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Rate Limiting Advanced

Kong Konnect only: This plugin is only available with a Kong Konnect subscription. Please inquire about Kong Konnect by contacting us.

The Rate Limiting Advanced plugin for Konnect Enterprise is a re-engineered version of the Kong Gateway (OSS) Rate Limiting plugin.

As compared to the standard Rate Limiting plugin, Rate Limiting Advanced provides:

  • Additional configurations: limit, window_size, and sync_rate
  • Support for Redis Sentinel, Redis cluster, and Redis SSL
  • Increased performance: Rate Limiting Advanced has better throughput performance with better accuracy. Configure sync_rate to periodically sync with backend storage.
  • More limiting algorithms to choose from: These algorithms are more accurate and they enable configuration with more specificity. Learn more about our algorithms in How to Design a Scalable Rate Limiting Algorithm.

Configuration Reference

This plugin is compatible with requests with the following protocols:

  • http
  • https
  • grpc
  • grpcs

This plugin is partially compatible with DB-less mode.

In DB-less mode, you configure Kong Gateway declaratively. Therefore, the Admin API is mostly read-only. The only tasks it can perform are all related to handling the declarative config, including:

  • setting a target's health status in the load balancer
  • validating configurations against schemas
  • uploading the declarative configuration using the /config endpoint

The cluster strategy is not supported in DB-less and hybrid modes. For Kong Gateway in DB-less or hybrid mode, use the redis strategy.

Enable the plugin on a service

Admin API
Kubernetes
Declarative (YAML)
Konnect Cloud
Manager

For example, configure this plugin on a service by making the following request:

curl -X POST http://{HOST}:8001/services/{SERVICE}/plugins \
    --data "name=rate-limiting-advanced"  \
    --data "config.limit=5" \
    --data "config.window_size=30" \
    --data "config.identifier=consumer" \
    --data "config.dictionary_name=kong_rate_limiting_counters" \
    --data "config.sync_rate=-1" \
    --data "config.namespace=random_auto_generated_string" \
    --data "config.strategy=cluster" \
    --data "config.hide_client_headers=false" \
    --data "config.window_type=sliding" \
    --data "config.retry_after_jitter_max=0"

SERVICE is the id or name of the service that this plugin configuration will target.

First, create a KongPlugin resource:

apiVersion: configuration.konghq.com/v1
kind: KongPlugin
metadata:
  name: <rate-limiting-advanced-example>
config: 
  limit:
  - 5
  window_size:
  - 30
  identifier: consumer
  dictionary_name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
  sync_rate: -1
  namespace: random_auto_generated_string
  strategy: cluster
  hide_client_headers: false
  window_type: sliding
  retry_after_jitter_max: 0
plugin: rate-limiting-advanced

Next, apply the KongPlugin resource to a Service by annotating the Service as follows:

apiVersion: v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: {SERVICE}
  labels:
    app: {SERVICE}
  annotations:
    konghq.com/plugins: <rate-limiting-advanced-example>
spec:
  ports:
  - port: 80
    targetPort: 80
    protocol: TCP
    name: {SERVICE}
  selector:
    app: {SERVICE}

{SERVICE} is the id or name of the service that this plugin configuration will target.

Note: The KongPlugin resource only needs to be defined once and can be applied to any service, consumer, or route in the namespace. If you want the plugin to be available cluster-wide, create the resource as a KongClusterPlugin instead of KongPlugin.

For example, configure this plugin on a service by adding this section to your declarative configuration file:

plugins:
- name: rate-limiting-advanced
  service: {SERVICE}
  config: 
    limit:
    - 5
    window_size:
    - 30
    identifier: consumer
    dictionary_name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
    sync_rate: -1
    namespace: random_auto_generated_string
    strategy: cluster
    hide_client_headers: false
    window_type: sliding
    retry_after_jitter_max: 0

SERVICE is the id or name of the service that this plugin configuration will target.

Configure this plugin on a service:

  1. In Konnect Cloud, select the service on the ServiceHub page.
  2. Scroll down to Versions and select the version.
  3. Scroll down to Plugins and click New Plugin.
  4. Find and select the Rate Limiting Advanced plugin.

  5. Enter the following parameters, updating the default or sample values as needed:

    • Config.Limit: 5
    • Config.Window Size: 30
    • Config.Identifier: consumer
    • Config.Dictionary Name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
    • Config.Sync Rate: -1
    • Config.Namespace: random_auto_generated_string
    • Config.Strategy: cluster
    • Config.Window Type: sliding
    • Config.Retry After Jitter Max: 0
  6. Click Create.

Configure this plugin on a service:

  1. In Kong Manager, select the workspace.
  2. From the Dashboard, scroll down to Services and click View for the service row.
  3. Scroll down to plugins and click Add Plugin.

  4. Find and select the Rate Limiting Advanced plugin.

    Note: If the plugin is greyed out, then it is not available for your product tier. See Kong Gateway tiers.
  5. If the option is available, select Scoped.
  6. Add the service name and ID to the Service field if it is not already prefilled.

  7. Enter the following parameters, updating the default or sample values as needed:

    • Config.Limit: 5
    • Config.Window Size: 30
    • Config.Identifier: consumer
    • Config.Dictionary Name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
    • Config.Sync Rate: -1
    • Config.Namespace: random_auto_generated_string
    • Config.Strategy: cluster
    • Config.Window Type: sliding
    • Config.Retry After Jitter Max: 0
  8. Click Create.

Enable the plugin on a route

Admin API
Kubernetes
Declarative (YAML)
Konnect Cloud
Manager

For example, configure this plugin on a route with:

$ curl -X POST http://{HOST}:8001/routes/{ROUTE}/plugins \
    --data "name=rate-limiting-advanced"  \
    --data "config.limit=5" \
    --data "config.window_size=30" \
    --data "config.identifier=consumer" \
    --data "config.dictionary_name=kong_rate_limiting_counters" \
    --data "config.sync_rate=-1" \
    --data "config.namespace=random_auto_generated_string" \
    --data "config.strategy=cluster" \
    --data "config.hide_client_headers=false" \
    --data "config.window_type=sliding" \
    --data "config.retry_after_jitter_max=0"

ROUTE is the id or name of the route that this plugin configuration will target.

First, create a KongPlugin resource:

apiVersion: configuration.konghq.com/v1
kind: KongPlugin
metadata:
  name: <rate-limiting-advanced-example>
config: 
  limit:
  - 5
  window_size:
  - 30
  identifier: consumer
  dictionary_name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
  sync_rate: -1
  namespace: random_auto_generated_string
  strategy: cluster
  hide_client_headers: false
  window_type: sliding
  retry_after_jitter_max: 0
plugin: rate-limiting-advanced

Then, apply it to an ingress (Route or Routes) by annotating the ingress as follows:

apiVersion: networking/v1beta1
kind: Ingress
metadata:
  name: {ROUTE}
  annotations:
    kubernetes.io/ingress.class: kong
    konghq.com/plugins: <rate-limiting-advanced-example>
spec:
  rules:
  - host: examplehostname.com
    http:
      paths:
      - path: /bar
        backend:
          serviceName: echo
          servicePort: 80

ROUTE is the id or name of the route that this plugin configuration will target.

Note: The KongPlugin resource only needs to be defined once and can be applied to any service, consumer, or route in the namespace. If you want the plugin to be available cluster-wide, create the resource as a KongClusterPlugin instead of KongPlugin.

For example, configure this plugin on a route by adding this section to your declarative configuration file:

plugins:
- name: rate-limiting-advanced
  route: <route>
  config: 
    limit:
    - 5
    window_size:
    - 30
    identifier: consumer
    dictionary_name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
    sync_rate: -1
    namespace: random_auto_generated_string
    strategy: cluster
    hide_client_headers: false
    window_type: sliding
    retry_after_jitter_max: 0

ROUTE is the id or name of the route that this plugin configuration will target.

Configure this plugin on a route:

  1. In Konnect Cloud, select the service from the ServiceHub page.
  2. Scroll down to Versions and select the version.
  3. Select the route.
  4. Scroll down to Plugins and click Add Plugin.
  5. Find and select the Rate Limiting Advanced plugin.

  6. Enter the following parameters, updating the default or sample values as needed:

    • Config.Limit: 5
    • Config.Window Size: 30
    • Config.Identifier: consumer
    • Config.Dictionary Name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
    • Config.Sync Rate: -1
    • Config.Namespace: random_auto_generated_string
    • Config.Strategy: cluster
    • Config.Window Type: sliding
    • Config.Retry After Jitter Max: 0
  7. Click Create.

Configure this plugin on a route:

  1. In Kong Manager, select the workspace.
  2. From the Dashboard, select Routes in the left navigation.
  3. Click View for the route row.
  4. Scroll down to plugins and click Add Plugin.

  5. Find and select the Rate Limiting Advanced plugin.

    Note: If the plugin is greyed out, then it is not available for your product tier. See Kong Gateway tiers.
  6. If the option is available, select Scoped.
  7. Add the Route ID if it is not already prefilled.

  8. Enter the following parameters, updating the default or sample values as needed:

    • Config.Limit: 5
    • Config.Window Size: 30
    • Config.Identifier: consumer
    • Config.Dictionary Name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
    • Config.Sync Rate: -1
    • Config.Namespace: random_auto_generated_string
    • Config.Strategy: cluster
    • Config.Window Type: sliding
    • Config.Retry After Jitter Max: 0
  9. Click Create.

Enabling the plugin on a consumer

Admin API
Kubernetes
Declarative (YAML)
Manager

For example, configure this plugin on a consumer with:

$ curl -X POST http://{HOST}:8001/consumers/{CONSUMER}/plugins \
    --data "name=rate-limiting-advanced"  \
    --data "config.limit=5" \
    --data "config.window_size=30" \
    --data "config.identifier=consumer" \
    --data "config.dictionary_name=kong_rate_limiting_counters" \
    --data "config.sync_rate=-1" \
    --data "config.namespace=random_auto_generated_string" \
    --data "config.strategy=cluster" \
    --data "config.hide_client_headers=false" \
    --data "config.window_type=sliding" \
    --data "config.retry_after_jitter_max=0"

CONSUMER is the id or username of the consumer that this plugin configuration will target.

You can combine consumer.id, service.id, or route.id in the same request, to further narrow the scope of the plugin.

First, create a KongPlugin resource:

apiVersion: configuration.konghq.com/v1
kind: KongPlugin
metadata:
  name: <rate-limiting-advanced-example>
config: 
  limit:
  - 5
  window_size:
  - 30
  identifier: consumer
  dictionary_name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
  sync_rate: -1
  namespace: random_auto_generated_string
  strategy: cluster
  hide_client_headers: false
  window_type: sliding
  retry_after_jitter_max: 0
plugin: rate-limiting-advanced

Then, apply it to a consumer by annotating the KongConsumer resource as follows:

apiVersion: configuration.konghq.com/v1
kind: KongConsumer
metadata:
  name: {CONSUMER}
  annotations:
    konghq.com/plugins: <rate-limiting-advanced-example>
    kubernetes.io/ingress.class: kong

CONSUMER is the id or username of the consumer that this plugin configuration will target.

Note: The KongPlugin resource only needs to be defined once and can be applied to any Service, Consumer, or Route in the namespace. If you want the plugin to be available cluster-wide, create the resource as a KongClusterPlugin instead of KongPlugin.

For example, configure this plugin on a consumer by adding this section to your declarative configuration file:

plugins:
- name: rate-limiting-advanced
  consumer: {CONSUMER}
  config: 
    limit:
    - 5
    window_size:
    - 30
    identifier: consumer
    dictionary_name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
    sync_rate: -1
    namespace: random_auto_generated_string
    strategy: cluster
    hide_client_headers: false
    window_type: sliding
    retry_after_jitter_max: 0

CONSUMER is the id or username of the consumer that this plugin configuration will target.

Configure this plugin on a consumer:

  1. In Kong Manager, select the workspace.
  2. From the Dashboard, scroll down to Consumers and click View for the consumer row.
  3. Select the Plugins tab.
  4. Click Add Plugin.

  5. Find and select the Rate Limiting Advanced plugin.

    Note: If the plugin is greyed out, then it is not available for your product tier. See Kong Gateway tiers.
  6. If the option is available, select Global.

  7. Enter the following parameters, updating the default or sample values as needed:

    • Config.Limit: 5
    • Config.Window Size: 30
    • Config.Identifier: consumer
    • Config.Dictionary Name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
    • Config.Sync Rate: -1
    • Config.Namespace: random_auto_generated_string
    • Config.Strategy: cluster
    • Config.Window Type: sliding
    • Config.Retry After Jitter Max: 0
  8. Click Create.

Enable the plugin globally

A plugin which is not associated to any service, route, or consumer is considered global, and will be run on every request. Read the Plugin Reference and the Plugin Precedence sections for more information.

Admin API
Kubernetes
Declarative (YAML)
Kong Manager

For example, configure this plugin globally with:

$ curl -X POST http://{HOST}:8001/plugins/ \
    --data "name=rate-limiting-advanced"  \
    --data "config.limit=5" \
    --data "config.window_size=30" \
    --data "config.identifier=consumer" \
    --data "config.dictionary_name=kong_rate_limiting_counters" \
    --data "config.sync_rate=-1" \
    --data "config.namespace=random_auto_generated_string" \
    --data "config.strategy=cluster" \
    --data "config.hide_client_headers=false" \
    --data "config.window_type=sliding" \
    --data "config.retry_after_jitter_max=0"

Create a KongClusterPlugin resource and label it as global:

apiVersion: configuration.konghq.com/v1
kind: KongClusterPlugin
metadata:
  name: <global-rate-limiting-advanced>
  annotations:
    kubernetes.io/ingress.class: kong
  labels:
    global: \"true\"
config: 
  limit:
  - 5
  window_size:
  - 30
  identifier: consumer
  dictionary_name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
  sync_rate: -1
  namespace: random_auto_generated_string
  strategy: cluster
  hide_client_headers: false
  window_type: sliding
  retry_after_jitter_max: 0
plugin: rate-limiting-advanced

For example, configure this plugin using the plugins: entry in the declarative configuration file:

plugins:
- name: rate-limiting-advanced
  config: 
    limit:
    - 5
    window_size:
    - 30
    identifier: consumer
    dictionary_name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
    sync_rate: -1
    namespace: random_auto_generated_string
    strategy: cluster
    hide_client_headers: false
    window_type: sliding
    retry_after_jitter_max: 0

Configure this plugin globally:

  1. In Kong Manager, select the workspace.
  2. From the Dashboard, select Plugins in the left navigation.
  3. Click New Plugin.

  4. Find and select the Rate Limiting Advanced plugin.

    Note: If the plugin is greyed out, then it is not available for your product tier. See Kong Gateway tiers.
  5. If the option is available, set the plugin scope to Global.

  6. Enter the following parameters, updating the default/sample values as needed:

    • Config.Limit: 5
    • Config.Window Size: 30
    • Config.Identifier: consumer
    • Config.Dictionary Name: kong_rate_limiting_counters
    • Config.Sync Rate: -1
    • Config.Namespace: random_auto_generated_string
    • Config.Strategy: cluster
    • Config.Window Type: sliding
    • Config.Retry After Jitter Max: 0
  7. Click Create.

Parameters

Here's a list of all the parameters which can be used in this plugin's configuration:

Form Parameter Description
name

Type: string		 The name of the plugin to use, in this case rate-limiting-advanced.
service.id

Type: string		 The ID of the Service the plugin targets.
route.id

Type: string		 The ID of the Route the plugin targets.
consumer.id

Type: string		 The ID of the Consumer the plugin targets.
enabled

Type: boolean

Default value: true		 Whether this plugin will be applied.
config.limit
required

Type: array of number elements

One or more requests-per-window limits to apply. There must be a matching number of window limits and sizes specified.
config.window_size
required

Type: array of number elements

One or more window sizes to apply a limit to (defined in seconds). There must be a matching number of window limits and sizes specified.
config.identifier
required

Type: string

Default value: consumer

How to define the rate limit key. Can be ip, credential, consumer, service, or header.
config.header_name
semi-optional

Type: string

Header name to use as the rate limit key when the header identifier is defined.
config.dictionary_name
required

Type: string

Default value: kong_rate_limiting_counters

The shared dictionary where counters will be stored until the next sync cycle.
config.sync_rate
required

Type: number

How often to sync counter data to the central data store. A value of 0 results in synchronous behavior; a value of -1 ignores sync behavior entirely and only stores counters in node memory. A value greater than 0 will sync the counters in the specified number of seconds.
config.namespace
required

Type: string

Default value: random_auto_generated_string

The rate limiting library namespace to use for this plugin instance. Counter data and sync configuration is shared in a namespace.
config.strategy
required

Type: string

Default value: cluster

The rate-limiting strategy to use for retrieving and incrementing the limits. Available values are:

  • cluster: Counters are stored in the Kong datastore and shared across the nodes.
  • redis: Counters are stored on a Redis server and shared across the nodes.

In DB-less and hybrid modes, the cluster config strategy is not supported.

In Konnect Cloud, the default strategy is redis.

There is no local storage strategy. However, you can achieve local rate limiting by using a placeholder strategy value (either cluster or redis) and a sync_rate of -1. This setting stores counters in-memory on the node.

If using redis as the placeholder value, you must fill in all additional redis configuration parameters with placeholder values.

For details on which strategy should be used, refer to the implementation considerations.
config.hide_client_headers
optional

Type: boolean

Default value: false

Optionally hide informative response headers. Available options: true or false.
config.redis.host
semi-optional

Type: string

Host to use for Redis connection when the redis strategy is defined.
config.redis.port
semi-optional

Type: integer

Default value: 6379

Specifies the Redis server port when using the redis strategy. Must be a value between 0 and 65535. Default: 6379.
config.redis.ssl
optional

Type: boolean

Default value: false

If set to true, then uses SSL to connect to Redis.

Note: This parameter is only available for Kong Enterprise versions 2.2.x and later.
config.redis.ssl_verify
optional

Type: boolean

Default value: false

If set to true, then verifies the validity of the server SSL certificate. Note that you need to configure the lua_ssl_trusted_certificate to specify the CA (or server) certificate used by your redis server. You may also need to configure lua_ssl_verify_depth accordingly.

Note: This parameter is only available for Kong Enterprise versions 2.2.x and later.
config.redis.server_name
optional

Type: string

Specifies the server name for the new TLS extension Server Name Indication (SNI) when connecting over SSL.

Note: This parameter is only available for Kong Enterprise versions 2.2.x and later.
config.redis.timeout
semi-optional

Type: number

Default value: 2000

Connection timeout (in milliseconds) to use for Redis connection when the redis strategy is defined.
config.redis.password
semi-optional

Type: string

Password to use for Redis connection when the redis strategy is defined. If undefined, no AUTH commands are sent to Redis.
config.redis.database
semi-optional

Type: integer

Default value: 0

Database to use for Redis connection when the redis strategy is defined.
config.redis.sentinel_master
semi-optional

Type: string

Sentinel master to use for Redis connections when the redis strategy is defined. Defining this value implies using Redis Sentinel.
config.redis.sentinel_password
semi-optional

Type: string

Sentinel password to authenticate with a Redis Sentinel instance. Note: This parameter is only available for Kong Enterprise versions 1.3.0.2 and later.
config.redis.sentinel_role
semi-optional

Type: string

Sentinel role to use for Redis connections when the redis strategy is defined. Defining this value implies using Redis Sentinel. Available options: master, slave, any.
config.redis.sentinel_addresses
semi-optional

Type: array of string elements

Sentinel addresses to use for Redis connections when the redis strategy is defined. Defining this value implies using Redis Sentinel. Each string element must be a hostname. The minimum length of the array is 1 element.
config.redis.cluster_addresses
semi-optional

Type: array of string elements

Cluster addresses to use for Redis connections when the redis strategy is defined. Defining this value implies using Redis cluster. Each string element must be a hostname. The minimum length of the array is 1 element.
config.window_type
required

Type: string

Default value: sliding

Sets the time window type to either sliding (default) or fixed.
config.retry_after_jitter_max
required

Type: number

Default value: 0

The upper bound of a jitter (random delay) in seconds to be added to the Retry-After header of denied requests (status = 429) in order to prevent all the clients from coming back at the same time. The lower bound of the jitter is 0; in this case, the Retry-After header is equal to the RateLimit-Reset header.

Notes:

  • The plugin does not support the cluster strategy in hybrid mode. The redis strategy must be used instead.

  • Redis configuration values are ignored if the cluster strategy is used.

  • PostgreSQL 9.5+ is required when using the cluster strategy with postgres as the backing Kong cluster data store.

  • The dictionary_name directive was added to prevent the usage of the kong shared dictionary, which could lead to no memory errors.

Headers sent to the client

When this plugin is enabled, Kong sends some additional headers back to the client indicating the allowed limits, how many requests are available, and how long it will take until the quota will be restored.

For example:

RateLimit-Limit: 6
RateLimit-Remaining: 4
RateLimit-Reset: 47

The plugin also sends headers indicating the limits in the time frame and the number of remaining minutes:

X-RateLimit-Limit-Minute: 10
X-RateLimit-Remaining-Minute: 9

You can optionally hide the limit and remaining headers with the hide_client_headers option.

If more than one limit is being set, the plugin returns a combination of more time limits:

X-RateLimit-Limit-Second: 5
X-RateLimit-Remaining-Second: 4
X-RateLimit-Limit-Minute: 10
X-RateLimit-Remaining-Minute: 9

If any of the limits configured has been reached, the plugin returns an HTTP/1.1 429 status code to the client with the following JSON body:

{ "message": "API rate limit exceeded" }

The Retry-After header will be present on 429 errors to indicate how long the service is expected to be unavailable to the client. When using window_type=sliding and RateLimit-Reset, Retry-After may increase due to the rate calculation for the sliding window.

The headers RateLimit-Limit, RateLimit-Remaining, and RateLimit-Reset are based on the Internet-Draft RateLimit Header Fields for HTTP and may change in the future to respect specification updates.

Multiple Limits and Window Sizes

An arbitrary number of limits/window sizes can be applied per plugin instance. This allows you to create multiple rate limiting windows (e.g., rate limit per minute and per hour, and per any arbitrary window size). Because of limitations with Kong’s plugin configuration interface, each nth limit will apply to each nth window size. For example:

curl -X POST http://kong:8001/services/
{SERVICE}
/plugins \
  --data name=rate-limiting-advanced \
  --data config.limit=10 \
  --data config.limit=100 \
  --data config.window_size=60 \
  --data config.window_size=3600 \
  --data config.sync_rate=10

This example applies rate limiting policies, one of which will trip when 10 hits have been counted in 60 seconds, or the other when 100 hits have been counted in 3600 seconds. For more information, see the Enterprise Rate Limiting Library.

The number of configured window sizes and limits parameters must be equal (as shown above); otherwise, an error occurs:

You must provide the same number of windows and limits

Fallback to IP

When the selected strategy cannot be retrieved, the rate-limiting-advanced plugin will fall back to limit using IP as the identifier. This can happen for several reasons, such as the selected header was not sent by the client or the configured service was not found.

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