containers/bitnami/valkey/README.md

Bitnami Secure Image for Valkey

Valkey is a high-performance data structure server that primarily serves key/value workloads. It supports a wide range of native structures and an extensible plugin system for adding new data structures and access patterns.

Overview of Valkey Trademarks: This software listing is packaged by Bitnami. The respective trademarks mentioned in the offering are owned by the respective companies, and use of them does not imply any affiliation or endorsement.

TL;DR

docker run --name valkey -e ALLOW_EMPTY_PASSWORD=yes bitnami/valkey:latest

Warning: These quick setups are only intended for development environments. You are encouraged to change the insecure default credentials and check out the available configuration options in the Configuration section for a more secure deployment.

Why use Bitnami Secure Images?

Those are hardened, minimal CVE images built and maintained by Bitnami. Bitnami Secure Images are based on the cloud-optimized, security-hardened enterprise OS Photon Linux. Why choose BSI images?

• Hardened secure images of popular open source software with Near-Zero Vulnerabilities
• Vulnerability Triage & Prioritization with VEX Statements, KEV and EPSS Scores
• Compliance focus with FIPS, STIG, and air-gap options, including secure bill of materials (SBOM)
• Software supply chain provenance attestation through in-toto
• First class support for the internet’s favorite Helm charts

Each image comes with valuable security metadata. You can view the metadata in our public catalog here. Note: Some data is only available with commercial subscriptions to BSI.

If you are looking for our previous generation of images based on Debian Linux, please see the Bitnami Legacy registry.

How to deploy Valkey in Kubernetes?

Deploying Bitnami applications as Helm Charts is the easiest way to get started with our applications on Kubernetes. Read more about the installation in the Bitnami Valkey Chart GitHub repository.

Why use a non-root container?

Non-root container images add an extra layer of security and are generally recommended for production environments. However, because they run as a non-root user, privileged tasks are typically off-limits. Learn more about non-root containers in our docs.

Supported tags and respective Dockerfile links

Learn more about the Bitnami tagging policy and the difference between rolling tags and immutable tags in our documentation page.

Get this image

The recommended way to get the Bitnami Valkey Docker Image is to pull the prebuilt image from the Docker Hub Registry.

docker pull bitnami/valkey:latest

To use a specific version, you can pull a versioned tag. You can view the list of available versions in the Docker Hub Registry.

docker pull bitnami/valkey:[TAG]

If you wish, you can also build the image yourself by cloning the repository, changing to the directory containing the Dockerfile and executing the docker build command. Remember to replace the APP, VERSION and OPERATING-SYSTEM path placeholders in the example command below with the correct values.

git clone https://github.com/bitnami/containers.git
cd bitnami/APP/VERSION/OPERATING-SYSTEM
docker build -t bitnami/APP:latest .

Using docker-compose.yaml

Please be aware this file has not undergone internal testing. Consequently, we advise its use exclusively for development or testing purposes. For production-ready deployments, we highly recommend utilizing its associated Bitnami Helm chart.

Persisting your database

Valkey provides a different range of persistence options. This contanier uses AOF persistence by default but it is easy to overwrite that configuration in a docker-compose.yaml file with this entry command: /opt/bitnami/scripts/valkey/run.sh --appendonly no. Alternatively, you may use the VALKEY_AOF_ENABLED env variable as explained in Disabling AOF persistence.

If you remove the container all your data will be lost, and the next time you run the image the database will be reinitialized. To avoid this loss of data, you should mount a volume that will persist even after the container is removed.

For persistence you should mount a directory at the /bitnami path. If the mounted directory is empty, it will be initialized on the first run.

Note

As this is a non-root container, the mounted files and directories must have the proper permissions for the UID 1001.

Connecting to other containers

Using Docker container networking, a Valkey server running inside a container can easily be accessed by your application containers.

Containers attached to the same network can communicate with each other using the container name as the hostname.

Configuration

The following section describes the supported environment variables

Environment variables

The following tables list the main variables you can set.

Customizable environment variables

Name	Description	Default Value
VALKEY_DATA_DIR	Valkey data directory	${VALKEY_VOLUME_DIR}/data
VALKEY_OVERRIDES_FILE	Valkey config overrides file	${VALKEY_MOUNTED_CONF_DIR}/overrides.conf
VALKEY_DISABLE_COMMANDS	Commands to disable in Valkey	nil
VALKEY_DATABASE	Default Valkey database	valkey
VALKEY_AOF_ENABLED	Enable AOF	yes
VALKEY_RDB_POLICY	Enable RDB policy persistence	nil
VALKEY_RDB_POLICY_DISABLED	Allows to enable RDB policy persistence	no
VALKEY_PRIMARY_HOST	Valkey primary host (used by replicas)	nil
VALKEY_PRIMARY_PORT_NUMBER	Valkey primary host port (used by replicas)	6379
VALKEY_PORT_NUMBER	Valkey port number	$VALKEY_DEFAULT_PORT_NUMBER
VALKEY_ALLOW_REMOTE_CONNECTIONS	Allow remote connection to the service	yes
VALKEY_REPLICATION_MODE	Valkey replication mode (values: primary, replica)	nil
VALKEY_REPLICA_IP	The replication announce ip	nil
VALKEY_REPLICA_PORT	The replication announce port	nil
VALKEY_EXTRA_FLAGS	Additional flags pass to 'valkey-server' commands	nil
ALLOW_EMPTY_PASSWORD	Allow password-less access	no
VALKEY_PASSWORD	Password for Valkey	nil
VALKEY_PRIMARY_PASSWORD	Valkey primary node password	nil
VALKEY_ACLFILE	Valkey ACL file	nil
VALKEY_IO_THREADS_DO_READS	Enable multithreading when reading socket	nil
VALKEY_IO_THREADS	Number of threads	nil
VALKEY_TLS_ENABLED	Enable TLS	no
VALKEY_TLS_PORT_NUMBER	Valkey TLS port (requires VALKEY_ENABLE_TLS=yes)	6379
VALKEY_TLS_CERT_FILE	Valkey TLS certificate file	nil
VALKEY_TLS_CA_DIR	Directory containing TLS CA certificates	nil
VALKEY_TLS_KEY_FILE	Valkey TLS key file	nil
VALKEY_TLS_KEY_FILE_PASS	Valkey TLS key file passphrase	nil
VALKEY_TLS_CA_FILE	Valkey TLS CA file	nil
VALKEY_TLS_DH_PARAMS_FILE	Valkey TLS DH parameter file	nil
VALKEY_TLS_AUTH_CLIENTS	Enable Valkey TLS client authentication	yes
VALKEY_SENTINEL_PRIMARY_NAME	Valkey Sentinel primary name	nil
VALKEY_SENTINEL_HOST	Valkey Sentinel host	nil
VALKEY_SENTINEL_PORT_NUMBER	Valkey Sentinel host port (used by replicas)	26379

Read-only environment variables

Name	Description	Value
VALKEY_VOLUME_DIR	Persistence base directory	/bitnami/valkey
VALKEY_BASE_DIR	Valkey installation directory	${BITNAMI_ROOT_DIR}/valkey
VALKEY_CONF_DIR	Valkey configuration directory	${VALKEY_BASE_DIR}/etc
VALKEY_DEFAULT_CONF_DIR	Valkey default configuration directory	${VALKEY_BASE_DIR}/etc.default
VALKEY_MOUNTED_CONF_DIR	Valkey mounted configuration directory	${VALKEY_BASE_DIR}/mounted-etc
VALKEY_CONF_FILE	Valkey configuration file	${VALKEY_CONF_DIR}/valkey.conf
VALKEY_LOG_DIR	Valkey logs directory	${VALKEY_BASE_DIR}/logs
VALKEY_LOG_FILE	Valkey log file	${VALKEY_LOG_DIR}/valkey.log
VALKEY_TMP_DIR	Valkey temporary directory	${VALKEY_BASE_DIR}/tmp
VALKEY_PID_FILE	Valkey PID file	${VALKEY_TMP_DIR}/valkey.pid
VALKEY_BIN_DIR	Valkey executables directory	${VALKEY_BASE_DIR}/bin
VALKEY_DAEMON_USER	Valkey system user	valkey
VALKEY_DAEMON_GROUP	Valkey system group	valkey
VALKEY_DEFAULT_PORT_NUMBER	Valkey port number (Build time)	6379

Disabling Valkey commands

For security reasons, you may want to disable some commands. You can specify them by using the following environment variable on the first run:

• VALKEY_DISABLE_COMMANDS: Comma-separated list of Valkey commands to disable. Defaults to empty.

Passing extra command-line flags to valkey-server startup

Passing extra command-line flags to the valkey service command is possible by adding them as arguments to run.sh script:

docker run --name valkey -e ALLOW_EMPTY_PASSWORD=yes bitnami/valkey:latest /opt/bitnami/scripts/valkey/run.sh --maxmemory 100mb

Alternatively, modify the docker-compose.yml file present in this repository:

services:
  valkey:
  ...
    environment:
      - ALLOW_EMPTY_PASSWORD=yes
    command: /opt/bitnami/scripts/valkey/run.sh --maxmemory 100mb
  ...

Setting the server password on first run

Passing the VALKEY_PASSWORD environment variable when running the image for the first time will set the Valkey server password to the value of VALKEY_PASSWORD (or the content of the file specified in VALKEY_PASSWORD_FILE).

NOTE: The at sign (@) is not supported for VALKEY_PASSWORD.

Warning The Valkey database is always configured with remote access enabled. It's suggested that the VALKEY_PASSWORD env variable is always specified to set a password. In case you want to access the database without a password set the environment variable ALLOW_EMPTY_PASSWORD=yes. This is recommended only for development.

Allowing empty passwords

By default the Valkey image expects all the available passwords to be set. In order to allow empty passwords, it is necessary to set the ALLOW_EMPTY_PASSWORD=yes env variable. This env variable is only recommended for testing or development purposes. We strongly recommend specifying the VALKEY_PASSWORD for any other scenario.

Disabling AOF persistence

Valkey offers different options when it comes to persistence. By default, this image is set up to use the AOF (Append Only File) approach. Should you need to change this behaviour, setting the VALKEY_AOF_ENABLED=no env variable will disable this feature.

Enabling Access Control List

Valkey offers ACL which allows certain connections to be limited in terms of the commands that can be executed and the keys that can be accessed. We strongly recommend enabling ACL in production by specifying the VALKEY_ACLFILE.

docker run -name valkey -e VALKEY_ACLFILE=/opt/bitnami/valkey/mounted-etc/users.acl -v /path/to/users.acl:/opt/bitnami/valkey/mounted-etc/users.acl bitnami/valkey:latest

Alternatively, modify the docker-compose.yml file present in this repository:

services:
  valkey:
  ...
    environment:
      - VALKEY_ACLFILE=/opt/bitnami/valkey/mounted-etc/users.acl
    volumes:
      - /path/to/users.acl:/opt/bitnami/valkey/mounted-etc/users.acl
  ...

Setting up a standalone instance

By default, this image is set up to launch Valkey in standalone mode on port 6379. Should you need to change this behavior, setting the VALKEY_PORT_NUMBER environment variable will modify the port number. This is not to be confused with VALKEY_PRIMARY_PORT_NUMBER or VALKEY_REPLICA_PORT environment variables that are applicable in replication mode.

Setting up replication

A replication cluster can easily be setup with the Bitnami Valkey Docker Image using the following environment variables:

• VALKEY_REPLICATION_MODE: The replication mode. Possible values primary/replica. No defaults.
• VALKEY_REPLICA_IP: The replication announce ip. Defaults to $(get_machine_ip) which return the ip of the container.
• VALKEY_REPLICA_PORT: The replication announce port. Defaults to VALKEY_PRIMARY_PORT_NUMBER.
• VALKEY_PRIMARY_HOST: Hostname/IP of replication primary (replica node parameter). No defaults.
• VALKEY_PRIMARY_PORT_NUMBER: Server port of the replication primary (replica node parameter). Defaults to 6379.
• VALKEY_PRIMARY_PASSWORD: Password to authenticate with the primary (replica node parameter). No defaults. As an alternative, you can mount a file with the password and set the VALKEY_PRIMARY_PASSWORD_FILE variable.

In a replication cluster you can have one primary and zero or more replicas. When replication is enabled the primary node is in read-write mode, while the replicas are in read-only mode. For best performance its advisable to limit the reads to the replicas.

Securing Valkey traffic

Valkey adds the support for SSL/TLS connections. Should you desire to enable this optional feature, you may use the following environment variables to configure the application:

• VALKEY_TLS_ENABLED: Whether to enable TLS for traffic or not. Defaults to no.
• VALKEY_TLS_PORT_NUMBER: Port used for TLS secure traffic. Defaults to 6379.
• VALKEY_TLS_CERT_FILE: File containing the certificate file for the TLS traffic. No defaults.
• VALKEY_TLS_KEY_FILE: File containing the key for certificate. No defaults.
• VALKEY_TLS_CA_FILE: File containing the CA of the certificate (takes precedence over VALKEY_TLS_CA_DIR). No defaults.
• VALKEY_TLS_CA_DIR: Directory containing the CA certificates. No defaults.
• VALKEY_TLS_DH_PARAMS_FILE: File containing DH params (in order to support DH based ciphers). No defaults.
• VALKEY_TLS_AUTH_CLIENTS: Whether to require clients to authenticate or not. Defaults to yes.

When enabling TLS, conventional standard traffic is disabled by default. However this new feature is not mutually exclusive, which means it is possible to listen to both TLS and non-TLS connection simultaneously. To enable non-TLS traffic, set VALKEY_TLS_PORT_NUMBER to another port different than 0.

Alternatively, you may also provide with this configuration in your custom configuration file.

Configuration file

The image looks for configurations in /opt/bitnami/valkey/mounted-etc/valkey.conf. You can overwrite the valkey.conf file using your own custom configuration file.

docker run --name valkey \
    -e ALLOW_EMPTY_PASSWORD=yes \
    -v /path/to/your_valkey.conf:/opt/bitnami/valkey/mounted-etc/valkey.conf \
    -v /path/to/valkey-data-persistence:/bitnami/valkey/data \
    bitnami/valkey:latest

Alternatively, modify the docker-compose.yml file present in this repository:

services:
  valkey:
  ...
    volumes:
      - /path/to/your_valkey.conf:/opt/bitnami/valkey/mounted-etc/valkey.conf
      - /path/to/valkey-persistence:/bitnami/valkey/data
  ...

Overriding configuration

Instead of providing a custom valkey.conf, you may also choose to provide only settings you wish to override. The image will look for /opt/bitnami/valkey/mounted-etc/overrides.conf. This will be ignored if custom valkey.conf is provided.

docker run --name valkey \
    -e ALLOW_EMPTY_PASSWORD=yes \
    -v /path/to/overrides.conf:/opt/bitnami/valkey/mounted-etc/overrides.conf \
    bitnami/valkey:latest

Alternatively, modify the docker-compose.yml file present in this repository:

services:
  valkey:
  ...
    volumes:
      - /path/to/overrides.conf:/opt/bitnami/valkey/mounted-etc/overrides.conf
  ...

Enable Valkey RDB persistence

When the value of VALKEY_RDB_POLICY_DISABLED is no (default value) the Valkey default persistence strategy will be used. If you want to modify the default strategy, you can configure it through the VALKEY_RDB_POLICY parameter.

FIPS configuration in Bitnami Secure Images

The Bitnami Valkey Docker image from the Bitnami Secure Images catalog includes extra features and settings to configure the container with FIPS capabilities. You can configure the next environment variables:

• OPENSSL_FIPS: whether OpenSSL runs in FIPS mode or not. yes (default), no.

Logging

The Bitnami Valkey Docker image sends the container logs to the stdout. To view the logs:

docker logs valkey

or using Docker Compose:

docker-compose logs valkey

You can configure the containers logging driver using the --log-driver option if you wish to consume the container logs differently. In the default configuration docker uses the json-file driver.

Notable Changes

Starting October 20, 2024

• All the references have been updated from master/slave to primary/replica to follow the upstream project strategy. Environment variables previously prefixed as VALKEY_MASTER or VALKEY_SENTINEL_MASTER use VALKEY_PRIMARY and VALKEY_SENTINEL_PRIMARY now.

License

Copyright © 2026 Broadcom. The term "Broadcom" refers to Broadcom Inc. and/or its subsidiaries.

Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. You may obtain a copy of the License at

http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the License for the specific language governing permissions and limitations under the License.