> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://sequinstream.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Get started with Redis Streams

> `XADD` Postgres changes to Redis Streams in minutes. Build real-time data pipelines with Redis and Postgres change data capture (CDC).

In this quickstart, you'll create a real-time data pipeline that streams changes from a Postgres database to a Redis stream. You'll:

* Boot Sequin
* Connect to a sample playground database
* Configure a Redis stream to receive database changes
* See your changes flow in real-time

By the end, you'll have hands-on experience setting up Postgres change data capture (CDC) with Sequin and Redis Streams.

<Tip>
  This is the quickstart for streaming Postgres to Redis Streams. See the [how-to guide](/how-to/stream-postgres-to-redis-stream) for an explanation of how to use the Redis Stream sink or the [reference](/reference/sinks/redis-stream) for details on all configuration options.
</Tip>

<Info>
  This guide is for Redis Streams which use `XADD` to build a stream. If you are want to use Redis key/values, see our [Redis String quickstart](/quickstart/redis-string).
</Info>

<Steps titleSize="h2">
  <Step title="Boot Redis" icon="database">
    If you don't already have Redis running, start Redis with Docker:

    ```bash theme={null}
    docker run --name redis -p 6379:6379 -d redis:latest
    ```

    <Note>
      If you're using another Redis instance, be sure you're using Redis 5.0+ (required for streams).
    </Note>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Run Sequin" icon="server">
    The easiest way to get started with Sequin is with our [Docker Compose file](https://github.com/sequinstream/sequin/blob/main/docker/docker-compose.yaml). This file starts a Postgres database, Redis instance, and Sequin server.

    <Steps>
      <Step title="Create directory and start services">
        1. Download [sequin-docker-compose.zip](https://github.com/sequinstream/sequin/releases/latest/download/sequin-docker-compose.zip).
        2. Unzip the file.
        3. Navigate to the unzipped directory and start the services:

        ```bash theme={null}
        cd sequin-docker-compose && docker compose up -d
        ```

        <AccordionGroup>
          <Accordion title="Alternative: Download with curl">
            ```bash theme={null}
            curl -L https://github.com/sequinstream/sequin/releases/latest/download/sequin-docker-compose.zip -o sequin-docker-compose.zip \
              && unzip sequin-docker-compose.zip && rm sequin-docker-compose.zip
            cd sequin-docker-compose && docker compose up -d
            ```
          </Accordion>

          <Accordion title="Alternative: Clone the repository">
            ```bash theme={null}
            git clone git@github.com:sequinstream/sequin.git
            cd sequin/docker
            docker compose up -d
            ```
          </Accordion>
        </AccordionGroup>
      </Step>

      <Step title="Verify services are running">
        Check that Sequin is running using `docker ps`:

        ```bash theme={null}
        docker ps
        ```

        You should see output like the following:

        ```
        CONTAINER ID   IMAGE                           COMMAND                  CREATED          STATUS                    PORTS                              NAMES
        bd5c458cabde   sequin/sequin:latest            "/scripts/start_comm…"   11 seconds ago   Up 9 seconds              4000/tcp, 0.0.0.0:7376->7376/tcp   sequin-sequin-1
        3bacd89765e7   grafana/grafana                 "/run.sh"                11 seconds ago   Up 11 seconds             0.0.0.0:3000->3000/tcp             sequin-sequin_grafana-1
        3ad41319a66c   postgres:16                     "docker-entrypoint.s…"   11 seconds ago   Up 11 seconds (healthy)   0.0.0.0:7377->5432/tcp             sequin-sequin_postgres-1
        6139a5fc4e80   redis:7                         "docker-entrypoint.s…"   11 seconds ago   Up 11 seconds             0.0.0.0:7378->6379/tcp             sequin-sequin_redis-1
        7e07a5b052de   prom/prometheus                 "/bin/prometheus --c…"   11 seconds ago   Up 11 seconds             0.0.0.0:9090->9090/tcp             sequin-sequin_prometheus-1
        ```

        <Check>
          Sequin, Postgres, Redis, Prometheus, and Grafana should be up and running (status: `Up`).
        </Check>
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Login" icon="key">
    The Docker Compose file automatically configures Sequin with an admin user and a playground database.

    Let's log in to the Sequin web console:

    <Steps>
      <Step title="Open the web console">
        After starting the Docker Compose services, open the Sequin web console at [http://localhost:7376](http://localhost:7376):

        <Frame>
          <img src="https://mintcdn.com/sequinstream/drUA755uMUeIaCSH/images/quickstart/login-page.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=drUA755uMUeIaCSH&q=85&s=c5d90b34f56560570696a71370f7e39b" alt="Sequin login page, allowing login with default credentials" width="2070" height="1696" data-path="images/quickstart/login-page.png" />
        </Frame>
      </Step>

      <Step title="Login with default credentials">
        Use the following default credentials to login:

        * Email:

        ```
        admin@sequinstream.com
        ```

        * Password:

        ```
        sequinpassword!
        ```
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Step>

  <Step title="View the playground database" icon="database">
    To get you started quickly, Sequin's Docker Compose file creates a logical database called `sequin_playground` with a sample dataset in the `public.products` table.

    Let's take a look:

    <Steps>
      <Step title="Navigate to Databases">
        In the Sequin web console, click **Databases** in the sidebar.
      </Step>

      <Step title="Select playground database">
        Click on the pre-configured `sequin-playground` database:

        <Frame>
          <img src="https://mintcdn.com/sequinstream/drUA755uMUeIaCSH/images/quickstart/playground-database.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=drUA755uMUeIaCSH&q=85&s=01ac1cbf4506cad22c270adb66c0b171" alt="Playground database" width="3376" height="2020" data-path="images/quickstart/playground-database.png" />
        </Frame>

        <Check>
          The database "Health" should be green.
        </Check>
      </Step>

      <Step title="View contents of the products table">
        Let's get a sense of what's in the `products` table. Run the following command:

        ```bash theme={null}
        docker exec -i sequin-sequin_postgres-1 \
          psql -U postgres -d sequin_playground -c \
          "select id, name, price from products;"
        ```

        <Info>
          This command connects to the running Postgres container and runs a `psql` command.
        </Info>

        You should see a list of the rows in the `products` table:

        ```
          id |         name          | price 
        ----+-----------------------+-------
          1 | Avocados (3 pack)     |  5.99
          2 | Flank Steak (1 lb)    |  8.99
          3 | Salmon Fillet (12 oz) | 14.99
          4 | Baby Spinach (16 oz)  |  4.99
          5 | Sourdough Bread       |  6.99
          6 | Blueberries (6 oz)    |  3.99
        (6 rows)
        ```

        We'll make modifications to this table in a bit.
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Create a Redis Stream Sink" icon="database">
    With the playground database connected, you can create a [sink](/reference/sinks/overview). This sink will send changes to the `products` table to your Redis stream:

    <Steps>
      <Step title="Navigate to Sinks">
        Click "Sinks" in the sidebar navigation, then click "Create Sink".
      </Step>

      <Step title="Select sink type">
        Select "Redis Stream" as the sink type and click "Continue".
      </Step>

      <Step title="Note &#x22;Source&#x22; configuration">
        In the "Source" card, note that the `sequin-playground` database is selected and all schemas and tables are included. Leave these defaults:

        <Frame>
          <img style={{ maxWidth: '500px' }} src="https://mintcdn.com/sequinstream/I2Yx_f_pmUFGglUP/images/quickstart/source-card.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=I2Yx_f_pmUFGglUP&q=85&s=a1ba47d0e4698d439d64db0d582f0951" alt="Source card showing the sequin_playground database and products table" width="1640" height="778" data-path="images/quickstart/source-card.png" />
        </Frame>
      </Step>

      <Step title="Setup a backfill">
        In the `Inital backfill` card, select the `public.products` table to initate a backfill when the sink is created.

        <Frame>
          <img style={{ maxWidth: '700px' }} src="https://mintcdn.com/sequinstream/drUA755uMUeIaCSH/images/quickstart/backfill-card.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=drUA755uMUeIaCSH&q=85&s=2a41931bc2d650f7467f3c7ae92b5b0a" alt="Initial backfill card with public.products table selected" width="1606" height="570" data-path="images/quickstart/backfill-card.png" />
        </Frame>
      </Step>

      <Step title="Configure &#x22;Redis Configuration&#x22;">
        In the "Redis Configuration" card, enter your Redis connection details.

        * Host: If running locally with Docker, use `host.docker.internal`
        * Port: The port Redis is listening on (default: 6379)
        * Username: Required if Redis authentication is enabled
        * Password: Required if Redis authentication is enabled
        * Stream Key: The Redis stream to write to (e.g., `products-stream`)
        * Database: The Redis database number (default: 0)
        * TLS: Toggle on if your Redis instance requires TLS

        <Frame>
          <img style={{ maxWidth: '700px' }} src="https://mintcdn.com/sequinstream/drUA755uMUeIaCSH/images/quickstart/redis-stream/redis-config-card.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=drUA755uMUeIaCSH&q=85&s=334a0339967568b306c7990ecc36d0c7" alt="Redis configuration card" width="1578" height="1380" data-path="images/quickstart/redis-stream/redis-config-card.png" />
        </Frame>
      </Step>

      <Step title="Test the connection">
        At the bottom of the form, click the "Test Connection" button. If you provided proper credentials, it should succeed.

        <Check>
          Sequin can connect to your Redis instance.
        </Check>
      </Step>

      <Step title="Create the sink">
        You can leave the rest of the defaults. As configured, the Redis stream will first receive a backfill of all rows currently in the `products` table. Then, it will receive all changes to the `products` table in real-time.

        Click "Create Sink" to finish setting up your Redis Stream sink.
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Step>

  <Step title="See changes flow to your Redis stream" icon="waveform-lines">
    On the new sink's overview page, you should see the "Health" status turn green, indicating data is flowing to your Redis stream.

    Let's confirm messages are flowing:

    <Steps>
      <Step title="Messages tab">
        Click the "Messages" tab. You'll see a list of the recently delivered messages:

        <Frame>
          <img style={{ maxWidth: '700px' }} src="https://mintcdn.com/sequinstream/drUA755uMUeIaCSH/images/quickstart/redis-stream/messages-tab.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=drUA755uMUeIaCSH&q=85&s=8e03de9a8c5579a8c216579b0c8dca7b" alt="List of recently delivered messages" width="1822" height="948" data-path="images/quickstart/redis-stream/messages-tab.png" />
        </Frame>

        <Check>
          Sequin indicates it backfilled the `products` table to your Redis stream.
        </Check>
      </Step>

      <Step title="View in Redis CLI">
        Connect to your Redis instance using the Redis CLI and read from the stream:

        ```bash theme={null}
        redis-cli
        > xread count 5 streams playground-stream 0
        ```

        You should see the messages that were sent from Sequin. These are [`read` events](/reference/messages) from the initial backfill of the `products` table.

        <Check>
          Messages are flowing from Sequin to your Redis stream.
        </Check>
      </Step>

      <Step title="Make some changes">
        Let's make some changes to the `products` table and see them flow to your stream.

        In your terminal, run the following command to insert a new row into the `products` table:

        ```bash theme={null}
        docker exec -i sequin-sequin_postgres-1 \
          psql -U postgres -d sequin_playground -c \
          "insert into products (name, price) values ('Organic Honey (16 oz)', 12.99);"
        ```

        In Redis CLI, read the latest messages from the stream:

        ```bash theme={null}
        xrevrange playground-stream + - count 1
        ```

        You should see a message corresponding to the inserted row.

        Feel free to try other changes:

        <AccordionGroup>
          <Accordion title="Update a product's price">
            ```bash theme={null}
            docker exec -i sequin-sequin_postgres-1 \
              psql -U postgres -d sequin_playground -c \
              "update products set price = 7.99 where name = 'Avocados (3 pack)';"
            ```
          </Accordion>

          <Accordion title="Change a product's name">
            ```bash theme={null}
            docker exec -i sequin-sequin_postgres-1 \
              psql -U postgres -d sequin_playground -c \
              "update products set name = 'Organic Avocados (3 pack)' where name = 'Avocados (3 pack)';"
            ```
          </Accordion>

          <Accordion title="Delete a product">
            ```bash theme={null}
            docker exec -i sequin-sequin_postgres-1 \
              psql -U postgres -d sequin_playground -c \
              "delete from products where name = 'Blueberries (6 oz)';"
            ```
          </Accordion>
        </AccordionGroup>

        Each change will appear in your Redis stream within a few seconds.
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Check>
  Great work!
</Check>

You've successfully:

* Set up a complete Postgres change data capture pipeline
* Loaded existing data through a backfill
* Made changes to the `products` table
* Verified changes are flowing to your Redis stream

## Ready to stream

Now you're ready to connect your own database to Sequin and start streaming changes:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Guide: Connect Postgres" icon="elephant" href="/connect-postgres">
    Connect your Postgres database to Sequin.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Guide: Setting up a Redis sink" icon="database" href="/how-to/stream-postgres-to-redis-stream">
    Setup a Redis sink to send changes to your stream.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>
