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n8n restarts in a loop with "address '::' is not available" on a kernel without IPv6

n8n listens on :: by default. On a host whose kernel has no IPv6, the n8n container restarts in a loop and its port never answers. The same template, unchanged, passed every run on a host with IPv6.

Recorded 11 October 2026 · updated 12 October 2026

Environment

Operating system
Ubuntu 24.04.5 LTS (container, kernel 6.18.44 built without IPv6)
Versions
Docker Engine 29.8.2Docker Compose 5.6.0n8n 2.42.6

A development environment, not a server: dockerd was started by hand inside the container, with cgroup v1.

Symptom

In the development runs of ANAROQ's Compose verifier on 2026-10-11, the n8n service restarted in a loop in each of n8n's eight runs (two variants, four exposure modes). The same message appeared in the logs of every run.

The TCP check on port 5678 failed with connection-closed and the HTTP check with connection-error, while n8n-postgres was healthy and n8n-runner was running.

Root cause

n8n listens on :: by default. The kernel of that environment was built without IPv6: there is no /proc/net/if_inet6, on the host or inside containers, so n8n cannot bind the address and exits.

The other apps in the same environment were not affected: PostgreSQL, Open WebUI+Ollama, WordPress+MariaDB, Uptime Kuma and Gitea passed 44 of 44 runs.

Fix

Run n8n on a host whose kernel has IPv6. On GitHub's ubuntu-24.04 runner, all eight n8n runs of the same template passed on 2026-10-12 (run 38256885780); the template was not changed.

Check the host before you deploy: if /proc/net/if_inet6 is missing, the kernel has no IPv6. ANAROQ has not tested changing n8n's listen address as a workaround, so this note does not recommend one.

Commands

Check whether the kernel has IPv6
test -e /proc/net/if_inet6 && echo "IPv6: yes" || echo "IPv6: no"
Look for the message in the n8n logs
docker compose logs n8n | grep "is not available"

Evidence

Log The line n8n printed before each restart.

Source: n8n service log, development run n8n__default__local

n8n's address '::' is not available
Run report The checks of the same run, from its report.

Source: Compose verifier report, development run n8n__default__local

n8n.tcp.5678   connection-closed
n8n.http       connection-error
n8n-postgres   healthy
n8n-runner     running
Run report The same template on a runner with IPv6.

Source: runtime-verify run 38256885780

n8n  8 runs (default, queue-mode-true × 4 exposure modes)  8/8 passed  profileVersion 1.1.0

Sources

This note comes from ANAROQ's own verification records, which stay in the project's repository.

How profiles and verified Compose files are built is described in the methodology. Read the methodology

All field notes