How can I implement a Discord trigger workaround in n8n?

Below is one possible workaround. n8n doesn’t currently ship with an official Discord trigger node, and if community nodes for Discord aren’t maintained for your version, you can achieve similar behavior by setting up your own intermediary Discord bot that forwards events to an n8n webhook. Here’s a high-level outline of how you can implement this:

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1. Create a Discord Bot that Listens for Channel Messages

Using a library like discord.js, you can create a bot that listens for messages in channels you choose. In your bot’s code, when a message arrives, send an HTTP POST request to your n8n webhook endpoint.

Example (using discord.js):

JAVASCRIPTCopied
const { Client, GatewayIntentBits } = require('discord.js');
const axios = require('axios');

const client = new Client({
	intents: [GatewayIntentBits.Guilds, GatewayIntentBits.GuildMessages, GatewayIntentBits.MessageContent],
});

const n8nWebhookUrl = 'https://your-n8n-instance.com/webhook/discord'; // Replace with your actual webhook URL

client.on('messageCreate', async (message) => {
	// Optionally, add any filtering logic (for example, ignore bot messages)
	if (message.author.bot) return;

	try {
		await axios.post(n8nWebhookUrl, {
			author: message.author.username,
			content: message.content,
			channel: message.channel.name,
			messageId: message.id,
			createdAt: message.createdAt,
		});
	} catch (error) {
		console.error('Error posting to n8n webhook:', error.message);
	}
});

client.login('YOUR_DISCORD_BOT_TOKEN'); // Replace with your Discord bot token

This script logs the bot into Discord, listens for incoming messages, and then forwards key data to the provided n8n webhook.

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2. Create a Webhook Trigger in n8n

1. In your n8n instance, add a Webhook trigger node.
2. Configure the node with a unique path (for example, /webhook/discord), and ensure that your public webhook URL (set via WEBHOOK_URL when running behind a reverse proxy) uses HTTPS.
3. Once the webhook is set up, the node will receive the payload sent from your Discord bot.

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3. Considerations & Additional Tips

• Security: Make sure to secure your webhook so that unwanted traffic isn’t accepted. You might consider adding a secret token in the request or additional verification in your n8n workflow.
• Reverse Proxy: If you’re running n8n behind a reverse proxy, check your configuration to ensure that websocket proxying or HTTP proxy settings are correctly set. (See troubleshooting steps for nodes like the Telegram Trigger node if you run into connectivity issues.)
• Persisting Data: As your incoming messages will drive your workflow, make sure you process and store data appropriately using n8n’s data processing features.

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Reviving Community Nodes

If you prefer trying to get a community Discord trigger node working again, you could also:

• Fork the community node repository and update the implementation to match the new n8n node standards.
• Ensure all necessary packages are installed at startup (for example, by persisting the ~/.n8n/nodes directory or setting the N8N_REINSTALL_MISSING_PACKAGES environment variable if needed).

However, using a custom Discord bot alongside an n8n webhook trigger has the advantage of flexibility and fewer dependencies on community node support.

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Both approaches are viable, but many users find that building their own simple integration with a Discord bot provides more control and easier maintenance over time.