How to fix NOAUTH Authentication required in Redis

First, check if your Redis instance actually has password protection enabled. Connect with redis-cli and check the requirepass config:

redis-cli
127.0.0.1:6379> CONFIG GET requirepass

If the second value is empty string or "", authentication is not enabled. If it shows a password string, authentication is active and you must authenticate before other commands.

If password protection is enabled, authenticate interactively:

redis-cli
127.0.0.1:6379> AUTH yourpassword
OK
127.0.0.1:6379> PING
PONG

Replace "yourpassword" with your actual Redis password. Once AUTH succeeds, you can run any command.

For quick CLI operations without interactive prompt, pass password with -a flag:

redis-cli -a yourpassword PING
redis-cli -a yourpassword GET mykey
redis-cli -a yourpassword SET mykey "value"

Note: Using -a flag shows the password in your shell history. For sensitive environments, prefer interactive authentication.

Most Redis client libraries automatically authenticate if you include the password in the connection string or configuration:

Node.js (ioredis):

const redis = require('ioredis');
const client = new redis({
  host: '127.0.0.1',
  port: 6379,
  password: 'yourpassword'  // Will auto-send AUTH
});

Node.js (redis client):

const { createClient } = require('redis');
const client = createClient({
  socket: {
    host: 'localhost',
    port: 6379,
  },
  password: 'yourpassword'
});
await client.connect();

Python (redis-py):

import redis
client = redis.Redis(host='localhost', port=6379, password='yourpassword')
client.ping()

Java (Jedis):

Jedis jedis = new Jedis("localhost", 6379);
jedis.auth("yourpassword");
jedis.ping();

Check your client library's documentation for the exact syntax. Most modern clients accept password in the connection URL.

If using a connection URL or URI, include the password before the host:

redis://:[password]@[host]:[port]
redis://:[yourpassword]@localhost:6379

Note the colon after redis:// and the @ separator before the host. Some clients like ioredis require this exact format.

If you've lost the password and need access, you must:

1. Stop the Redis server:

redis-cli shutdown

2. Edit redis.conf (usually in /etc/redis/ or the config directory):

# Find and comment out this line:
# requirepass youroldpassword

# Or remove the line entirely

3. Restart Redis:

redis-server /path/to/redis.conf

4. Now you can connect without password:

redis-cli
127.0.0.1:6379> PING
PONG

Warning: This temporarily removes authentication. Set a new password immediately and update your application configuration.