Monitor & auto-heal AWS EC2 instances with multi-channel alerts

This n8n workflow automates the monitoring, health assessment, and self-healing of AWS EC2 instances in production environments. It runs periodic checks, identifies unhealthy instances based on status and metrics, restarts them automatically, and notifies teams via multi-channel alerts while logging data for auditing and reporting.

Key Features - Triggers health checks every 5 minutes to proactively monitor EC2 fleet status. - Fetches and loops through all production EC2 instances for individualized analysis. - Evaluates instance health using AWS metrics and custom thresholds to detect issues like high CPU or stopped states. - Performs automatic restarts on unhealthy instances to minimize downtime. - Sends instant WhatsApp notifications for urgent alerts, detailed email reports for team review, and logs metrics to Google Sheets for long-term tracking. - Includes sticky notes for quick reference on configuration, self-healing logic, and alert setup.

Workflow Process - The Schedule Trigger node runs the workflow every 5 minutes, ensuring frequent health monitoring without overwhelming AWS APIs. - The Get EC2 Instances node fetches all production-tagged EC2 instances from AWS, filtering by environment (e.g., tag: Environment=Production). - The Loop Over Instances node iterates through each fetched instance individually, allowing parallel processing for scalability. - The Check Instance Status node retrieves detailed health metrics for the current instance via AWS API (e.g., status checks, CPU utilization, and state). - The Health Status Check node evaluates the instance's status against predefined thresholds (e.g., failed system checks or high load); if healthy, it skips to logging. - The Analyze Health Data node assesses metrics in depth to determine action (e.g., restart if CPU > 90% for 5+ minutes) and prepares alert payloads. - The Restart Instance node automatically initiates a reboot on unhealthy instances using AWS EC2 API, with optional dry-run mode for testing. - The WhatsApp Notification node (part of Multi-Channel Alerts) sends instant alerts via Twilio WhatsApp API, including instance ID, issue summary, and restart status. - The Email Report node generates and sends a detailed HTML report to the team via SMTP, summarizing checked instances, actions taken, and metrics trends. - The Google Sheets Logging node appends health data, timestamps, and outcomes to a specified spreadsheet for historical analysis and dashboards. - The Sticky Notes nodes provide inline documentation: one for AWS credential setup, one explaining self-healing thresholds, and one for alert channel configurations.

Setup Instructions - Import the workflow into n8n and activate the Schedule Trigger with a 5-minute cron expression (e.g., /5 ). - Configure AWS credentials in the Get EC2 Instances, Check Instance Status, and Restart Instance nodes using IAM roles with EC2 read/restart permissions. - Set up Twilio credentials in the WhatsApp Notification node, including your Twilio SID, auth token, and WhatsApp-enabled phone numbers for sender/receiver. - Add SMTP credentials (e.g., Gmail or AWS SES) in the Email Report node, and update sender/receiver email addresses in the node parameters. - Link Google Sheets in the Google Sheets Logging node by providing the spreadsheet ID, sheet name, and OAuth credentials for write access. - Customize health thresholds in Health Status Check and Analyze Health Data (e.g., via expressions for CPU/memory limits). - Test the workflow by manually executing it on a small set of instances and verifying alerts/logging before enabling production scheduling. - Review sticky notes within n8n for quick tips, and monitor executions in the dashboard to fine-tune intervals or error handling.

Prerequisites - AWS account with EC2 access and IAM user/role for DescribeInstances, DescribeInstanceStatus, and RebootInstances actions. - Twilio account with WhatsApp sandbox or approved number for notifications. - SMTP email service (e.g., Gmail, Outlook) with app-specific passwords enabled. - Google Workspace or personal Google account for Sheets integration. - n8n instance with AWS, Twilio, SMTP, and Google Sheets nodes installed (cloud or self-hosted). - Production EC2 instances tagged consistently (e.g., Environment=Production) for filtering.

Modification Options - Adjust the Schedule Trigger interval to hourly for less frequent checks or integrate with AWS CloudWatch Events for dynamic triggering. - Expand Analyze Health Data to include advanced metrics (e.g., disk I/O via CloudWatch) or ML-based anomaly detection. - Add more alert channels in Multi-Channel Alerts, such as Slack webhooks or PagerDuty integrations, by duplicating the WhatsApp/Email branches. - Enhance Google Sheets Logging with charts or conditional formatting via Google Apps Script for visual dashboards. - Implement approval gates in Restart Instance (e.g., via email confirmation) to prevent auto-restarts in sensitive environments.

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