fix(API): Accept workflow descriptions on creation (#39705)

Co-authored-by: n8n-cat-bot[bot] <n8n-cat-bot[bot]@users.noreply.github.com>

packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/workflows/__tests__/create-workflow-public.dto.test.ts

@@ -17,6 +17,22 @@ const validPayload = {
 };
 
 describe('CreateWorkflowPublicDto', () => {
+	test('accepts an optional workflow description', () => {
+		const payload = { ...validPayload, description: 'What this workflow does' };
+
+		expect(CreateWorkflowPublicDto.safeParse(payload)).toMatchObject({
+			success: true,
+			data: { description: payload.description },
+		});
+		expect(CreateWorkflowPublicDto.safeParse(validPayload).success).toBe(true);
+	});
+
+	test('rejects a non-string workflow description', () => {
+		expect(CreateWorkflowPublicDto.safeParse({ ...validPayload, description: 42 }).success).toBe(
+			false,
+		);
+	});
+
 	test('rejects an unknown key through both the DTO and its schema', () => {
 		const payload = { ...validPayload, notAWorkflowField: 'x' };
 

packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/workflows/base-workflow-public.dto.ts

@@ -151,13 +151,7 @@ const staticDataWritePublicSchema = z
 	.nullable()
 	.openapi(workflowCreateFieldDocs.staticData);
 
-/**
- * The public workflow write surface, shared by the create and update request bodies.
- *
- * `CreateWorkflowPublicDto` uses it as-is. `UpdateWorkflowPublicDto` omits `projectId` from its
- * shape, since a project is only chosen when a workflow is created, and adds `description`, which
- * only the update body has ever accepted.
- */
+// Each route adds `description` to its own DTO so their request schemas stay independent.
 export const workflowWritePublicShape = {
 	id: readOnlyPublicSchema(workflowCreateReadOnlyFieldDocs.id),
 	name: z.string().openapi(workflowCreateFieldDocs.name),

packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/workflows/create-workflow-public.dto.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,13 @@
+import { z } from 'zod';
+
 import { workflowWritePublicShape } from './base-workflow-public.dto';
+import { workflowCreateFieldDocs } from './workflow-public.openapi';
 import { Z } from '../../zod-class';
 
-export class CreateWorkflowPublicDto extends Z.class(workflowWritePublicShape, {
-	strict: true,
-}) {}
+export class CreateWorkflowPublicDto extends Z.class(
+	{
+		...workflowWritePublicShape,
+		description: z.string().optional().openapi(workflowCreateFieldDocs.description),
+	},
+	{ strict: true },
+) {}

packages/@n8n/api-types/src/dto/workflows/workflow-public.openapi.ts

@@ -103,6 +103,10 @@ export const workflowSettingsFieldDocs = {
 
 export const workflowCreateFieldDocs = {
 	name: { example: 'Workflow 1' },
+	description: {
+		description: 'Description of the workflow',
+		example: 'My workflow description',
+	},
 	nodes: { description: 'Nodes that make up the workflow' },
 	nodeGroups: { description: 'Visual groupings of nodes shown as frames on the canvas' },
 	staticData: { description: 'Data the workflow keeps between executions', example: { lastId: 1 } },

packages/cli/src/public-api/v1/handlers/workflows/spec/paths/createWorkflow.generated.yml

@@ -553,6 +553,10 @@ requestBody:
                 type: string
                 format: date-time
                 readOnly: true
+          description:
+            type: string
+            description: Description of the workflow
+            example: My workflow description
         required:
           - name
           - nodes

packages/cli/test/integration/public-api/workflows.test.ts

@@ -2202,6 +2202,19 @@ describe('POST /workflows', () => {
 		expect(sharedWorkflow?.role).toEqual('workflow:owner');
 	});
 
+	test('should create a workflow with a description', async () => {
+		const description = 'What this workflow does';
+		const response = await authMemberAgent.post('/workflows').send({
+			...mockPostWorkflowPayload(),
+			description,
+		});
+
+		expect(response.statusCode).toBe(200);
+		expect(response.body.description).toBe(description);
+		const stored = await workflowRepository.findOneBy({ id: response.body.id });
+		expect(stored?.description).toBe(description);
+	});
+
 	test.each([
 		{ key: 'binaryMode', value: 'combined' },
 		{ key: 'credentialResolverId', value: 'some-resolver-id' },