docs: Add .env.local.example template and dotenvx for local dev setup (no-changelog)

.env.local.example

@@ -0,0 +1,59 @@
+# =============================================================================
+# n8n local development — minimal environment variables
+# =============================================================================
+# This is a minimal example covering some local environment variables for development.
+# Many more variables exist — search for @Env() decorators in the codebase.
+# Most of them already have default values, so you only need to fill in the ones you need to change.
+#
+# Usage (run from the repo root):
+#   1. Copy this file: cp .env.local.example .env.local
+#   2. Fill in the values below
+#   3. Prefix any dev command with dotenvx, for example:
+#        pnpm exec dotenvx run -f .env.local -- pnpm dev:be
+#
+# Note: dotenvx supports variable expansion (e.g. $HOME) but not shell
+#       tilde expansion. Use $HOME instead of ~ for paths.
+# =============================================================================
+
+# -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Local data folder
+# Source: packages/@n8n/config/src/utils/utils.ts
+# -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+N8N_USER_FOLDER=
+
+# -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# License
+# Source: packages/@n8n/config/src/configs/license.config.ts
+# -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Tenant identifier for the license SDK (for example, self-hosted, sandbox, embed, cloud).
+N8N_LICENSE_TENANT_ID=
+# Activation key used to activate or upgrade the instance license.
+N8N_LICENSE_ACTIVATION_KEY=
+# Ephemeral license certificate.
+N8N_LICENSE_CERT=
+
+# -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# AI
+# Source: packages/@n8n/config/src/configs/ai.config.ts
+#         packages/@n8n/config/src/configs/ai-assistant.config.ts
+#         packages/@n8n/config/src/configs/ai-builder.config.ts
+# -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# Whether AI features (such as AI nodes and AI assistant) are enabled globally.
+N8N_AI_ENABLED=
+# Base URL of the AI assistant service.
+# When set, requests are sent to this URL instead of the default provider endpoint.
+N8N_AI_ASSISTANT_BASE_URL=
+# Whether to persist AI workflow builder sessions to the database.
+N8N_AI_PERSIST_BUILDER_SESSIONS=
+# API key for the Anthropic (Claude) provider used by the AI workflow builder.
+# When set, enables AI-powered workflow and node building.
+N8N_AI_ANTHROPIC_KEY=
+
+# -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# LangSmith tracing (optional)
+# Not an n8n config var — read directly by the LangChain SDK.
+# See: https://docs.smith.langchain.com/
+# -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+LANGSMITH_ENDPOINT=
+LANGSMITH_PROJECT=
+LANGSMITH_TRACING=

.gitignore

@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ yarn.lock
 google-generated-credentials.json
 _START_PACKAGE
 .env
+.env.local
 .vscode/*
 !.claude
 !.vscode/extensions.json

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -187,6 +187,26 @@ To start n8n execute:
 pnpm start
 ```
 
+### Environment variables (optional)
+
+Most environment variables have default values, but if you needed to modify any a template for local environment variables is provided at `.env.local.example`. Copy it and fill in any values you need.
+
+```bash
+cp .env.local.example .env.local
+```
+
+Then prefix any dev command with `dotenvx` to load it, for example:
+
+```bash
+cd packages/cli && pnpm exec dotenvx run -f ../../.env.local -- pnpm dev
+
+pnpm exec dotenvx run -f .env.local -- pnpm dev:be
+```
+
+> **Note:** dotenvx supports variable expansion (e.g. `$HOME`) but not shell
+> tilde expansion. Use `$HOME` instead of `~` for paths
+> (e.g. `N8N_USER_FOLDER=$HOME/.n8n-dev`).
+
 ## Development cycle
 
 While iterating on n8n modules code, you can run `pnpm dev`. It will then

package.json

@@ -67,6 +67,7 @@
     "jest-junit": "^16.0.0",
     "jest-mock": "^29.6.2",
     "jest-mock-extended": "^3.0.4",
+    "@dotenvx/dotenvx": "^1.40.0",
     "lefthook": "^1.7.15",
     "license-checker": "^25.0.1",
     "nock": "^14.0.1",