Troubleshooting Missing 'Read File' and 'List Items' Nodes in n8n on macOS

It sounds like your n8n instance isn’t loading all of the nodes you expect—often an issue when community (or extra) nodes aren’t correctly installed at startup. In n8n, nodes (especially non-core ones) need their packages to be available on startup. If they aren’t (for example, when using Docker and the node packages haven’t persisted), they won’t show up in the UI.

Here are a few things to check:

1. Docker Persistence
   If you’re running n8n in Docker, make sure you’re persisting the nodes directory (typically at ~/.n8n/nodes). Without persistence, when you recreate your container (or upgrade n8n), the community nodes (which “read file” or “list items” might be part of) can disappear.

   For example, when following the Docker installation guide, you’d mount a volume:

   SHELLCopied
   docker run -it --rm \
     -p 5678:5678 \
     -v n8n_data:/home/node/.n8n \
     docker.n8n.io/n8nio/n8n

2. Environment Variable Option
   Alternatively, you can set the environment variable N8N_REINSTALL_MISSING_PACKAGES=true so that n8n attempts to reinstall missing packages at startup. Keep in mind this may increase startup time and could affect health checks.

3. Core vs Community Nodes
   Note that standard file operations (like reading files or listing items) are available as built-in functionality in n8n. If you’re expecting additional nodes from some external prompt or tutorial, double-check that they are actually part of your installation and not a community package that needs extra steps.

4. Clearing UI Filters and Checking Logs
   Sometimes the UI might be filtering out nodes based on search criteria or display settings. Double-check that there’s no active filter. Also, check the logs (or browser developer console when running the app) for any errors indicating missing packages or other issues.

Using these steps should help ensure that all expected nodes load correctly. If you continue to have issues, consider verifying that you’re running a supported Node.js version and that the Docker image you’re using matches the n8n version (1.77.3 in your case).

Hopefully, this helps you get your expected “read file” and “list items” nodes visible.