Redis

Redis is optional, but it is a strong fit for production Plainwire once configured correctly.

Plainwire uses Redis for#

• a second distributed gate on sensitive authentication and operator-login rate limits;
• node-aware short-lived presence;
• hot recent-message windows.

PostgreSQL remains the authority for durable data. Plainwire acknowledges messages only after the durable store accepts them.

Enable#

PLAINWIRE_REDIS_ENABLED=true
PLAINWIRE_REDIS_HOST=redis
PLAINWIRE_REDIS_PORT=6379
PLAINWIRE_REDIS_PASSWORD=CHANGE_ME
PLAINWIRE_REDIS_DB=0
PLAINWIRE_REDIS_PREFIX=plainwire
PLAINWIRE_REDIS_TIMEOUT_MS=80

For multi-node Plainwire, set a stable unique PLAINWIRE_NODE_ID on every node.

Security#

Never expose Redis directly to the public internet. Redis protected mode is a safety net, not a network design.

Use:

• private service networking;
• firewall rules;
• authentication;
• Redis ACLs where practical;
• TLS when traffic crosses an untrusted network.

If using ACLs:

PLAINWIRE_REDIS_USERNAME=plainwire
PLAINWIRE_REDIS_PASSWORD=CHANGE_ME

Persistence#

Plainwire treats Redis as ephemeral. You can run it without RDB/AOF persistence because losing Redis state should mean cold caches and rebuilt presence, not durable data loss.

Failure behavior#

Redis failure should degrade acceleration, not make Plainwire unusable. Investigate repeated Redis timeouts, but do not design authentication so Redis is the only protection layer.