n8n video workflow: Respond immediately vs Sume's 30-second sync wait
In n8n, use Respond immediately and let Sume call back. Sume's sync mode waits at most 30 seconds, too short for most video jobs, so avoid the last-node wait.
For an n8n workflow that generates video with Sume, pick 'Immediately' on the Webhook node's response setting and submit the Sume job with mode async or webhook. Choosing 'When Last Node Finishes' implies waiting for a result, and Sume's sync mode waits at most 30 seconds, which video jobs usually exceed.
Here are n8n's four response modes next to Sume's four communication modes.
What the n8n Webhook node offers
| Item | n8n |
|---|---|
| Respond options | Immediately; When Last Node Finishes; Using 'Respond to Webhook' node; Streaming response |
| Authentication | Basic auth, Header auth, JWT auth, or none |
| Payload limit | 16 MB (configurable when self-hosting) |
| Raw body | A Raw Body option exists to receive data in raw format |
| URLs | Test URLs show data in the editor; production URLs register when the workflow is published and show runs under Executions |
What Sume offers
Sume's mode decides how you learn the outcome. It never changes the job, its cost or its duration.
| Mode | HTTP returns | Blocks |
|---|---|---|
| async (default) | 202 with job envelope and poll URLs | No |
| sync | Same envelope after waiting up to wait_timeout_seconds (max 30) | Up to 30 s |
| subscribe | Alias of sync, same bounded wait | Up to 30 s |
| webhook | 202 with envelope; terminal callback follows | No |
Which pairing works
Some image jobs finish inside 30 seconds; video jobs usually do not. When the wait budget ends, the response is still a 2xx with the job id and sync.timed_out set, and you must poll rather than resubmit. That makes 'When Last Node Finishes' a poor fit for video: the caller would receive a still-running job.
- Workflow 1: Webhook node set to Immediately, then an HTTP Request that submits to Sume with mode webhook and your second workflow's production URL as webhook_url.
- Workflow 2: a Webhook node that receives job.completed, verifies the signature, fetches the result and finishes the business step.
- Use the production URL for Sume callbacks. A test URL only works while the editor is listening, and Sume requires a public HTTPS URL.
- For short image jobs only, sync with 'Respond to Webhook' is acceptable, as long as you handle a non-terminal response by polling.
Backup
Keep a polling path on GET /v1/jobs/{id}/status. Sume says webhooks are an optimisation and that you must keep status polls for deliveries that never arrive. See the Sume jobs and results docs.
Sources
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