In March, Redis unexpectedly switched from its original BSD 3-Clause License to a new dual-license system using RSALv2 and SSPLv1. This change removed Redis, a widely used in-memory key-value database, from the free software category.
In response, several new projects, such as Valkey, Redka, Redict, and Microsoft’s open-source project Garnet, emerged as alternatives to ensure that Redis functionality remained under open-source licensing and available to all without restriction.
However, recently, in a move to deepen user engagement and bolster community-driven development, Redis has officially renamed Redis OSS to Redis Community Edition (CE) as part of their latest release, version 7.4
“Redis 7.4 Community Edition is the first version of Redis dual-licensed under RSALv2 and SSPLv1. Community Edition is available for free to the Redis community and our customers, and developers will continue to enjoy permissive use of Redis under the dual license.”
Redis 7.4: A New Chapter
The newly christened Redis Community Edition 7.4 brings an array of eagerly anticipated features to enhance usability and efficiency. Among the most notable is the introduction of hash field expiration—a feature long requested by the community.
This functionality allows more granular control over how data expires within Redis, potentially leading to more memory-efficient cache and session store management.
Redis 7.4 also debuts new vector data types, bfloat16 and float16, which promise to reduce memory usage significantly—by up to 47%—and lower latency under heavy loads by as much as 59%.
These enhancements are particularly beneficial for applications requiring rapid response times and efficient memory management, such as AI-driven apps utilizing Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG).
Moreover, Redis 7.4 simplifies secondary indexing with improvements to the Redis Query Engine. Previously, querying special characters in tags could be cumbersome and error-prone.
In other words, users can now encapsulate query terms in double quotes, eliminating the need to escape special characters. This enhancement is expected to streamline queries and significantly reduce syntax errors.
Lastly, Redis Stack 7.4 introduces other improvements, including better handling of empty and missing fields in databases and enhanced geospatial search capabilities. However, it marks the end of Triggers and Functions—features that had seen low adoption rates during their public preview.
Licensing and Availability
Redis 7.4 Community Edition is dual-licensed under RSALv2 and SSPLv1, allowing developers to use the software permissively. It remains free for both community members and customers and is already available for download.
In addition, it is the first to be termed under the “Community Edition” label, distinguishing it from earlier versions still known as Redis OSS.
Refer to the release announcement for more information.
