String Commands

GET-&-SET

GET and SET are the most fundamental commands in Valkey and Redis. They store and retrieve string values - the building blocks of your data.

You'll Learn

  • Basic GET and SET syntax
  • Setting expiration with EX/PX options
  • Conditional SET with NX/XX flags
  • How Redimo visualizes string data
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1. What Are GET & SET?

SET stores a string value at a key. GET retrieves it. Simple as that. These commands are the foundation of all Valkey/Redis operations.

Despite their simplicity, GET and SET are incredibly versatile. You can store anything that can be serialized to a string: plain text, numbers, JSON objects, binary data, and more. The maximum value size is 512MB, though you'll rarely need anything close to that.

Syntax

SET key value [EX seconds] [PX milliseconds] [NX|XX]
GET key

SET Options

  • EX seconds - Set expiration in seconds
  • PX milliseconds - Set expiration in ms
  • NX - Only set if key doesn't exist
  • XX - Only set if key exists

GET Returns

  • string - The value if key exists
  • nil - If key doesn't exist
  • error - If key holds non-string

2. The CLI Way (Hard Mode)

In the terminal, you're typing commands and reading raw text output. This works fine for simple values, but becomes a nightmare when you're storing JSON:

Simple String - Easy

127.0.0.1:6379> SET greeting "Hello, World!"
OK
127.0.0.1:6379> GET greeting
"Hello, World!"

JSON String - Nightmare

127.0.0.1:6379> SET user:1001:session "{\"userId\":1001,\"token\":\"abc123\",\"expires\":1699999999,\"permissions\":[\"read\",\"write\"],\"metadata\":{\"ip\":\"192.168.1.1\",\"userAgent\":\"Mozilla/5.0\"}}"
OK
127.0.0.1:6379> GET user:1001:session
"{\"userId\":1001,\"token\":\"abc123\",\"expires\":1699999999,\"permissions\":[\"read\",\"write\"],\"metadata\":{\"ip\":\"192.168.1.1\",\"userAgent\":\"Mozilla/5.0\"}}"
127.0.0.1:6379> SET user:1001:session "..." EX 3600
OK
127.0.0.1:6379> TTL user:1001:session
(integer) 3598

The Problem

JSON stored in strings becomes an unreadable mess of escaped quotes. Want to check if a specific permission exists? Good luck parsing that visually at 3 AM. And don't forget to run TTL separately to check expiration!

3. The Redimo Way (Smart Mode)

Redimo automatically detects JSON in string values and renders it as an interactive tree view. No more escaped quotes. No more manual parsing. Just click, expand, and edit.

What Redimo Does Automatically:

  • ●JSON Detection: Recognizes JSON strings and renders them as expandable tree views. Click any node to drill down.
  • ●Live TTL Display: Shows remaining time right next to the key. Watch it count down in real-time.
  • ●Inline Editing: Click any value to edit it directly. No need to re-type the entire SET command.
  • ●TTL Preservation: When you edit a value, Redimo automatically preserves the existing TTL. No more accidentally removing expiration.

CLI Pain Points

  • • Escaped JSON is completely unreadable
  • • Must run TTL command separately
  • • Copy-paste entire value to edit one field
  • • Easy to forget EX option and lose TTL
  • • No syntax highlighting for JSON

Redimo Solutions

  • • JSON rendered as interactive tree
  • • TTL shown inline, counts down live
  • • Click to edit any nested value
  • • TTL automatically preserved on edit
  • • Full syntax highlighting and formatting

4. Common Patterns

GET and SET are used everywhere. Here are the most common patterns you'll encounter:

Session Storage

# Store session with 1-hour expiration
SET session:abc123 "{\"userId\":1001,\"role\":\"admin\"}" EX 3600

# Extend session on activity
EXPIRE session:abc123 3600

# Check remaining time
TTL session:abc123

Distributed Locking

# Acquire lock (only if not exists)
SET lock:resource-1 "worker-42" NX EX 30

# Returns OK if acquired, nil if already locked

# Release lock (only if we own it - use Lua script in production)
GET lock:resource-1  # Check owner first
DEL lock:resource-1  # Then delete

Caching

# Cache API response for 5 minutes
SET cache:api:users:page1 "{\"users\":[...],\"total\":100}" EX 300

# Get cached value
GET cache:api:users:page1

# Refresh cache (only if exists)
SET cache:api:users:page1 "{\"users\":[...],\"total\":105}" XX EX 300

5. Pro Tips

Valkey Compatibility

GET and SET work identically in Valkey and Redis. Redimo auto-detects your server type and shows it in the status bar. You don't need to change anything when switching between them.

GETSET and GETEX

Need to get the old value while setting a new one? Use GETSET (deprecated) or GETDEL/GETEX (Redis 6.2+). These atomic operations prevent race conditions.

Advanced SET Options

# Set only if key doesn't exist (for locks)
SET mylock "process-1" NX EX 30

# Set only if key exists (for updates)
SET user:1001:name "Jane Doe" XX

# Get and set atomically (deprecated, use GETEX)
GETSET counter 0

# Get with expiration update (Redis 6.2+)
GETEX session:abc EX 3600

# Set multiple keys at once
MSET key1 "value1" key2 "value2" key3 "value3"

# Get multiple keys at once
MGET key1 key2 key3

Redimo Bonus

When you edit a string value in Redimo, it automatically preserves the existing TTL. In CLI, forgetting the EX option when re-setting a value removes the expiration entirely - a common source of bugs.

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