trading_bot_v3/v4/N8N_WORKFLOW_GUIDE.md

n8n Workflow Setup Guide - Trading Bot v4

Complete guide to set up the automated trading workflow in n8n.

---

📋 Workflow Overview

TradingView Alert (Webhook)
    ↓
Validate Secret
    ↓
Parse Signal (SOL/BTC/ETH, LONG/SHORT)
    ↓
Check Risk Limits (API call to /api/trading/check-risk)
    ↓
Execute Trade (API call to /api/trading/execute)
    ↓
Format Message (Success/Error/Blocked)
    ↓
Send Telegram Notification

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🚀 Quick Setup

Step 1: Import Workflow

1. Open your n8n instance
2. Click "+ New Workflow"
3. Click "⋮" (three dots) → "Import from File"
4. Select n8n-workflow-complete.json
5. Click "Import"

Step 2: Configure Environment Variables

In n8n, go to Settings → Environment Variables and add:

# Your trading bot API URL
TRADING_BOT_API_URL=http://your-server:3000

# API secret key (must match .env in v4)
API_SECRET_KEY=your_secret_key_from_env

# TradingView webhook validation
TRADINGVIEW_WEBHOOK_SECRET=your_tradingview_secret

# Telegram credentials
TELEGRAM_CHAT_ID=your_telegram_chat_id

Step 3: Configure Telegram Credentials

1. In n8n, click "Telegram - Send Notification" node
2. Click "Create New Credential"
3. Enter your Telegram Bot Token
4. Save credential

Step 4: Get Webhook URL

1. Click "Webhook - TradingView Alert" node
2. Click "Test URL" or "Production URL"
3. Copy the webhook URL (looks like: https://your-n8n.com/webhook/tradingview-webhook)
4. Save this for TradingView setup

Step 5: Activate Workflow

1. Toggle "Active" switch at top right
2. Workflow is now listening for webhooks!

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🔧 Detailed Configuration

Webhook Node Configuration

Node: Webhook - TradingView Alert

• HTTP Method: POST
• Path: tradingview-webhook (or customize)
• Response: Return on Last Node
• Raw Body: Enabled

What it does: Receives TradingView alerts via webhook

Validate Secret Node

Node: Validate Secret

• Type: IF condition
• Condition: {{$json.body.secret}} equals {{$env.TRADINGVIEW_WEBHOOK_SECRET}}

What it does: Prevents unauthorized trade execution

Important: Make sure TradingView webhook includes ?secret=YOUR_SECRET in URL

Parse TradingView Signal Node

Node: Parse TradingView Signal

• Type: Code (Function)
• Language: JavaScript

What it does:

• Extracts symbol, action, timeframe from TradingView alert
• Normalizes data for v4 API
• Supports various TradingView alert formats

Supported formats:

{
  "symbol": "SOLUSDT",
  "action": "buy",
  "timeframe": "5",
  "price": "140.25",
  "timestamp": "2025-10-23T10:00:00Z"
}

Or:

{
  "ticker": "SOL-PERP",
  "signal_type": "long",
  "interval": "5m",
  "close": "140.25"
}

Check Risk Limits Node

Node: Check Risk Limits

• URL: {{$env.TRADING_BOT_API_URL}}/api/trading/check-risk
• Method: POST
• Headers:
  • Authorization: Bearer {{$env.API_SECRET_KEY}}
  • Content-Type: application/json
• Body:

  {
    "symbol": "{{$json.apiPayload.symbol}}",
    "direction": "{{$json.apiPayload.direction}}"
  }
  

What it does:

• Checks daily drawdown limits
• Validates trades per hour
• Ensures cooldown period passed

Execute Trade Node

Node: Execute Trade on Drift

• URL: {{$env.TRADING_BOT_API_URL}}/api/trading/execute
• Method: POST
• Timeout: 30000ms (30 seconds)
• Headers:
  • Authorization: Bearer {{$env.API_SECRET_KEY}}
  • Content-Type: application/json
• Body:

  {
    "symbol": "SOLUSDT",
    "direction": "long",
    "timeframe": "5",
    "signalStrength": "strong",
    "signalPrice": 140.25
  }
  

What it does:

• Opens position on Drift Protocol
• Starts automatic monitoring
• Returns trade details (entry price, TP/SL levels)

Format Message Nodes

Three formatting nodes for different scenarios:

1. Format Success Message - Trade executed successfully
2. Format Error Message - Trade execution failed
3. Format Risk Blocked Message - Trade blocked by risk limits

Output example (Success):

🟢 TRADE EXECUTED

📊 Symbol: SOL-PERP
📈 Direction: LONG
💰 Entry Price: $140.2350
💵 Position Size: $500.00
⚡ Leverage: 10x

🎯 Targets:
   Stop Loss: $137.90 (-1.5%)
   TP1: $140.98 (+0.7%)
   TP2: $142.10 (+1.5%)

📊 Slippage: 0.015%
⏰ Time: 10/23/2025, 10:00:00 AM

✅ Position is now being monitored automatically.
Auto-exit at TP/SL levels.

Telegram Node

Node: Telegram - Send Notification

• Chat ID: {{$env.TELEGRAM_CHAT_ID}}
• Text: {{$json.message}}
• Parse Mode: Markdown

What it does: Sends formatted notification to your Telegram

---

🎯 TradingView Alert Setup

Alert Configuration

1. In TradingView: Right-click chart → Add Alert
2. Condition: Your indicator/strategy
3. Alert Name: "SOL Long Signal" (or similar)
4. Webhook URL:

   https://your-n8n.com/webhook/tradingview-webhook?secret=YOUR_SECRET
   

Alert Message (JSON)

Use this format in the Message field:

{
  "symbol": "{{ticker}}",
  "action": "{{strategy.order.action}}",
  "timeframe": "{{interval}}",
  "price": "{{close}}",
  "timestamp": "{{timenow}}",
  "secret": "YOUR_TRADINGVIEW_SECRET",
  "strategy": "5min_scalp",
  "strength": "strong"
}

Important fields:

• symbol: Stock/crypto symbol (SOLUSDT, BTCUSD, etc.)
• action: "buy"/"sell" or "long"/"short"
• secret: Must match TRADINGVIEW_WEBHOOK_SECRET in n8n env

Notification Settings

✅ Enable:

• Webhook URL
• Notify on app
• Play sound (optional)

❌ Disable:

• Send email (n8n handles notifications)

---

🧪 Testing

Test 1: Webhook Connection

# Send test webhook from command line
curl -X POST https://your-n8n.com/webhook/tradingview-webhook \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "symbol": "SOLUSDT",
    "action": "buy",
    "timeframe": "5",
    "price": "140.25",
    "timestamp": "2025-10-23T10:00:00Z",
    "secret": "YOUR_SECRET"
  }'

Test 2: Check n8n Executions

1. In n8n, click "Executions" tab
2. Find your test execution
3. Click to view detailed flow
4. Check each node for errors

Test 3: Verify API Response

Expected response from /api/trading/execute:

{
  "success": true,
  "trade": {
    "id": "trade-1234567890",
    "symbol": "SOL-PERP",
    "direction": "long",
    "entryPrice": 140.235,
    "positionSize": 500,
    "leverage": 10,
    "stopLoss": 137.90,
    "takeProfit1": 140.98,
    "takeProfit2": 142.10
  }
}

Test 4: Telegram Message

You should receive a formatted Telegram message with trade details.

---

🔍 Troubleshooting

Webhook Not Receiving Data

Problem: n8n workflow not triggering

Solutions:

1. Check webhook is Active (toggle at top)
2. Verify webhook URL in TradingView matches n8n
3. Test with curl command (see Testing section)
4. Check n8n logs for errors

Invalid Secret Error

Problem: "Unauthorized Webhook" message

Solutions:

1. Verify secret in TradingView alert matches TRADINGVIEW_WEBHOOK_SECRET
2. Check environment variable is set in n8n
3. Secret is case-sensitive!

API Authentication Failed

Problem: "401 Unauthorized" from trading bot

Solutions:

1. Verify API_SECRET_KEY in n8n matches v4 .env
2. Check Authorization header format: Bearer YOUR_KEY
3. Regenerate key if needed: openssl rand -hex 32

Trade Not Executing

Problem: Risk check passed but no position opened

Solutions:

1. Check v4 API logs: docker-compose logs -f trading-bot
2. Verify Drift wallet has sufficient collateral
3. Check SOLANA_RPC_URL is working
4. Ensure DRIFT_WALLET_PRIVATE_KEY is correct
5. Test with curl:

   curl -X POST http://localhost:3000/api/trading/execute \
     -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
     -d '{"symbol":"SOLUSDT","direction":"long","timeframe":"5"}'
   

Telegram Not Sending

Problem: No Telegram notifications

Solutions:

1. Verify Telegram Bot Token in credentials
2. Check TELEGRAM_CHAT_ID is correct
3. Ensure bot is started (send /start to your bot)
4. Test Telegram node individually in n8n

---

📊 Monitoring

View Executions

In n8n:

1. Click "Executions" tab
2. Filter by "Success" or "Error"
3. Click execution to see detailed flow

Check Active Positions

Query via API:

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  http://localhost:3000/api/trading/positions

Or check Drift UI: https://drift.trade

View Bot Logs

# Docker logs
docker-compose logs -f trading-bot

# Or if using scripts
cd v4 && ./docker-logs.sh

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🔐 Security Best Practices

1. Use Strong Secrets

   # Generate secure random secrets
   openssl rand -hex 32  # For API keys
   openssl rand -hex 16  # For webhook secrets
   

2. Protect Environment Variables

   • Never commit .env files
   • Use n8n's environment variable encryption
   • Rotate secrets regularly

3. IP Whitelisting (optional)

   • Restrict webhook access to TradingView IPs
   • Use n8n's IP filtering if available

4. Monitor Failed Attempts

   • Set up alerts for unauthorized webhook attempts
   • Review n8n execution logs regularly

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🎓 Advanced Configuration

Custom Risk Parameters

Modify Check Risk Limits node to send additional parameters:

{
  "symbol": "SOL-PERP",
  "direction": "long",
  "customPositionSize": 100,
  "customLeverage": 5
}

Multiple Strategies

Clone the workflow for different strategies:

1. Duplicate workflow
2. Change webhook path: /webhook/tradingview-5min vs /webhook/tradingview-15min
3. Use different risk parameters per timeframe

Advanced Notifications

Add Discord/Email nodes in parallel with Telegram:

1. Add Discord webhook node
2. Add SMTP email node
3. Connect all to message formatter nodes

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📞 Support

Workflow Issues:

• Check n8n documentation: https://docs.n8n.io
• Review execution logs in n8n

API Issues:

• See v4/TESTING.md for API testing
• Check v4/DOCKER.md for container logs

Trading Issues:

• See TRADING_BOT_V4_MANUAL.md for complete guide
• Check Drift Protocol status

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✅ Checklist

Before going live:

• Import workflow to n8n
• Configure all environment variables
• Add Telegram credentials
• Copy webhook URL
• Configure TradingView alert with webhook
• Test with small position size ($10-50)
• Verify Telegram notification received
• Check position opened on Drift
• Monitor first 5-10 trades closely
• Gradually increase position size

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Your automated trading system is now complete! 🎉

When TradingView fires an alert → n8n executes the trade → You get a Telegram notification → Bot monitors and auto-exits at TP/SL!