue: GitHub.