Execution progress saving enabled in n8n
Why saving progress after every node slows down your workflows
What is this issue?
When 'Save Execution Progress' is enabled, n8n writes the execution state to the database after every single node completes. This is useful for debugging long-running workflows but creates significant overhead in production.
Impact in production:
•Database writes doubled or tripled per execution•Increased latency on every node execution•Higher database storage consumption•Slower workflows overall
Why is this dangerous?
Performance degradation
Each node adds a database write, slowing down execution significantly for workflows with many nodes.
Database overload
High-frequency workflows can overwhelm your database with write operations.
Storage bloat
Execution state data accumulates quickly, filling your database storage.
Increased costs
More database operations mean higher cloud costs for managed database services.
How to fix it
- 1
Disable in production
Go to workflow Settings and disable 'Save Execution Progress' for production workflows.
- 2
Use only for debugging
Enable this setting temporarily only when debugging a specific issue with a long-running workflow.
- 3
Enable per-workflow
Instead of enabling globally, enable only for specific workflows that need it during development.
- 4
Review execution data settings
Also review 'Save successful executions' and 'Save failed executions' settings to reduce database load.
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