Run media jobs from n8n

The Rendobar node runs FFmpeg commands, compression, captions, composition and image generation from an n8n workflow, and a trigger node starts a workflow when a job finishes. It’s verified by n8n, so on n8n Cloud you install it from the nodes panel with no self-hosting.

@rendobar/n8n-nodes-rendobar

The verified Rendobar node runs video and image jobs inside n8n workflows.

Before you start

A Rendobar API key. Create one on the API Keys page of the dashboard.
n8n Cloud, or self-hosted n8n 1.94.0 or later.
On self-hosted n8n, a public HTTPS address, so the trigger node and the Wait node can receive Rendobar’s calls. See Start a workflow when a job ends.

Install on n8n Cloud

Open the nodes panel

Open a workflow and press +, or Tab on the canvas.

Search for Rendobar

Type Rendobar. It’s listed under More from the community with a verified badge.

Install

Select it and choose Install. The node is now available to everyone on the instance.

If nothing appears under More from the community, an instance owner turns on Verified Community Nodes in the Cloud Admin Panel. A restart of the instance may be needed the first time.

Install on self-hosted n8n

The same search works on n8n 1.94.0 and later. Two environment variables gate it, and both default to true:

N8N_COMMUNITY_PACKAGES_ENABLED=true
N8N_VERIFIED_PACKAGES_ENABLED=true

The older route also works. Open Settings > Community Nodes, choose Install, and enter @rendobar/n8n-nodes-rendobar. n8n’s verified community nodes page covers both paths.

Add your API key

The node authenticates with a Rendobar API key. Create one on the API Keys page of the dashboard, then add a Rendobar API credential in n8n and paste it in. The key starts with rb_. n8n checks it against your account when you save, so a wrong key fails at save time and not mid-workflow. Leave Base URL at https://api.rendobar.com unless you’re pointing at another environment.

Run a job

The package ships two nodes. Rendobar runs operations against the API and Rendobar Trigger starts a workflow on an event. The common chain is three Rendobar nodes:

File > Upload streams a binary from the previous node and returns a url.
Job > Create picks a job type and references that url in its inputs.
Job > Get with Download Output File on fetches the finished file into a binary property.

The Rendobar node panel in n8n. Resource is Job, Operation is Create, Job Type is caption.burn. Inputs are given as JSON from the previous node's url. Under Values to Send, Language is auto, Font and Font family are empty, and Font size is 56. — The Create Job panel with caption.burn selected. The fields under Values to Send come from the job type's own schema, so a new job type appears here without a node update.

The Job Type dropdown loads live from your account. For ffmpeg and ffprobe, which name their files inside the command, switch Specify Inputs to Using JSON and give the inputs by name:

{ "source": "https://cdn.rendobar.com/assets/examples/sample.mp4" }

The command then refers to source and names its output:

-i source -vf scale=-2:720 -c:v libx264 -crf 28 -preset fast output.mp4

What comes out

Every job type returns the same shape on completion, lifted to the top of the item. With Output set to Simplified, a finished job looks like this:

{
  "id": "job_6f2a9c1d4b8e4f30",
  "type": "compress.target",
  "status": "complete",
  "cost": 0.0034,
  "data": null,
  "file": {
    "url": "https://cdn.rendobar.com/outputs/...",
    "path": "output.mp4",
    "type": "video",
    "size": 8123904
  },
  "files": [{ "url": "...", "path": "output.mp4", "type": "video", "size": 8123904 }],
  "expiresAt": 1789300000000,
  "createdAt": 1789213600000,
  "completedAt": 1789213640000
}

file is the headline result, or null for a job that computes data. data carries a probe report or a transcript, or null for a file-only job. files lists every output. Raw returns the full job and Selected Fields lets you pick.

How do I wait for a long job?

A transcode can take minutes and an hour-long render can take an hour. The node offers three ways to get the result, and only one of them is right for a long job.

Three timelines. Wait for Completion repeats status calls and holds a worker for the whole job. Callback URL plus a Wait node submits once, shows a dashed paused span with no execution time, and resumes when Rendobar's callback arrives. Rendobar Trigger shows one workflow submitting and a second workflow starting on the job.completed event. — Wait for Completion holds a worker. Callback URL plus a Wait node parks the execution for free. The trigger node waits for nothing because a second workflow starts when the job ends.

Wait for Completion, under Options on Create, polls until the job ends and returns the result on the same item. It’s the right choice for a clip of a few seconds and the wrong one for anything long, because the n8n worker is held for the whole job. Callback URL plus a Wait node is the pattern for long jobs. Set Callback URL to the resume URL of a Wait node placed right after Create:

{{ $execution.resumeUrl }}

Then configure the Wait node:

Resume on Webhook Call, with HTTP Method set to POST. Rendobar POSTs the callback and the Wait node defaults to GET.
Limit Wait Time on, at ten hours. An execution whose callback never lands releases itself instead of parking forever.

The execution parks with no worker held. When the job ends, Rendobar’s callback resumes it with the job in $json.body.data. Run Job > Get on that jobId to re-fetch the job over your own credential and download the file, so the payload that woke the Wait node is never trusted.

Leave Wait for Completion off when you set a Callback URL. The node refuses the combination rather than picking one, because a hidden field in n8n keeps its value.

How do I start a workflow when a job ends?

Rendobar Trigger registers a webhook with Rendobar when the workflow activates and removes it on deactivation. Pick the events:

Event	Fires when
`job.created`	A job is accepted
`job.started`	A runner picks it up
`job.completed`	It finishes with output
`job.failed`	It stops with an error
`job.cancelled`	Someone cancels it
`job.delivery_succeeded`	A destination write succeeds
`job.delivery_failed`	A destination write fails
`job.deliveries_settled`	Every destination has resolved
`balance.low`	The account balance crosses the low mark
`balance.depleted`	The balance reaches zero

Pair job.failed with Job > Get Logs and the item carries the runner’s log, including FFmpeg’s stderr, so a Slack or email node can post the actual error. Pair balance.low with Account > Get to read how low. Rendobar must reach the webhook URL over HTTPS. That’s true on n8n Cloud and on any publicly hosted instance. A localhost n8n is not reachable, so test locally through a tunnel such as cloudflared tunnel --url http://localhost:5678 and set WEBHOOK_URL to its hostname.

Can I use it as an AI Agent tool?

The node is marked usable as a tool, so it attaches to the AI Agent node’s tool port and n8n builds the tool schema from the node’s own parameters. Nothing else to define.

A Telegram Trigger feeds an AI Agent node, which sends its result back through Telegram. Three Rendobar tools hang off the agent's tool port: Account Get, Job Create and Job Get Logs. To the right, a Rendobar Trigger on job.failed feeds a second AI Agent that reads the logs. — An agent with three Rendobar tools. Account Get reads the balance before the agent spends, Job Create runs the work, and Job Get Logs reads FFmpeg's stderr when a job fails.

Three tools cover most agents:

Account > Get before anything that spends. balance.amount tells the agent how much it has and plan.limits what a submission is measured against.
Job > Create for the work itself. The agent picks the job type and fills the parameters.
Job > Get Logs after a job.failed event, so the agent reads the real FFmpeg error, fixes the command and resubmits.

Give an agent Callback URL and a Wait node rather than Wait for Completion, for the same reason as above. On self-hosted n8n, community tools need N8N_COMMUNITY_PACKAGES_ALLOW_TOOL_USAGE=true.

Operations

Resource	Operation	What it does
Job	Create	Submit a job. Sends an idempotency key per item, so a retried step never double-creates.
Job	Get	Fetch a job by ID, optionally downloading the headline file.
Job	Get Many	List jobs with filters on status, type, client and date.
Job	Get Logs	Read what the runner reported for a job.
Job	Download Output	Fetch a completed job’s file into a binary property.
Job	Cancel	Stop a running job.
File	Upload	Stream a binary to Rendobar and get a `url` to use as a job input. Uploads expire after 24 hours.
Account	Get	Read the balance and plan limits.
Storage Connection	Get Many	List the buckets connected on the Storage page.
Storage File	Get Many	List the folders and files in a connected bucket, each with a `storage://` URI a job input accepts.

Storage

Create Job’s Destinations option writes the output to buckets connected on the Storage page: one row per bucket, each with an optional folder or path. The job’s deliveries reports every write. Storage Connection lists the connections, and Storage File lists the folders and files in one, each with a storage:// URI that a job input accepts. See Storage connections.

Destinations, the Storage resources and the three delivery events need version 0.6.0 or later. An install from the nodes panel gets the version n8n has verified, which can trail the latest npm release.

Templates

Ready-made workflows that import and run on n8n Cloud are listed on the Automation overview.

Troubleshooting

Rendobar does not appear in the nodes panel

On n8n Cloud, an instance owner enables Verified Community Nodes in the Cloud Admin Panel. On self-hosted n8n, check N8N_VERIFIED_PACKAGES_ENABLED and that the version is 1.94.0 or later. The manual route under Settings > Community Nodes works either way.

The Wait node never resumes

Its HTTP Method must be POST. Check that Callback URL on Create is exactly {{ $execution.resumeUrl }} and that Wait for Completion is off. On a self-hosted instance, the resume URL must be reachable from the internet, so set WEBHOOK_URL to your public hostname.

The item stops with INSUFFICIENT_CREDITS

The account balance is below the job’s estimated cost. Put Account > Get in front of the submission and branch on balance.amount, or top up in the dashboard.

Download Output File returns nothing

A file exists once the job is complete and produced one. A data-only job such as ffprobe never produces a file and puts its result under data. A job past its retention window has had its files removed. Run Job > Get to see which applies.

The trigger registered but never fires

Rendobar could not reach the webhook URL. A localhost URL is the usual cause. Use a tunnel and set WEBHOOK_URL, then deactivate and reactivate the workflow so the node re-registers.

Getting Started

Concepts

Storage

Jobs

Automation

Developer tools

Support

Run media jobs from n8n

Before you start

Install on n8n Cloud

Install on self-hosted n8n

Add your API key

Run a job

What comes out

How do I wait for a long job?

How do I start a workflow when a job ends?

Can I use it as an AI Agent tool?

Operations

Storage

Templates

Troubleshooting

See also

​Before you start

​Install on n8n Cloud

​Install on self-hosted n8n

​Add your API key

​Run a job

​What comes out

​How do I wait for a long job?

​How do I start a workflow when a job ends?

​Can I use it as an AI Agent tool?

​Operations

​Storage

​Templates

​Troubleshooting

​See also

Before you start

Install on n8n Cloud

Install on self-hosted n8n

Add your API key

Run a job

What comes out

How do I wait for a long job?

How do I start a workflow when a job ends?

Can I use it as an AI Agent tool?

Operations

Storage

Templates

Troubleshooting

See also