Redis CLI and Server Options | Generated by AI

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Question: Provide a comprehensive introduction to Redis command line options.

Answer:

Redis has two main command-line programs people usually refer to when talking about “command line options”:

1. redis-server command line options (starting & configuring the server)

Basic usage patterns

redis-server                           # uses default redis.conf or built-in defaults
redis-server /path/to/redis.conf       # read config from file
redis-server --port 6380 --loglevel warning
redis-server /etc/redis.conf --daemonize yes --port 7777
redis-server -                         # read config from stdin
redis-server --help                    # shows usage + very short list
redis-server --version                 # shows version

Important rule (since Redis ~2.8 onward)

Almost every setting that exists in redis.conf can be overridden via command line using --key value syntax.

The command-line argument --key corresponds directly to a key directive in the config file.

Examples:

--port 6381
--bind 127.0.0.1 10.20.30.40
--protected-mode yes
--daemonize yes
--pidfile /var/run/redis_6380.pid
--logfile /var/log/redis_6380.log
--loglevel notice|verbose|debug|warning
--dbfilename dump-6380.rdb
--dir /var/redis-data/
--requirepass supersecret123
--maxmemory 4gb
--maxmemory-policy allkeys-lru
--save 900 1               # <seconds> <changes>
--save 300 10
--appendonly yes
--replicaof 10.55.1.20 6379
--masterauth somepass
--cluster-enabled yes
--tls-port 6379
--tls-cert-file ...

Most frequently used overrides in production / dev

Tip: redis-server --help shows only a very short list. For the real full possibilities run:

redis-server --help | less
# or just look at your redis.conf – almost every non-comment line can become --key

2. redis-cli command line options (client)

Basic connection flags

redis-cli                               # localhost:6379, db 0
redis-cli -h redis-15.example.com
redis-cli -h 10.20.30.40 -p 6381
redis-cli -u redis://:password@host:port/db   # URL style (Redis 6+)
redis-cli --pass supersecret123
redis-cli -a supersecret123                   # same as --pass
redis-cli -n 5                                # select db 5
redis-cli --tls --cacert ca.crt               # TLS options (Redis 6+)

Useful modes & helpers

Flag / Style Purpose Example
-r N / --repeat N Repeat command N times redis-cli -r 1000 INCR counter
-i 0.1 Interval between repeats (seconds) -r 100 -i 0.05
-x Read last argument from stdin echo value | redis-cli SET mykey -x
-raw Raw output (no quotes, no type prefixes) good for scripting
--scan Scan mode (very large keys) redis-cli --scan --pattern user:*
-c Enable cluster mode (follow -MOVED redirection) Important on Redis Cluster
--pipe Redis protocol bulk mode (very fast bulk load) cat commands.txt | redis-cli --pipe
--bigkeys Report biggest keys by type Useful for memory investigation
--stat Continuous stats like redis-cli monitor  
--latency / --latency-mode Latency testing tools --latency -h host
redis-cli --rdb /tmp/dump.rdb Ask server to generate RDB to a file Remote backup trick

One-liner command execution

redis-cli KEYS "*"                  # dangerous on big instances
redis-cli -h prod-redis INFO        # get server info
redis-cli --raw GET user:1234:json  # no quotes in output
redis-cli EVAL "return redis.call('SET', KEYS[1], ARGV[1])" 1 mykey value

Quick reference table – most common redis-cli flags

Flag Long version Typical usage
-h --host Hostname / IP
-p --port Port (default 6379)
-a --pass Password (legacy)
--user --user ACL username (Redis 6+)
-n --db Database number
-c --cluster Enable cluster support
--tls --tls Enable TLS
-raw --raw Raw output format
--pipe --pipe Bulk protocol mode
--scan --scan Safer than KEYS *

References:

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