Get started with Flex on Kubernetes

Configure Flex on your Redis Enterprise cluster for Kubernetes.

Flex extends your database capacity by combining RAM and flash (SSD) storage. This tiered architecture keeps frequently accessed (hot) data in RAM for sub-millisecond latency while storing less active (warm) data on flash to reduce costs and increase capacity.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, verify that you have:

• Redis Enterprise for Kubernetes version 8.0.2-2 or later installed
• A running RedisEnterpriseCluster (REC) resource
• Redis database version 7.4 or later
• Locally attached NVMe SSDs on your worker nodes
• A StorageClass configured for flash storage with a unique name

For hardware requirements and sizing guidelines, see Plan your deployment.

Configure the REC for Flex

To enable Flex, configure your RedisEnterpriseCluster (REC) resource with flash storage settings. Add the redisOnFlashSpec section to your REC specification.

Key fields in redisOnFlashSpec:

For all available fields, see the REC API reference.

1. Create a REC specification file with flash storage settings similar to the following example:

   apiVersion: app.redislabs.com/v1
   kind: RedisEnterpriseCluster
   metadata:
     name: rec
   spec:
     nodes: 3
     redisOnFlashSpec:
       enabled: true
       flashStorageClassName: local-flash
       flashDiskSize: 100Gi
       storageEngine: speedb
   

2. Apply the REC configuration:

   kubectl apply -f rec.yaml
   

3. Verify that the cluster is ready:

   kubectl get rec
   

Create a Flex database

After you configure the cluster, create a RedisEnterpriseDatabase (REDB) resource with Flex enabled.

Key fields in the REDB:

For all available fields, see the REDB API reference.

1. Create a database specification file with isRof set to true similar to the following example:

   apiVersion: app.redislabs.com/v1alpha1
   kind: RedisEnterpriseDatabase
   metadata:
     name: flex-db
   spec:
     memorySize: 10Gi
     isRof: true
     rofRamSize: 2Gi
   

2. Apply the REDB:

   kubectl apply -f redb.yaml
   

3. Verify the database status:

   kubectl get redb
   

Verify Flex is active

To confirm that Flex is working:

1. Check the database status:

   kubectl get redb <database-name> -o yaml
   

2. Look for isRof: true in the status section.

3. Connect to the database and verify that data operations work correctly.

Next steps

• Scale your deployment: Learn how to scale volume, throughput, and infrastructure.
• Plan your deployment: Review sizing guidelines and best practices.