Authentication required
Production Risk
Medium. Indicates a critical misconfiguration, but the server is correctly protecting itself.
This error means the client is trying to execute a command on a password-protected Redis server without first authenticating. Redis requires the AUTH command to be the first command sent after connecting.
- 1The client did not send the AUTH command with the correct password.
- 2The client is configured without a password, but the server requires one.
- 3A network proxy or load balancer is dropping the initial AUTH command.
A new client connects to a password-protected Redis server and immediately sends a PING command.
# Assuming server has 'requirepass mypassword' PING
expected output
(error) NOAUTH Authentication required.
Fix 1
Authenticate before sending other commands
WHEN Immediately after connecting
AUTH mypassword PING
Why this works
Sending the AUTH command with the correct password authenticates the client's session, allowing subsequent commands to be processed.
Fix 2
Configure the password in your client library
WHEN When initializing the Redis client in your application
// Example for node-redis
const client = createClient({
url: 'redis://:mypassword@my.redis.server:6379'
});Why this works
All official Redis client libraries provide a standard way to configure the password during initialization, ensuring the AUTH command is sent automatically upon connection.
✕ Disable password protection on the server to fix the client
This is a major security risk. It exposes your Redis instance to unauthorized access. Always fix the client-side configuration, not weaken the server's security.
Authentication and authorization subsystem
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