Who is this workflow for? Efficiently managing multiple tasks simultaneously can significantly enhance your workflow’s performance. This n8n workflow template allows you to execute multiple sub-workflows in parallel asynchronously and ensures that the main workflow waits for all sub-workflows to complete before proceeding. This approach optimizes processing time and maintains synchronization without the need for external tools..

What does this workflow do?

1. Initialize Parallel Execution

  • Split-Out Loop: The workflow begins by splitting the incoming data into individual tasks. Each task represents a sub-workflow that will be executed asynchronously and in parallel.
  • Example: If processing a list of documents, each document is assigned to a separate sub-workflow instance.
  • Unique Identifiers: Each sub-workflow receives a resumeUrl for callback and a unique identifier (e.g., document file name) to track its completion.

2. Execute Sub-Workflows Asynchronously

  • Sub-Workflow Execution: Each sub-workflow performs its designated task. These sub-workflows run independently and do not block the main workflow.
  • Immediate Response: Upon initiation, each sub-workflow responds immediately to allow the main workflow to continue handling other sub-workflows.
  • Callback Mechanism: After completing their tasks, sub-workflows send a callback request to the main workflow using the provided resumeUrl and include their unique identifier.

3. Wait for All Sub-Workflows to Complete

  • Wait-For-All Loop: The main workflow enters a loop that periodically checks if all sub-workflows have reported back.
  • Identifier Collection: As callbacks are received, the workflow collects the unique identifiers to track completed sub-workflows.
  • Completion Verification: The loop continues until the workflow verifies that all expected sub-workflows have completed their tasks based on the collected identifiers.

4. Proceed with Subsequent Steps

  • Synchronization Point: Once all sub-workflows have reported back, the main workflow proceeds to execute the subsequent steps, ensuring that all parallel tasks are fully completed.
  • Aggregation and Further Processing: Any aggregated data from the sub-workflows can now be utilized for further processing, reporting, or integration with other systems.

🤖 Why Use This Automation Workflow?

  • Enhance Efficiency: Run multiple tasks concurrently to reduce overall processing time.
  • Maintain Synchronization: Ensure that the main workflow only continues once all parallel sub-workflows have completed.
  • Simplify Management: Achieve parallel execution and synchronization within n8n without relying on external systems or complex integrations.
  • Scalability: Easily handle an arbitrary number of sub-workflows, making it adaptable to various project sizes and complexities.

👨‍💻 Who is This Workflow For?

This workflow is ideal for automation engineers, developers, and IT professionals using n8n who need to manage and synchronize multiple asynchronous tasks. Whether you’re handling data processing, integrating various services, or automating complex workflows, this template provides a robust solution for parallel execution and synchronization.

🎯 Use Cases

  1. Bulk Document Processing: Simultaneously process a large batch of documents, such as resizing images or converting file formats, and ensure all processes complete before finalizing.
  2. Parallel API Requests: Make multiple API calls concurrently to fetch or update data from various sources, then aggregate the responses for further actions.
  3. Data Integration Tasks: Synchronize data from different databases or services in parallel, ensuring all integrations are complete before performing data analysis or reporting.

TL;DR

This n8n workflow template provides a structured approach to executing multiple sub-workflows in parallel while ensuring synchronization through a wait-for-all mechanism. By leveraging asynchronous execution and unique identifiers for tracking, you can optimize your workflows for efficiency and reliability without the complexity of external tools. Whether handling bulk processing, parallel API requests, or complex data integrations, this pattern enhances your automation capabilities within n8n.

Help us find the best n8n templates

About

A curated directory of the best n8n templates for workflow automations.