Possible issue with N8N_RESTRICT_FILE_ACCESS_TO — using ; works but : does not (tested in Docker)

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1

Hi everyone,

I would like to report an unusual behavior with the environment variable:

N8N_RESTRICT_FILE_ACCESS_TO

The documentation states that multiple paths should be provided as a colon-separated list (“:”). However, based on my tests running n8n in Docker, this format did not work.

image
image1040×174 12.4 KB

:cross_mark: Using “:” (as documented):
N8N_RESTRICT_FILE_ACCESS_TO=/path/one:/path/two:/path/three

:check_mark: What did work in my case was using a semicolon (“;”):
N8N_RESTRICT_FILE_ACCESS_TO=/path/one;/path/two;/path/three

After testing several combinations within the Docker environment, the only format that correctly was using “;”.

I’m sharing this as feedback because it may be useful to check whether:

  • the documentation is incorrect,
  • there is unexpected behavior specifically in Docker,
  • or the formatting depends on the environment and should be clarified.

Thanks to the n8n team for the great work.

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2

I faced the same issue and fixed by your guaidance, thanks.

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