
If you want to configure Redis Standalone, please read Database Access with Redis.
This guide will help you to:
- Install and configure Teleport.
- Configure mutual TLS authentication between Teleport and Redis Cluster.
- Connect to Redis through Teleport.

Prerequisites
-
A running Teleport cluster. For details on how to set this up, see one of our Getting Started guides.
-
The
tctl
admin tool andtsh
client tool version >= 13.0.3.tctl versionTeleport v13.0.3 go1.20
tsh versionTeleport v13.0.3 go1.20
See Installation for details.
-
A running Teleport Enterprise cluster. For details on how to set this up, see our Enterprise Getting Started guide.
-
The Enterprise
tctl
admin tool andtsh
client tool version >= 13.0.3, which you can download by visiting your Teleport account.tctl versionTeleport Enterprise v13.0.3 go1.20
tsh versionTeleport v13.0.3 go1.20
Please use the latest version of Teleport Enterprise documentation.
- Redis version
6.0
or newer. redis-cli
version6.2
or newer installed and added to your system'sPATH
environment variable.- A host where you will run the Teleport Database Service.
Redis 7.0
and RESP3 (REdis Serialization Protocol) are currently not supported.
- Make sure you can connect to Teleport. Log in to your cluster using
tsh
, then usetctl
remotely:tsh login --proxy=teleport.example.com [email protected]tctl statusCluster teleport.example.com
Version 13.0.3
CA pin sha256:abdc1245efgh5678abdc1245efgh5678abdc1245efgh5678abdc1245efgh5678
You can run subsequent
tctl
commands in this guide on your local machine.For full privileges, you can also run
tctl
commands on your Auth Service host.
Step 1/6. Set up the Teleport Database Service
The Database Service requires a valid auth token to connect to the cluster. Generate
one by running the following command against your Teleport Auth Service and save
it in /tmp/token
on the node that will run the Database Service:
tctl tokens add --type=db
Install and configure Teleport where you will run the Teleport Database Service:
Use the appropriate commands for your environment to install your package.
Teleport Edition
Download Teleport's PGP public key
sudo curl https://apt.releases.teleport.dev/gpg \-o /usr/share/keyrings/teleport-archive-keyring.ascSource variables about OS version
source /etc/os-releaseAdd the Teleport APT repository for v13. You'll need to update this
file for each major release of Teleport.
echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/teleport-archive-keyring.asc] \https://apt.releases.teleport.dev/${ID?} ${VERSION_CODENAME?} stable/v13" \| sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/teleport.list > /dev/nullsudo apt-get updatesudo apt-get install teleport
Source variables about OS version
source /etc/os-releaseAdd the Teleport YUM repository for v13. You'll need to update this
file for each major release of Teleport.
sudo yum-config-manager --add-repo "$(rpm --eval "https://yum.releases.teleport.dev/$ID/$VERSION_ID/Teleport/%{_arch}/stable/v13/teleport.repo")"sudo yum install teleportTip: Add /usr/local/bin to path used by sudo (so 'sudo tctl users add' will work as per the docs)
echo "Defaults secure_path = /sbin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/usr/local/bin" > /etc/sudoers.d/secure_path
Source variables about OS version
source /etc/os-releaseAdd the Teleport YUM repository for v13. You'll need to update this
file for each major release of Teleport.
Use the dnf config manager plugin to add the teleport RPM repo
sudo dnf config-manager --add-repo "$(rpm --eval "https://yum.releases.teleport.dev/$ID/$VERSION_ID/Teleport/%{_arch}/stable/v13/teleport.repo")"Install teleport
sudo dnf install teleportTip: Add /usr/local/bin to path used by sudo (so 'sudo tctl users add' will work as per the docs)
echo "Defaults secure_path = /sbin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/usr/local/bin" > /etc/sudoers.d/secure_path
In the example commands below, update $SYSTEM_ARCH
with the appropriate
value (amd64
, arm64
, or arm
). All example commands using this variable
will update after one is filled out.
curl https://get.gravitational.com/teleport-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-bin.tar.gz.sha256<checksum> <filename>
curl -O https://cdn.teleport.dev/teleport-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-bin.tar.gzshasum -a 256 teleport-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-bin.tar.gzVerify that the checksums match
tar -xvf teleport-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-bin.tar.gzcd teleportsudo ./install
Download Teleport's PGP public key
sudo curl https://apt.releases.teleport.dev/gpg \-o /usr/share/keyrings/teleport-archive-keyring.ascSource variables about OS version
source /etc/os-releaseAdd the Teleport APT repository for v13. You'll need to update this
file for each major release of Teleport.
echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/teleport-archive-keyring.asc] \https://apt.releases.teleport.dev/${ID?} ${VERSION_CODENAME?} stable/v13" \| sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/teleport.list > /dev/nullsudo apt-get updatesudo apt-get install teleport-ent
For FedRAMP/FIPS-compliant installations, install the teleport-ent-fips
package instead:
sudo apt-get install teleport-ent-fips
Source variables about OS version
source /etc/os-releaseAdd the Teleport YUM repository for v13. You'll need to update this
file for each major release of Teleport.
sudo yum-config-manager --add-repo "$(rpm --eval "https://yum.releases.teleport.dev/$ID/$VERSION_ID/Teleport/%{_arch}/stable/v13/teleport.repo")"sudo yum install teleport-entTip: Add /usr/local/bin to path used by sudo (so 'sudo tctl users add' will work as per the docs)
echo "Defaults secure_path = /sbin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/usr/local/bin" > /etc/sudoers.d/secure_path
For FedRAMP/FIPS-compliant installations, install the teleport-ent-fips
package instead:
sudo yum install teleport-ent-fips
Source variables about OS version
source /etc/os-releaseAdd the Teleport YUM repository for v13. You'll need to update this
file for each major release of Teleport.
Use the dnf config manager plugin to add the teleport RPM repo
sudo dnf config-manager --add-repo "$(rpm --eval "https://yum.releases.teleport.dev/$ID/$VERSION_ID/Teleport/%{_arch}/stable/v13/teleport.repo")"Install teleport
sudo dnf install teleport-entTip: Add /usr/local/bin to path used by sudo (so 'sudo tctl users add' will work as per the docs)
echo "Defaults secure_path = /sbin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/usr/local/bin" > /etc/sudoers.d/secure_path
For FedRAMP/FIPS-compliant installations, install the teleport-ent-fips
package instead:
sudo dnf install teleport-ent-fips
In the example commands below, update $SYSTEM_ARCH
with the appropriate
value (amd64
, arm64
, or arm
). All example commands using this variable
will update after one is filled out.
curl https://get.gravitational.com/teleport-ent-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-bin.tar.gz.sha256<checksum> <filename>
curl -O https://cdn.teleport.dev/teleport-ent-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-bin.tar.gzshasum -a 256 teleport-ent-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-bin.tar.gzVerify that the checksums match
tar -xvf teleport-ent-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-bin.tar.gzcd teleport-entsudo ./install
For FedRAMP/FIPS-compliant installations of Teleport Enterprise, package URLs will be slightly different:
curl https://get.gravitational.com/teleport-ent-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-fips-bin.tar.gz.sha256<checksum> <filename>
curl -O https://cdn.teleport.dev/teleport-ent-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-fips-bin.tar.gzshasum -a 256 teleport-ent-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-fips-bin.tar.gzVerify that the checksums match
tar -xvf teleport-ent-v13.0.3-linux-$SYSTEM_ARCH-fips-bin.tar.gzcd teleport-entsudo ./install
Please use the latest version of Teleport Enterprise documentation.
On the host where you will run the Teleport Database Service, start Teleport with the appropriate configuration.
Note that a single Teleport process can run multiple different services, for
example multiple Database Service agents as well as the SSH Service or Application
Service. The step below will overwrite an existing configuration file, so if
you're running multiple services add --output=stdout
to print the config in
your terminal, and manually adjust /etc/teleport.yaml
.
Generate a configuration file at /etc/teleport.yaml
for the Database Service:
teleport db configure create \ -o file \ --token=/tmp/token \ --proxy=teleport.example.com:443 \ --name=example-redis \ --protocol=redis \ --uri=rediss://redis.example.com:6379?mode=cluster \ --labels=env=dev
Configure the Database Service to start automatically when the host boots up by creating a systemd service for it. The instructions depend on how you installed the Database Service.
On the host where you will run , start Teleport:
sudo systemctl enable teleportsudo systemctl start teleport
On the host where you will run , create a systemd service configuration for Teleport, enable the Teleport service, and start Teleport:
sudo teleport install systemd -o /etc/systemd/system/teleport.servicesudo systemctl enable teleportsudo systemctl start teleport
You can start the Teleport Database Service without configuration file using a CLI command:
teleport db start \ --token=/tmp/token \ --auth-server=teleport.example.com:443 \ --name=example-redis \ --protocol=redis \ --uri=rediss://redis.example.com:6379?mode=cluster \ --labels=env=dev
Note that the --auth-server
flag must point to the Teleport cluster's Proxy
Service endpoint because the Database Service always connects back to the
cluster over a reverse tunnel.
The --auth-server
flag must point to the Teleport cluster's Proxy Service
endpoint because the Database Service always connects back to the cluster over a
reverse tunnel.
Teleport provides Helm charts for installing the Teleport Database Service in Kubernetes Clusters.
To allow Helm to install charts that are hosted in the Teleport Helm repository, use helm repo add
:
helm repo add teleport https://charts.releases.teleport.dev
To update the cache of charts from the remote repository, run helm repo update
:
helm repo update
Install the Teleport Kube Agent into your Kubernetes Cluster with the Teleport Database Service configuration.
JOIN_TOKEN=$(cat /tmp/token)helm install teleport-kube-agent teleport/teleport-kube-agent \ --create-namespace \ --namespace teleport-agent \ --set roles=db \ --set proxyAddr=teleport.example.com:443 \ --set authToken=${JOIN_TOKEN?} \ --set "databases[0].name=example-redis" \ --set "databases[0].uri=rediss://redis.example.com:6379?mode=cluster" \ --set "databases[0].protocol=redis" \ --set "labels.env=dev" \ --version 13.0.3
A single Teleport process can run multiple services, for example multiple Database Service instances as well as other services such the SSH Service or Application Service.
Step 2/6. Create a Teleport user
To modify an existing user to provide access to the Database Service, see Database Access Access Controls
Create a local Teleport user with the built-in access
role:
tctl users add \ --roles=access \ --db-users=\* \ --db-names=\* \ alice
Flag | Description |
---|---|
--roles | List of roles to assign to the user. The builtin access role allows them to connect to any database server registered with Teleport. |
--db-users | List of database usernames the user will be allowed to use when connecting to the databases. A wildcard allows any user. |
--db-names | List of logical databases (aka schemas) the user will be allowed to connect to within a database server. A wildcard allows any database. |
Database names are only enforced for PostgreSQL and MongoDB databases.
For more detailed information about database access controls and how to restrict access see RBAC documentation.
Step 3/6. Create Redis users
Each Redis user must be protected by a strong password. We recommend using OpenSSL to generate passwords:
openssl rand -hex 32
If you have access to Redis you can also generate a password by using the below command from the Redis console:
ACL GENPASS
Create a users.acl
file, which defines users for your Redis deployment, passwords required to log in as a given user,
and sets of ACL rules. Redis allows you to provide passwords in plaintext or an SHA256 hash.
We strongly recommend using an SHA256 hash instead of plaintext passwords.
You can use the command below to generate an SHA256 hash from a password.
echo -n STRONG_GENERATED_PASSWORD | sha256sum
user alice on #57639ed88a85996453555f22f5aa4147b4c9614056585d931e5d976f610651e9 allcommands allkeys
user default off
For more ACL examples refer to the Redis documentation.
It's very important to either disable or protect with a password the default
user. Otherwise, everyone with access
to the database can log in as the default
user, which by default has administrator privileges.
Step 4/6. Set up mutual TLS
Teleport uses mutual TLS authentication with self-hosted databases. These databases must be configured with Teleport's certificate authority to be able to verify client certificates. They also need a certificate/key pair that Teleport can verify.
We will show you how to use the tctl auth sign
command below.
When connecting to Redis Cluster, sign certificates for each member
using their hostnames and IP addresses.
For example, if the first member is accessible at redis1.example.com
with IP 10.0.0.1
and
the second at redis2.example.com
with IP 10.0.0.2
, run:
tctl auth sign --format=redis --host=redis1.example.com,10.0.0.1 --out=redis1 --ttl=2190htctl auth sign --format=redis --host=redis2.example.com,10.0.0.2 --out=redis2 --ttl=2190h
We recommend using a shorter TTL, but keep mind that you'll need to update the database server certificate before it expires to not lose the ability to connect. Pick the TTL value that best fits your use-case.
The command will create three files:
server.cas
with Teleport's certificate authorityserver.key
with a generated private keyserver.crt
with a generated user certificate
You will need these files to enable mutual TLS on your Redis server.
Teleport 10.0 introduced a new certificate authority that is only used by the Teleport Database Service. Older Teleport versions use a host certificate to sign Database Service certificates.
After upgrading to Teleport 10.0, the host certificate authority will still be used by the Database Service to maintain compatibility. The first certificate rotation will rotate host and database certificates.
New Teleport 10.0+ installations generate the database certificate authority when they first start, and are not affected by the rotation procedure described above.
Use the generated secrets to enable mutual TLS in your redis.conf
configuration
file and restart the database:
tls-port 7001
port 0
cluster-enabled yes
tls-replication yes
tls-cluster yes
aclfile /path/to/users.acl
masterauth GENERATED_STRONG_PASSWORD
masteruser replica-user
tls-cert-file /usr/local/etc/redis/certs/server.crt
tls-key-file /usr/local/etc/redis/certs/server.key
tls-ca-cert-file /usr/local/etc/redis/certs/server.cas
tls-protocols "TLSv1.2 TLSv1.3"
Once mutual TLS has been enabled, you will no longer be able to connect to
the cluster without providing a valid client certificate. You can use the
tls-auth-clients optional
setting to allow connections
from clients that do not present a certificate.
See TLS Support in the Redis documentation for more details.
Step 5/6. Create a cluster
Use the following command to create the cluster. Please note redis-cli --cluster create
accepts only IP addresses.
export REDISCLI_AUTH=STRONG_GENERATED_PASSWORD
export CERTS_DIR=/path/to/certs/
export IP1=10.0.0.1 # update with the real node 1 IP
export IP2=10.0.0.2 # update with the real node 2 IP
export IP3=10.0.0.3 # update with the real node 3 IP
export IP4=10.0.0.4 # update with the real node 4 IP
export IP5=10.0.0.5 # update with the real node 5 IP
export IP6=10.0.0.6 # update with the real node 6 IP
redis-cli --user alice --cluster-replicas 1 --tls --cluster-yes \
--cluster create ${IP1}:7001 ${IP2}:7002 ${IP3}:7003 ${IP4}:7004 ${IP5}:7005 ${IP6}:7006 \
--cacert ${CERTS_DIR}/server.cas --key ${CERTS_DIR}/server.key --cert ${CERTS_DIR}/server.crt
Step 6/6. Connect
To enable Redis cluster mode in Teleport, add the mode=cluster
parameter to the connection URI in
your Teleport Database Service config file.
databases:
- name: "redis-cluster"
uri: "rediss://redis.example.com:6379?mode=cluster"
Log into your Teleport cluster and see available databases:
tsh login --proxy=teleport.example.com --user=alicetsh db lsName Description Labels
------------- --------------- --------
example-redis Example Redis env=dev
Please use the latest version of Teleport Enterprise documentation.
To connect to a particular database instance:
tsh db connect example-redis
You can optionally specify the database user to use by default when connecting to the database instance:
tsh db connect --db-user=alice example-redis
If flag --db-user
is not provided, Teleport logs in as the default
user.
Now you can log in as the previously created user using the below command:
AUTH alice STRONG_GENERATED_PASSWORD
To log out of the database and remove credentials:
Remove credentials for a particular database instance.
tsh db logout example-redisRemove credentials for all database instances.
tsh db logout
Supported Redis Cluster commands
Redis in cluster mode does not support the following commands. If one of the listed commands above is called Teleport
returns the ERR Teleport: command not supported
ACL
ASKING
CLIENT
CLUSTER
CONFIG
DEBUG
EXEC
HELLO
INFO
LATENCY
MEMORY
MIGRATE
MODULE
MONITOR
MULTI
PFDEBUG
PFSELFTEST
PSUBSCRIBE
PSYNC
PUNSUBSCRIBE
PUNSUBSCRIBE
READONLY
READWRITE
REPLCONF
REPLICAOF
ROLE
SCAN
SCRIPT DEBUG
SCRIPT KILL
SHUTDOWN
SLAVEOF
SLOWLOG
SSUBSCRIBE
SUNSUBSCRIBE
SYNC
TIME
WAIT
WATCH
Teleport conducts additional processing on the following commands before communicating with Redis Cluster:
Command | Description |
---|---|
DBSIZE | Sends the query to all nodes and returns the number of keys in the whole cluster. |
KEYS | Sends the query to all nodes and returns a list of all keys in the whole cluster. |
MGET | Translates the commands to multiple GET s and sends them to multiple nodes. Result is merged in Teleport and returned back to the client. If Teleport fails to fetch at least one key an error is returned. |
FLUSHDB | Sends the query to all nodes. |
FLUSHALL | Works the same as FLUSHDB . |
SCRIPT EXISTS | Sends the query to all nodes. 1 is returned only if script exists on all nodes. |
SCRIPT LOAD | Sends the script to all nodes. |
SCRIPT FLUSH | Sends the query to all nodes. ASYNC parameter is ignored. |
Next steps
- Learn how to restrict access to certain users and databases.
- View the High Availability (HA) guide.
- Take a look at the YAML configuration reference.
- See the full CLI reference.