n8n - 💡(How to fix) Fix Feature request: Allow NODE_FUNCTION_ALLOW_BUILTIN to be set via env var on external runner (without editing n8n-task-runners.json) [1 comments, 2 participants]

Feature Description

When using the external task runner (n8nio/runners), the NODE_FUNCTION_ALLOW_BUILTIN environment variable set on the container is silently ignored. The runner launcher binary reads /etc/n8n-task-runners.json which contains env-overrides that hardcode NODE_FUNCTION_ALLOW_BUILTIN=crypto, completely overriding any container-level environment variable.

The only way to change the allowed modules is to volume-mount a patched /etc/n8n-task-runners.json — which is fragile and breaks on version updates.

Current behavior

# docker-compose.yml — this does NOT work
n8n-runner:
  image: n8nio/runners:2.14.2
  environment:
    - NODE_FUNCTION_ALLOW_BUILTIN=fs,path,crypto  # ← silently ignored

The launcher reads /etc/n8n-task-runners.json which has:

"env-overrides": {
    "NODE_FUNCTION_ALLOW_BUILTIN": "crypto"
}

This override takes precedence, and NODE_FUNCTION_ALLOW_BUILTIN is not in the allowed-env list, so the container env var is never passed through to the spawned Node.js process.

Expected behavior

Container-level NODE_FUNCTION_ALLOW_BUILTIN should be respected, either by:

1. Adding it to the allowed-env list in the default config, or
2. Making env-overrides lower priority than container env vars, or
3. Providing an env var like N8N_RUNNERS_ALLOWED_BUILTIN_MODULES that the launcher binary reads directly

This would allow users to configure allowed modules without editing internal config files.

Current workaround

Volume-mount a patched config:

volumes:
  - ./patches/n8n-task-runners.json:/etc/n8n-task-runners.json:ro

This is the same workaround other users have reported in related issues.

Related issues

This is a recurring pain point — multiple issues have been filed and closed:

• #23120 — N8N_RUNNERS_STDLIB_ALLOW="*" has no effect
• #25793 — N8N_RUNNERS_STDLIB_ALLOW not working when set
• #23175 — Task Runner ignores N8N_RUNNERS_STDLIB_ALLOW=* and blocks ALL imports

All were closed as "working as designed" (must edit JSON config), but the feedback from users is consistent: the JSON override approach is fragile, undocumented in the quick-start guides, and breaks on image updates.

Debug Info

• n8nVersion: 2.14.2
• runner image: n8nio/runners:2.14.2
• platform: docker (self-hosted)
• database: PostgreSQL

Operating System

Linux (Debian 12)

n8n Version

2.14.2

Hosting

self hosted