How to run a redis cluster on a docker cluster? - docker

Question

Context
I am trying to setup a redis cluster so that it runs on top off a docker cluster, to achieve maximum auto-healing.
More precisely, I have a docker compose file, which defines a service that has 3 replicas. Each service replica has a redis-server running on.
Then I have a program inside each replica that listens to changes on the docker cluster and that starts the cluster when conditions are met (each 3 redis-servers know each other).
Setting up the redis cluster works has expected, the cluster is formed and all the redis-servers communicate well, but the communication between redis-servers is inside the docker cluster.
The Problem
When I try to communicate from outside the docker cluster, because of the ingress mode I am able to talk to a redis-server, however when I try to add info (eg: set foo bar) and the client is moved to another redis-server the communication hangs and eventually times out.
Code
This is the docker-compose file.
version: "3.3"
services:
redis-cluster:
image: redis-srv-instance
volumes:
- /var/run/:/var/run
deploy:
mode: replicated
#endpoint_mode: dnsrr
replicas: 3
resources:
limits:
cpus: '0.5'
memory: 512M
ports:
- target: 6379
published: 30000
protocol: tcp
mode: ingress
The flux of commands that show the problem.
Client
~ ./redis-cli -c -p 30000
127.0.0.1:30000>
Redis-server
OK
1506533095.032738 [0 10.255.0.2:59700] "COMMAND"
1506533098.335858 [0 10.255.0.2:59700] "info"
Client
127.0.0.1:30000> set ghb fki
OK
Redis-server
1506533566.481334 [0 10.255.0.2:59718] "COMMAND"
1506533571.315238 [0 10.255.0.2:59718] "set" "ghb" "fki"
Client
127.0.0.1:30000> set rte fgh
-> Redirected to slot [3830] located at 10.0.0.3:6379
Could not connect to Redis at 10.0.0.3:6379: Operation timed out
Could not connect to Redis at 10.0.0.3:6379: Operation timed out
(150.31s)
not connected>
Any ideas? I have also tried making my one proxy/load balancer but didn't work.
Thank you! Have a nice day.

Answer 1

For this use case, sentinel might help. Redis on its own is not capably of high availability. Sentinel on the other side is a distributed system which can do the following for you:
Route the ingress trafic to the current Redis master.
Elect a new Redis master should the current one fail.
While I have previously done research on this topic, I have not yet managed to pull to getter a working example.

Answer 2

redis-cli would get the redis server ip inside the ingress network, and try to access the remote redis server by that ip directly. That is why redis-cli shows Redirected to slot [3830] located at 10.0.0.3:6379. But this internal 10.0.0.3 is not accessible to redis-cli.
One solution is to run another proxy service which attaches to the same network with redis cluster. The application sends all requests to that proxy service, and the proxy service talks with redis cluster.
Or you could create 3 swarm services that uses the bridge network and exposes the redis port to node. Your internal program needs to change accordingly.