Supported degraded production path when the host cannot run Redis: QUEUE_CONNECTION=database, broadcast log, no Horizon / Reverb. Prefer the full Redis stack when possible.

Not for busy multi-user realtime

Without Redis you lose Horizon, Echo push notifications, presence, and Pulse redis ingest. Database queues work for light operator teams; they are not recommended for busy multi-user realtime or large async fan-out.

Minimal vs full stack · Redis prerequisite · Deployment · Operations

Capability matrix

Capability	Full (Redis)	Without Redis
Queues (zips, imports, webhooks)	Horizon / `redis`	`QUEUE_CONNECTION=database` + `queue:work`
Admin notifications	Echo / Reverb push	60s unread poll only
Presence / avatar connection dot	Online via presence channel	Offline / “Realtime off”
App cache	`CACHE_STORE=redis`	`CACHE_STORE=database` (or `file`)
Session	Often `redis`	`SESSION_DRIVER=database`
Pulse Health cards	Redis ingest + `pulse:work`	Off or storage ingest — limited
Horizon UI	`/horizon`	Unavailable — use Jobs monitor / failed_jobs
AI imports / sync schedules	Same jobs, Redis worker	Same jobs, database worker (watch table growth)

`.env` (production-lean)

QUEUE_CONNECTION=database
CACHE_STORE=database
SESSION_DRIVER=database
BROADCAST_CONNECTION=log
PULSE_ENABLED=false
# or PULSE_INGEST_DRIVER=storage

Ensure jobs / failed_jobs / cache / sessions migrations have run (php artisan migrate --force).

Supervisor examples

Queue worker

[program:externa-queue]
process_name=%(program_name)s
command=php /var/www/externa/artisan queue:work database --sleep=1 --tries=3 --timeout=300 --max-time=3600
directory=/var/www/externa
autostart=true
autorestart=true
user=www-data
numprocs=1
redirect_stderr=true
stdout_logfile=/var/log/externa-queue.log
stopwaitsecs=3600

Scheduler

[program:externa-scheduler]
command=php /var/www/externa/artisan schedule:work
directory=/var/www/externa
autostart=true
autorestart=true
user=www-data
redirect_stderr=true
stdout_logfile=/var/log/externa-scheduler.log

Or classic cron:

* * * * * cd /var/www/externa && php artisan schedule:run >> /dev/null 2>&1

Do not run horizon or reverb:start on this profile. Restart queue:work on every deploy.

When to switch back to Redis

More than a handful of concurrent operators relying on live notifications
Large zip / import backlogs
You want Pulse/Horizon Health cards in production

Then follow Redis prerequisite and Horizon / Reverb.