This guide describes how to use Spring Session to transparently leverage Redis to back a web application’s HttpSession when using Spring Boot.

The completed guide can be found in the boot sample application.

Updating Dependencies

Before you use Spring Session, you must ensure to update your dependencies. We assume you are working with a working Spring Boot web application. If you are using Maven, ensure to add the following dependencies:

pom.xml
<dependencies>
    <!-- ... -->

    <dependency>
      <groupId>org.springframework.session</groupId>
      <artifactId>spring-session-data-redis</artifactId>
      <version>1.0.0.RELEASE</version>
      <type>pom<type>
    </dependency>
</dependencies>

Spring Configuration

After adding the required dependencies, we can create our Spring configuration. The Spring configuration is responsible for creating a Servlet Filter that replaces the HttpSession implementation with an implementation backed by Spring Session. Add the following Spring Configuration:

package sample.config;

import org.springframework.context.annotation.Bean;
import org.springframework.context.annotation.Configuration;
import org.springframework.data.redis.connection.jedis.JedisConnectionFactory;
import org.springframework.session.data.redis.config.annotation.web.http.EnableRedisHttpSession;

@Configuration
@EnableRedisHttpSession (1)
public class HttpSessionConfig {

    @Bean
    public JedisConnectionFactory connectionFactory() {
        return new JedisConnectionFactory(); (2)
    }
}
1 The @EnableRedisHttpSession annotation creates a Spring Bean with the name of springSessionRepositoryFilter that implements Filter. The filter is what is in charge of replacing the HttpSession implementation to be backed by Spring Session. In this instance Spring Session is backed by Redis.
2 We create a RedisConnectionFactory that connects Spring Session to the Redis Server. In our example, we are connecting to localhost on the default port (6379). For more information on configuring Spring Data Redis, refer to the reference documentation.

Servlet Container Initialization

Our Spring Configuration created a Spring Bean named springSessionRepositoryFilter that implements Filter. The springSessionRepositoryFilter bean is responsible for replacing the HttpSession with a custom implementation that is backed by Spring Session.

In order for our Filter to do its magic, Spring needs to load our Config class. Last we need to ensure that our Servlet Container (i.e. Tomcat) uses our springSessionRepositoryFilter for every request. Fortunately, Spring Boot takes care of both of these steps for us.

boot Sample Application

The boot Sample Application demonstrates how to use Spring Session to transparently leverage Redis to back a web application’s HttpSession when using Spring Boot.

Running the boot Sample Application

You can run the sample by obtaining the source code and invoking the following command:

$ ./gradlew :samples:boot:tomcatRun

You should now be able to access the application at http://localhost:8080/

Exploring the security Sample Application

Try using the application. Enter the following to log in:

  • Username user

  • Password password

Now click the Login button. You should now see a message indicating your are logged in with the user entered previously. The user’s information is stored in Redis rather than Tomcat’s HttpSession implementation.

How does it work?

Instead of using Tomcat’s HttpSession, we are actually persisting the values in Redis. Spring Session replaces the HttpSession with an implementation that is backed by Redis. When Spring Security’s SecurityContextPersistenceFilter saves the SecurityContext to the HttpSession it is then persisted into Redis.

When a new HttpSession is created, Spring Session creates a cookie named SESSION in your browser that contains the id of your session. Go ahead and view the cookies (click for help with Chrome or Firefox).

If you like, you can easily remove the session using redis-cli. For example, on a Linux based system you can type:

$ redis-cli keys '*' | xargs redis-cli del
The Redis documentation has instructions for installing redis-cli.

Alternatively, you can also delete the explicit key. Enter the following into your terminal ensuring to replace 7e8383a4-082c-4ffe-a4bc-c40fd3363c5e with the value of your SESSION cookie:

$ redis-cli del spring:session:sessions:7e8383a4-082c-4ffe-a4bc-c40fd3363c5e

Now visit the application at http://localhost:8080/ and observe that we are no longer authenticated.