How to Install Redis on Windows (WSL)

Redis does not have an official native Windows build for modern versions. The recommended approach on Windows is to use Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL2), which gives you a full Linux environment where Redis installs and runs just like on a Linux server.

Step 1: Install WSL2

Open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

wsl --install

This installs WSL2 with Ubuntu by default. Restart your computer when prompted.

If you already have WSL, ensure you are on version 2:

wsl --set-default-version 2
wsl --list --verbose

Step 2: Open Your WSL Terminal

Launch Ubuntu from the Start menu, or open a Windows Terminal and select the Ubuntu profile.

Step 3: Install Redis

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y redis-server

Verify the installation:

redis-server --version
# Redis server v=7.x.x

Step 4: Start Redis

# Start Redis in the background
sudo service redis-server start

# Verify it's running
sudo service redis-server status

# Test with redis-cli
redis-cli ping
# PONG

Step 5: Configure Redis to Start Automatically

WSL2 does not run systemd by default (though newer Ubuntu versions on WSL2 support it). Use /etc/wsl.conf to enable systemd:

sudo tee -a /etc/wsl.conf > /dev/null <<'EOF'
[boot]
systemd=true
EOF

Restart WSL from PowerShell:

wsl --shutdown

Then open WSL again and enable the Redis service:

sudo systemctl enable redis-server
sudo systemctl start redis-server

Step 6: Connect from Windows Applications

Redis running inside WSL2 is accessible from Windows at localhost on port 6379 by default. Test this from PowerShell:

# If you have redis-cli for Windows (from Redis Stack installer)
redis-cli -h 127.0.0.1 -p 6379 ping

Or connect from your Windows application:

import redis
r = redis.Redis(host="127.0.0.1", port=6379, decode_responses=True)
print(r.ping())

Editing the Redis Configuration

sudo nano /etc/redis/redis.conf

Key settings for development:

bind 127.0.0.1
port 6379
save ""
appendonly no
loglevel notice

After changes:

sudo service redis-server restart
# or with systemd:
sudo systemctl restart redis-server

Using Docker Desktop Instead

An alternative to WSL2 direct installation is Docker Desktop for Windows, which also runs on WSL2:

docker run -d -p 6379:6379 --name redis redis:7

This avoids managing the Linux service manually and works well for development.

Summary

Install Redis on Windows by enabling WSL2 with Ubuntu, then using apt-get install redis-server inside the Linux environment. Enable systemd in WSL2 for automatic startup via /etc/wsl.conf. Redis inside WSL2 is accessible from Windows applications at localhost:6379, making it transparent to your development tools.