Installation

Multiple ways to install depending on your setup.

bash <(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/aaron777collins/BetterPGVectorN8N/main/install.sh)

The installer auto-detects your n8n environment and offers the best option:

Your Setup What It Does
Docker Compose Creates persistent setup that survives rebuilds
Running Container Installs directly into the container
npm/Local Install Adds to ~/.n8n/nodes
Nothing Found Creates fresh n8n + pgvector stack

Installer Options

# Download first
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/aaron777collins/BetterPGVectorN8N/main/install.sh -o install.sh
chmod +x install.sh

# Pick your method:
./install.sh --standalone   # New n8n + pgvector Docker setup
./install.sh --docker       # Add to existing Docker Compose
./install.sh --direct       # Install into running container
./install.sh --npm          # Install to ~/.n8n/nodes
./install.sh --update       # Update existing installation
./install.sh --help         # Show all options

Updating to Latest Version

# Update via installer
./install.sh --update

# Or restart container (auto-updates on startup)
docker compose restart n8n

The Docker init script automatically checks for updates on each container start.

Via n8n UI

  1. Open n8n
  2. Go to Settings → Community Nodes
  3. Click Install
  4. Enter: n8n-nodes-pgvector-advanced
  5. Click Install

Note: UI-installed nodes may not persist across Docker rebuilds. See Docker Guide for persistent installation.

Via npm

Install to n8n’s custom nodes directory

mkdir -p ~/.n8n/nodes
cd ~/.n8n/nodes
npm init -y
npm install n8n-nodes-pgvector-advanced

Then restart n8n.

Install globally (if n8n is installed globally)

npm install -g n8n-nodes-pgvector-advanced

From Source

git clone https://github.com/aaron777collins/BetterPGVectorN8N.git
cd BetterPGVectorN8N
npm install
npm run build

# In the package directory
npm link

# In your n8n directory or ~/.n8n/nodes
npm link n8n-nodes-pgvector-advanced

Docker Installation

For Docker deployments, community nodes need special handling to persist across container rebuilds.

Quick start with examples:

git clone https://github.com/aaron777collins/BetterPGVectorN8N.git
cd BetterPGVectorN8N/examples/docker
docker compose up -d

For detailed Docker setup, see the Docker Guide.

Prerequisites

PostgreSQL with pgvector

You need PostgreSQL 12+ with the pgvector extension.

Option 1: Docker (easiest)

docker run -d -p 5432:5432 -e POSTGRES_PASSWORD=password ankane/pgvector

Option 2: Install extension manually

-- Connect to your database
CREATE EXTENSION IF NOT EXISTS vector;

See pgvector installation guide for more options.

Verify Installation

After installation, the PGVector Advanced node should appear in n8n’s node panel.

  1. Open n8n
  2. Create a new workflow
  3. Search for “PGVector Advanced”
  4. The node should appear in results

If not found, check:

MCP Server for AI Agents

This package includes an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for AI agents.

# Run directly via npx
npx n8n-nodes-pgvector-advanced

# Or install globally
npm install -g n8n-nodes-pgvector-advanced
pgvector-mcp

Environment variables:

export PGHOST=localhost
export PGPORT=5432
export PGDATABASE=your_db
export PGUSER=your_user
export PGPASSWORD=your_password

Available tools:

Next Steps