ADR 0038 - Redis Bitnami Chart Alternative

Author

Gabriel Saratura

Owner

Schedar

Reviewers

Date Created

2025-09-03

Date Updated

2025-09-03

Status

draft

Tags

redis,bitnami,helm,service,operator
Summary

We are evaluating alternatives to the Redis Bitnami Helm Chart due to licensing cost changes. After comprehensive testing, the DandyDeveloper redis-ha chart emerges as the most viable community alternative, with operators recommended for enterprise deployments.

Problem

For our VSHNRedis offering, we have relied on the Bitnami Redis Helm Chart. However, the announced changes to the Bitnami catalog force us to re-evaluate our options. The new licensing model introduces significant operational and financial challenges:

  • Expensive access to versioned container images

  • Migration pressure due to legacy repository limitations

  • Need for production-ready high availability Redis deployments

  • Requirement for automated failover capabilities

Evaluated Options

Name Type HA Support Failover Active Project? Production Ready Notes

Bitnami Redis Chart

Helm chart

✅

✅ Sentinel

✅

✅

Expensive licensing, proven solution

DandyDeveloper redis-ha

Helm chart

✅

✅ Sentinel + HAProxy

✅

✅ Validated

Community fork from helm/stable, battle-tested

OpsTree Redis Operator

Operator

✅

✅ Automated

✅

❌ Not Validated

Modern Go operator, CNCF Sandbox candidate, reliability issues identified

Redis Enterprise Operator

Operator

✅

✅ Enterprise grade

✅

✅

Official but commercial licensing required

Comparison

DandyDeveloper redis-ha Chart Community Recommendation

The DandyDeveloper redis-ha chart represents the most mature community alternative, successfully migrated from the deprecated helm/stable repository.

Key Features:

  • Redis master/replica configuration with Sentinel for automatic failover

  • HAProxy load balancer for connection routing

  • Comprehensive monitoring with redis_exporter integration

  • Persistent volume support with configurable anti-affinity

  • TLS encryption capabilities

  • Extensive configuration options

Production Validation:

✅ Failover Testing Completed Successfully
We deployed and tested this chart with automated failover scenarios:

  • Redis master pod deletion triggers automatic failover

  • HAProxy correctly routes traffic to new master

  • Applications automatically reconnect without intervention

  • Zero data loss during failover events

  • Recovery time: ~10-15 seconds for complete failover cycle

Maintenance Status: Actively maintained with regular updates through 2025. Strong community adoption with 160+ GitHub forks.

OpsTree Redis Operator Enterprise Recommendation (Not Currently Viable)

The OpsTree redis-operator provides comprehensive operator functionality with support for all Redis deployment modes.

Distinguished Features:

  • Support for standalone, cluster, replication, and sentinel modes

  • Built-in monitoring with Prometheus/Grafana integration

  • IPv4/IPv6 dual-stack networking

  • Password and password-less authentication options

  • Professional support available if needed

  • Under consideration for CNCF Sandbox status

Production Adoption: Growing rapidly with multiple documented enterprise deployments and comprehensive CI/CD testing.

Production Validation:

❌ Failover Testing Failed
We deployed and tested this operator with automated failover scenarios:

  • Redis master pod deletion triggers automatic failover

  • Sentinel unable to properly elect a single master

  • Multiple nodes become masters (split-brain scenario)

  • Active issue resolved but users continue reporting problems

Redis Enterprise Operator

Redis Inc.'s Enterprise Operator offers Level 4-5 operator maturity with comprehensive enterprise capabilities.

Advanced Capabilities:

  • Active-Active geo-distribution

  • Auto tiering with Redis on Flash

  • Multi-tenant database deployments

  • Zero-downtime upgrades and automated failover

  • Enterprise-grade security with RBAC and LDAP

  • Professional 24/7 support

Limitation: Commercial licensing required after 30-day trial, higher resource requirements.

Bitnami Redis Chart Limitations

Current Challenges:

  • Expensive licensing - Version-specific image access requires costly subscription

  • Migration deadline pressure - Legacy repository migration by August 2025

  • Limited automation - Manual intervention often required for complex scenarios

Self-build Analysis:

We evaluated building custom images from Bitnami components but determined this approach carries high risk due to:

  • Lack of official documentation for internal components

  • Potential for subtle bugs in production environments

  • Ongoing maintenance burden

Decision

Short term: For existing AppCat Redis offering, we will build Bitnami images ourselves in case of critical security updates.

Long term: We choose DandyDeveloper redis-ha chart because:

  • Proven failover capabilities through comprehensive testing

  • Mature codebase migrated from official Helm stable repository

  • Active community maintenance and support

  • No licensing costs

  • Production-ready with validated high availability

Consequences

With the decision to migrate from Bitnami to DandyDeveloper’s Helm Chart, we have the following consequences:

  • Refactor AppCat Redis service configurations in comp-functions

  • Develop and validate migration procedures for existing instances

  • Update operational documentation and runbooks

  • Implement comprehensive testing for production migration