Introduction

Redis is a popular in-memory data store that provides high-performance caching and data storage for applications. By default, Redis only listens on the loopback address (127.0.0.1), which means it's only accessible from the local machine. However, in many cases, you need to allow remote connections to Redis for distributed caching, clustering, or other purposes. In this post, we'll guide you through the steps to open the Redis port for remote connections.

Prerequisites

- Redis installed and running on a Linux server

Step 1: Edit Redis Configuration File

Open the Redis configuration file, usually located at /etc/redis/redis.conf, using a command like:

Uncomment the line starting with # bind 127.0.0.1 ::1 by removing the # symbol, and replace 127.0.0.1 with 0.0.0.0 to allow connections from any IP address.

Step 2: Restart Redis Service

Restart the Redis service to apply the changes:

Step 4: Configure Firewall Rules 

Limit access to Redis by configuring firewall rules or security groups. For example, you can use ufw (Uncomplicated Firewall) to allow incoming traffic on the Redis port (6379 by default):

To allow only a specific ip address

in the /etc/redis/redis.conf file, 

replace myipaddress with the actual ipaddress

Then update the firewall, 

replace myipaddress with the actual ipaddress

Conclusion

In this post, we've covered the steps to open the Redis port for remote connections. Remember to prioritize security by setting a strong password and enabling SSL/TLS encryption. Additionally, configure firewall rules to limit access to Redis. By following these steps, you'll be able to access Redis from remote machines and take advantage of its high-performance caching and data storage capabilities.