Perform Single Domain Search via Icypeas API - n8n Workflow

Technical users needing specialized domain intelligence or lead enrichment.
Developers looking for an example of custom API signature generation in an n8n node.
Businesses utilizing Icypeas services that need to integrate domain scanning into their existing n8n workflow systems.
Users seeking advanced n8n templates for handling complex authentication methods.

This n8n workflow provides a robust solution for integrating the Icypeas single domain search functionality directly into your automation infrastructure. Many APIs, like Icypeas, require complex signature-based authentication (HMAC-SHA1) rather than simple API key credentials. This n8n workflow solves this by utilizing a custom code n8n node to generate the required cryptographic signature, timestamp, and keys, ensuring secure communication. Once authenticated, the HTTP Request n8n node handles the API call to initiate the domain scan, making this one of the useful n8n templates easy to adapt for various data retrieval tasks. This saves significant development time compared to building custom scripts outside of n8n.

This n8n workflow is initiated manually using the "When clicking 'Execute Workflow'" n8n trigger.

1. Trigger: The n8n trigger starts the process upon manual execution.


2. Authentication Preparation: The "Authenticates to your Icypeas account" code n8n node takes the configured API key, secret, and user ID. Crucially, this code n8n node uses the Node.js crypto module (requiring activation in self-hosted n8n instances) to generate a SHA1 signature based on the request method, path, and a real-time ISO timestamp. The output of this code n8n node prepares the required authentication payload for the next step.


3. Domain Scan Execution: The "Run domain scan (single)" HTTP Request n8n node uses the data prepared in the previous step. It sends a POST request to the Icypeas API URL. The authentication header (Authorization) is constructed using the key and signature generated by the code n8n node, and the X-ROCK-TIMESTAMP header is included. The domain to be scanned is provided in the body parameters.


4. Result: Icypeas processes the request, and the HTTP Request n8n node receives the API response, confirming that the domain scan task has been initiated. This successful completion shows the power of using a custom n8n workflow for specialized integrations.

To use this advanced n8n workflow, follow these steps:

1. Import: Copy the provided n8n workflow JSON and import it into your n8n instance.


2. Icypeas Credentials Setup: Open the "Authenticates to your Icypeas account" code n8n node. Replace the placeholders (PUTAPIKEYHERE, PUTAPISECRETHERE, PUTUSERID_HERE) with your actual Icypeas API credentials.


3. Self-Hosted Requirement (Critical): If you are running a self-hosted n8n instance, you must explicitly enable the crypto module in your n8n settings under "General Settings" -> "Additional Node Packages" for the signature generation code within the n8n node to function correctly.


4. HTTP Request Credential Setup:

1. Configure Domain: In the same HTTP Request n8n node, navigate to the Body Parameters section. Update the static value for the domainOrCompany parameter to the specific domain or company name you wish the n8n workflow to scan.


2. Execution: Click the manual n8n trigger ("When clicking 'Execute Workflow'") to test the full n8n workflow.

This n8n workflow uses several critical n8n node types:

When clicking "Execute Workflow" (Manual n8n Trigger):
Function: Acts as the starting point for this specific n8n workflow template, allowing immediate testing and manual execution. This standard n8n trigger is ideal for single-run processes.
Key Configuration: None, simple manual execution n8n trigger.

Authenticates to your Icypeas account (Code n8n Node):
Function: Generates the necessary cryptographic signature (HMAC-SHA1) required by the Icypeas API for secure requests. It defines API keys, the timestamp, and the final signature, storing them in the $json.api object for subsequent n8n node access. This custom n8n node is vital for complex API authentication within the n8n workflow.
Key Configuration: Requires manually inputting APIKEY, APISECRET, and USER_ID directly into the Node.js code block.

Run domain scan (single) (HTTP Request n8n Node):
Function: Executes the core POST request to the dynamically constructed Icypeas API endpoint to initiate the domain search, completing this section of the n8n workflow.
Key Configuration:
URL: Uses expression ={{ $json.api.url }}.
Header: Includes X-ROCK-TIMESTAMP using the value generated by the previous n8n node (={{ $json.api.timestamp }}).
Authentication: Configured using Header Auth, mapping the Authorization header to the dynamically generated credential string ({{ $json.api.key + ':' + $json.api.signature }}).
* Body: Contains the domainOrCompany parameter specifying the target for the scan.