Set up the Redis object cache with Gemini CLI

Setting up a Redis object cache with Gemini CLI means asking it in your terminal to check a site's object cache, test the Redis connection and enable it through xSpeed Hub.

get_object_cache_statustest_object_cacheget_settingsupdate_settingstoggle_object_cacheflush_object_cache

Last updated: October 2026

Example session · Gemini CLI

You: My host wants the Redis constants set by hand. Use xSpeed Hub to get me the snippet for shop, then check it works.

get_object_cache_status(site: shop, detail: snippet) read-only
→ wp-config.php snippet returned: Redis host, port and key prefix constants. Any saved password is in it.

Gemini CLI: The snippet is in your terminal only; it can hold a saved password, so I will not repeat it. Paste it into wp-config.php above the stop-editing line, then say done and I will test it.

You: Done.

test_object_cache(site: shop) read-only
→ Connected. Probe value written and read back.

Gemini CLI: The Redis test passes. Enable the object cache on shop?

You: Yes.

toggle_object_cache(site: shop, enabled: true) changes site
→ Drop-in installed. Redis active.

How Gemini CLI handles this

You are in a Gemini CLI session in a terminal, and the site you care about is slow where WordPress hits the database, such as a shop catalog or a member dashboard. Type: set up Redis on shop, test first. Gemini CLI calls get_object_cache_status through the xspeedhub server, and the tool name appears in the session as it runs. The result lists the drop-in state, the configured backend and its stats, and it does not prove that Redis answers.

Then comes test_object_cache, which makes the site's plugin open a live connection to Redis and read and write a probe value. If the server refuses, the error is its own. Only after a pass should Gemini CLI call toggle_object_cache with enabled set to true. If your host wants the connection constants set by hand, ask for the status with the snippet detail and Gemini CLI prints the wp-config.php snippet for you to place, then run the test again. The snippet is built from saved settings and can contain the Redis password in clear text, so do not paste it into a shared channel or a ticket.

Gemini CLI is a terminal agent, so in a session that runs on the server it can also run redis-cli ping next to the xSpeed test. It shows a confirmation for each tool call unless the server entry sets trust to true or you start it with --approval-mode=yolo (or --yolo), which approves every tool call. You can proceed once, always allow that tool, always allow the whole xspeedhub server or cancel, and policy rules in ~/.gemini/policies can allow, deny or ask for a named tool by server and tool name. Ask it to explain a failure in a line or two. A connection refused error and a permission denied error point to different fixes, a stopped Redis in one case and a key prefix or user in the other.

Set up Gemini CLI once

Already connected? Skip to the prompts. Alternatives and troubleshooting are on the Gemini CLI guide.

1Put your sites in xSpeed Hub

Sign in at app.xspeedcache.com with Google or email; the Hub is free and has no site cap. Then connect each WordPress site from its own dashboard: click Connect Hub in the xSpeed Cache top bar, then Connect via xSpeed Hub. Each site needs the free xSpeed Cache plugin.

2Add xSpeed Hub to Gemini CLI

Run this once. --scope user writes the server to ~/.gemini/settings.json so it works in every project; without it Gemini CLI saves to the project's .gemini/settings.json, which is the default.

Terminal

gemini mcp add --scope user --transport http xspeedhub https://app.xspeedcache.com/xspeed/mcp

3Authenticate with /mcp auth

Start gemini and run /mcp auth xspeedhub. A browser page opens where you sign in to xSpeed Hub and approve access, and Gemini CLI receives the redirect on a local port. There is no token to paste, and the client keeps the credentials it receives. Run /mcp afterwards to check that xspeedhub shows as connected and lists its tools.

Text

/mcp auth xspeedhub

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Full Gemini CLI setup, sign-in options and FAQ

Before you send a prompt that changes something

Reads change nothing on your sites, though contact_support emails xSpeed support. Writes run once your connection allows them, so your client's approval prompt and a read-only connection (the token's Read-only everywhere switch, or a Viewer sign-in) are the gates that matter. Gemini CLI shows a confirmation for an MCP tool call unless the server entry sets trust to true or you start Gemini CLI with --approval-mode=yolo (or --yolo), which approves every tool call. You can proceed once, always allow that tool, always allow the whole xspeedhub server, or cancel; the last two choices stop later prompts for those tools. Policy rules in ~/.gemini/policies can allow, deny or ask for a named tool by server and tool name. The Hub has no confirmation step of its own, so a trusted server, YOLO mode or an allow rule lets a write run as soon as your connection allows writes.

What do I ask?

Three prompts written for Gemini CLI. More for this job are below.

Prompt for Gemini CLI

Ask xSpeed Hub for the object cache status on shop, then test Redis and summarise the result.

Prompt for Gemini CLI

I am on the server over SSH. Run redis-cli ping, then use xSpeed Hub to run test_object_cache for shop, and say whether they agree.

Prompt for Gemini CLI

Using xSpeed Hub, get the wp-config snippet for the shop object cache and print it, without enabling anything.

What happens, step by step

A persistent object cache keeps database query results in Redis or Memcached instead of rebuilding them on every request. Through xSpeed Hub an agent can read the state of the cache, probe the cache server, switch the cache on or off, and flush it. The Hub tells the agent to run the probe first, because the status call alone does not prove the server is reachable.

Read the current state

get_object_cache_status reports whether the object-cache.php drop-in is installed, which backend is configured, Redis or Memcached, and its stats. It does not prove the server answers, so a clean status is not a green light.

Test the connection first

test_object_cache opens a live connection to the configured server and does a read and write probe with the settings saved on the site. A failure comes back with the server's own reason, such as a wrong password, a refused connection or a permission error. The Hub tells the agent to run this before toggle_object_cache.

Fix the connection if the test fails

get_settings reads the object-cache module, with secrets masked. update_settings changes it, for example the host or port. On a managed host that defines these values in wp-config.php, the fields are read-only and a write that tries to change one is refused with the name of the constant. For a host that wants the constants pasted, get_object_cache_status with detail set to snippet returns the wp-config.php block.

Turn it on

toggle_object_cache with enabled true makes the site test the connection again, write the connection constants into wp-config.php and install the object-cache.php drop-in. If the test fails, it stops with "Could not enable" and writes nothing. If wp-config.php is not writable, the drop-in goes in and the reply tells you to add the snippet by hand. The Hub tells the agent to briefly confirm intent first.

Check it took

The drop-in loads on the next request, so the agent reads get_object_cache_status again after a page load and runs test_object_cache once more. The status also warns when the cache connects but refuses writes, so a connected cache that stores nothing does not pass as healthy.

Flush when stale data survives

flush_object_cache empties the persistent object cache. Use it when old options, transients or query results outlive a page cache purge. It does not touch the page cache; purge_cache does that.

Reference

Read tools	get_object_cache_status and test_object_cache, both work on a read-only connection
Write tools	toggle_object_cache (enabled true or false) and flush_object_cache
Backends	Redis or Memcached
Status detail	status (default) or snippet, the wp-config.php constants block
What status proves	Drop-in installed, backend configured, stats. Not that the server is reachable
What the test proves	A live connect and a read and write probe on the saved settings, with the server's own error on failure
Enable does	Tests the connection, writes connection constants to wp-config.php, installs the object-cache.php drop-in
Disable does	Removes xSpeed's drop-in and its wp-config.php block; a drop-in owned by another plugin is left alone
Connection timeout	1 second by default, set in the object-cache module
Settings module	object-cache, for get_settings and update_settings
Every site at once	None of these tools accept site: "all"; one site per call
Confirmation	None on the Hub; your client's prompt is the gate

Rules worth keeping

Test before you toggle. The Hub tells the agent to run test_object_cache first, because a cache server that does not answer slows every request while the page cache still looks healthy.
Keep the Redis password out of the chat. get_settings masks it, but the wp-config.php snippet is built from the saved settings and can include a saved password. Set secrets in wp-config.php or in the xSpeed panel.
toggle_object_cache and flush_object_cache are write tools. The Hub tells the agent to briefly confirm intent for the object-cache toggles, but that is guidance, not a lock. Your client's approval prompt and a read-only grant are the gates that matter. A read-only grant means the connection token with Read-only everywhere on, or a Viewer member's sign-in; an OAuth sign-in gets the scopes the client asks for, which are read and write by default.
If another plugin owns the object-cache.php drop-in, turn its object cache off in that plugin. xSpeed leaves a drop-in it did not install in place when you disable.
A flush clears cached data, so the next requests rebuild it from the database and the site is briefly slower. Flush one site, then check it, before you repeat it.

Good to know with Gemini CLI

The trust setting is the thing to watch. If you added --trust or set trust to true on the xspeedhub server, its tool calls run without a prompt, and choosing always allow for the whole server does the same. Starting with --approval-mode=yolo (or --yolo) approves every tool call, trusted server or not. The Hub then runs toggle_object_cache and flush_object_cache as soon as the connection allows writes. Remove trust and skip yolo for this job, or use the connection token with Read-only everywhere on while you diagnose.

More prompts for this job

They work in any client connected to xSpeed Hub.

Prompt

Using xSpeed Hub, is a persistent object cache running on shop, and which backend does it use?

Prompt

Use xSpeed Hub to test whether Redis is reachable from shop. Do not change anything.

Prompt

Shop is slow in wp-admin. Use xSpeed Hub to check the object cache before anything else.

Prompt

With xSpeed Hub, test Redis on shop, and if it passes, turn the object cache on.

Prompt

Ask xSpeed Hub for the wp-config.php object cache snippet for docs.

Prompt

Use xSpeed Hub to flush the object cache on blog. Old options survive a page cache purge.

Prompt

With xSpeed Hub, turn the object cache off on shop and confirm the drop-in is gone.

Frequently asked questions

Ask for the object cache status of the site with the snippet detail. Gemini CLI calls get_object_cache_status with that detail and prints the wp-config.php snippet. You or your host place it in the file, then ask for the test again.

It prompts before tool calls unless the server is marked as trusted, you started it with --approval-mode=yolo (or --yolo), or you chose always allow for the tool or the server. In those cases the Hub runs toggle_object_cache as soon as your connection allows writes, because the Hub has no confirmation step of its own.

Because a cache server that does not answer costs time on every request while the page cache still looks fine. The Hub tells the agent to run test_object_cache first, and the site also tests the connection when you enable and refuses to continue if it fails. The probe is still worth running on its own, since it returns the server's exact reason, such as a wrong password or a refused connection.

The site keeps working. The drop-in is built never to take the site down: it falls back to WordPress's own cache for the length of the request and marks itself as degraded. A request can still wait up to the connection timeout, which is 1 second by default, so the site gets slower. xSpeed reports that state as degraded, and test_object_cache names the fault.

No. These tools connect xSpeed to a Redis or Memcached server that already exists and switch the object cache on or off. Getting a server is a hosting task. xSpeed uses the phpredis extension when it is there and its own built-in client when it is not.

flush_object_cache empties the persistent object cache and nothing else. purge_cache with type object does the same job through the purge tool, and purge_cache with type all also clears the page cache and, when connected, the Cloudflare edge. Use the flush when stale options or transients survive a page cache purge.

Treat it like a secret. The snippet is built from the settings saved on the site, so it can contain the Redis password if one is saved. Paste it into wp-config.php yourself and avoid sharing it in a chat or a ticket.

Set up Redis object cache, from Gemini CLI.

xSpeed Hub is free and has no site cap. Connect your sites once and ask from the agent you already use.

Open xSpeed Hub Gemini CLI setup

Set up the Redis object cache with Gemini CLI

How Gemini CLI handles this

Set up Gemini CLI once

What do I ask?

What happens, step by step

Reference

Rules worth keeping

More prompts for this job

Frequently asked questions

Keep going

Set up Redis object cache, from Gemini CLI.