The cluster key (or license) enables features and capacity within Redis Enterprise Software. You can add or update a cluster key at any time in a cluster lifecycle. When the cluster does not have a cluster key, the cluster is in trial mode.

Trial mode

Trial mode is limited to thirty days and a total of four shards, including master and replica shards. Any new installation starts its thirty-day clock from the day the cluster setup was done (with the first cluster node provisioned). This mode allows all features to be enabled, including Auto Tiering, during the trial period.

View cluster license key

To view the cluster license key, use:

  • Cluster Manager UI

    1. Go to Cluster > Configuration > General > License to see the cluster license details.

    2. Select Change to view the cluster license key.

  • REST API - GET /v1/license

    For a list of returned fields, see the response section.

Note:
As of version 7.2, Redis Enteprise will enforce the shards limits by their types (RAM, flash) rather than total number of shards. The flash shards limit only appears in the UI if Auto Tiering is enabled.

Update cluster license

Note:
After you add a cluster key, you cannot remove the key to return the cluster to trial mode.

You can update the cluster license key:

  • During cluster setup using the admin console or CLI

  • After cluster setup using the admin console:

    1. Go to Cluster > Configuration > General > License.

    2. Select Change.

    3. Upload or enter your cluster license key.

    4. Select Save.

You can update an existing cluster key at any time. Redis Enterprise checks the validay of it in terms of:

  • cluster name
  • activation and expiration dates
  • shard usage and limits
  • features

If saving a new cluster key fails, the operation returns an error including failure reason. In this case, the existing key stays in effect.

Expired cluster license

When the license is expired:

  • You cannot do these actions:

    • Change database settings including security and configuration options.

    • Add or remove a database.

    • Upgrade a database to a new version.

    • Add or remove a node.

  • You can do these actions:

    • Sign in to the admin console and view settings and metrics at all resolutions for the cluster, nodes, and databases.

    • Change cluster settings including license key, security for administrators, and cluster alerts.

    • Failover when a node fails and explicitly migrate shards between nodes.

    • Upgrade a node to a new version of Redis Enterprise Software.

Monitor cluster license

As of version 7.2, Redis Enterprise exposes the license quotas and the shards consumption metrics in the Cluster Manager UI or via the Prometheus integration.

The ‘cluster_shards_limit’ metric displays the total shard limit by the license by shard type (ram / flash). Examples:

  • cluster_shards_limit{cluster=“mycluster.local”,shard_type=“ram”} 100.0
  • cluster_shards_limit{cluster=“mycluster.local”,shard_type=“flash”} 50.0

The ‘bdb_shards_used’ metric displays the used shard count by database and by shard type (ram / flash). Examples:

  • bdb_shards_used{bdb=“2”,cluster=“mycluster.local”,shard_type=“ram”} 86.0
  • bdb_shards_used{bdb=“3”,cluster=“mycluster.local”,shard_type=“flash”} 23.0