Hey there! We've found the following might help you get unblocked faster:

• 🧵 Environment variable mapping

• 🧵 Redis Server Crashing Due to Missing REDIS_PASSWORD Environment Variable

• 🧵 Isolating Internal Variables in Railway Environments

If you find the answer from one of these, please let us know by solving the thread!

Look for a persisted config supplying an encryptionKey

On the container: check ~/.n8n (often /home/node/.n8n) for files that include encryptionKey. ---"grep -Rni "encryptionKey" ~/.n8n /app 2>/dev/null" --- If you’re using N8N_CONFIG_FILES, that file’s encryptionKey can override the env var. Remove or update it

If you previously ran n8n without N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY, it may have created settings that persist across restarts; make sure no file/config sets a different key

This issue typically happens for one of two main reasons: your service needs to be redeployed to get the new variable, or a configuration file in your project is overriding the value you set in the dashboard.

## 1. Redeploy the Service

The most common reason for this is that environment variables are injected when a new deployment is built, not into a running container. If you updated the N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY in the dashboard, you must redeploy for the change to take effect.

• Action: Go to your n8n service in the Railway dashboard and trigger a new deployment. This will create a new container with the updated environment variable.

## 2. Check for Overriding Configuration Files

n8n can also be configured using a file (like .env or a custom config file) within your project repository. If such a file exists and defines N8N_ENCRYPTION_KEY, it will likely take precedence over the variable set in the Railway dashboard.

• Action: Check your repository for any files that might be setting this variable. If you find one, the value in that file is likely the one your application is reading. You should either remove the variable from the file or ensure it has the correct value.

## Helpful Docs

Here are the official docs that explain these concepts in more detail:

• Railway Docs: Environment Variables: Explains how Railway handles environment variables and when they are applied.

• n8n Docs: Configuration: Details the various ways n8n can be configured, including the order of precedence for environment variables and config files.