diff --git a/.github/WORKFLOWS.md b/.github/WORKFLOWS.md
index 3efa125..b436437 100644
--- a/.github/WORKFLOWS.md
+++ b/.github/WORKFLOWS.md
@@ -22,12 +22,12 @@ Automates chart releases:
 - Publishes to GitHub Pages (Helm repository)
 - Updates Artifact Hub
 
-### 3. Auto-Update Valkey Version (`update-valkey-version.yml`)
+### 3. Auto-Update Versions (`update-valkey-version.yml`)
 **Trigger**:
 - Weekly schedule (Mondays at 9:00 AM UTC)
 - Manual dispatch
 
-Automatically keeps Valkey version up-to-date:
+Automatically keeps Valkey and redis-exporter versions up-to-date:
 
 #### How It Works
 
@@ -49,19 +49,23 @@ graph TD
 #### What It Does
 
 1. **Version Detection**
-   - Pulls the latest Chainguard Valkey image
-   - Runs `valkey-server --version` to detect the exact version
-   - Compares with current `appVersion` in `Chart.yaml`
+   - **Valkey**: Pulls `cgr.dev/chainguard/valkey:latest` and runs `--version`
+   - **Redis-exporter**: Queries GitHub API for latest `oliver006/redis_exporter` release
+   - Compares both with current versions in chart files
 
-2. **If Version Changed**
-   - Updates `appVersion` in `Chart.yaml` to the new version
+2. **If Any Version Changed**
+   - **Valkey update**: Updates `appVersion` in `Chart.yaml`
+   - **Exporter update**: Updates `values.yaml`, `values.schema.json`, and `Chart.yaml` annotations
    - Bumps the chart patch version (e.g., `0.2.0` → `0.2.1`)
-   - Adds entry to `CHANGELOG.md` with the version change
+   - Adds entry to `CHANGELOG.md` with version changes
    - Creates a pull request with all changes
 
 3. **Pull Request Contents**
-   - Clear title: `chore: update Valkey to version X.Y.Z`
-   - Detailed body with old → new version info
+   - Dynamic title based on what updated:
+     - `chore: update Valkey to X.Y.Z` (Valkey only)
+     - `chore: update redis-exporter to X.Y.Z` (exporter only)
+     - `chore: update Valkey and redis-exporter` (both)
+   - Detailed body with old → new version info for each component
    - Labeled as `automated`, `version-update`, `dependencies`
    - Ready for review and merge
 
@@ -84,11 +88,12 @@ This is useful when you want to check for updates immediately instead of waiting
 #### Why This Approach?
 
 **Benefits:**
-- ✅ Chart stays current with latest Valkey releases
+- ✅ Chart stays current with latest Valkey and redis-exporter releases
 - ✅ Security updates are tracked and applied quickly
 - ✅ Full transparency via pull requests
 - ✅ Human review before changes are published
 - ✅ Automatic changelog maintenance
+- ✅ Both core application and metrics tooling kept in sync
 
 **Trade-offs:**
 - ⚠️ Chainguard free tier only provides `latest` tag
diff --git a/.github/workflows/update-valkey-version.yml b/.github/workflows/update-valkey-version.yml
index e2f32d4..d632896 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/update-valkey-version.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/update-valkey-version.yml
@@ -44,43 +44,117 @@ jobs:
           echo "current_version=$CURRENT" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
           echo "Current appVersion: $CURRENT"
 
-      - name: Compare versions
-        id: compare
+      - name: Compare Valkey versions
+        id: compare-valkey
         run: |
           DETECTED="${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}"
           CURRENT="${{ steps.current-version.outputs.current_version }}"
 
           if [ "$DETECTED" != "$CURRENT" ]; then
+            echo "valkey_needs_update=true" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+            echo "Valkey version mismatch: $CURRENT -> $DETECTED"
+          else
+            echo "valkey_needs_update=false" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+            echo "Valkey version is up to date: $CURRENT"
+          fi
+
+      - name: Get latest redis-exporter version from GitHub
+        id: get-exporter-version
+        run: |
+          # Get latest release from GitHub API
+          LATEST=$(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/oliver006/redis_exporter/releases/latest | grep '"tag_name":' | sed -E 's/.*"([^"]+)".*/\1/')
+
+          if [ -z "$LATEST" ]; then
+            echo "Failed to detect redis-exporter version"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+
+          echo "detected_exporter_version=$LATEST" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+          echo "Detected redis-exporter version: $LATEST"
+
+      - name: Get current redis-exporter version from values.yaml
+        id: current-exporter-version
+        run: |
+          # Extract tag from metrics section (more robust method)
+          CURRENT=$(awk '/^metrics:/,/^[a-z]+:/ {if (/^\s+tag:/) {print $2; exit}}' values.yaml | tr -d '"')
+          echo "current_exporter_version=$CURRENT" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+          echo "Current redis-exporter version: $CURRENT"
+
+      - name: Compare redis-exporter versions
+        id: compare-exporter
+        run: |
+          DETECTED="${{ steps.get-exporter-version.outputs.detected_exporter_version }}"
+          CURRENT="${{ steps.current-exporter-version.outputs.current_exporter_version }}"
+
+          if [ "$DETECTED" != "$CURRENT" ]; then
+            echo "exporter_needs_update=true" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+            echo "Redis-exporter version mismatch: $CURRENT -> $DETECTED"
+          else
+            echo "exporter_needs_update=false" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+            echo "Redis-exporter version is up to date: $CURRENT"
+          fi
+
+      - name: Check if any update is needed
+        id: compare
+        run: |
+          VALKEY_UPDATE="${{ steps.compare-valkey.outputs.valkey_needs_update }}"
+          EXPORTER_UPDATE="${{ steps.compare-exporter.outputs.exporter_needs_update }}"
+
+          if [ "$VALKEY_UPDATE" == "true" ] || [ "$EXPORTER_UPDATE" == "true" ]; then
             echo "needs_update=true" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
-            echo "Version mismatch detected: $CURRENT -> $DETECTED"
+            echo "Updates needed - Valkey: $VALKEY_UPDATE, Exporter: $EXPORTER_UPDATE"
           else
             echo "needs_update=false" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
-            echo "Version is up to date: $CURRENT"
+            echo "All versions are up to date"
           fi
 
-      - name: Update Chart.yaml
-        if: steps.compare.outputs.needs_update == 'true'
+      - name: Update redis-exporter version
+        if: steps.compare-exporter.outputs.exporter_needs_update == 'true'
+        run: |
+          NEW_EXPORTER_VERSION="${{ steps.get-exporter-version.outputs.detected_exporter_version }}"
+
+          # Update values.yaml
+          sed -i "/metrics:/,/pullPolicy:/ s|tag: .*|tag: \"$NEW_EXPORTER_VERSION\"|" values.yaml
+
+          # Update values.schema.json
+          sed -i "s|\"default\": \"v[0-9]*\.[0-9]*\.[0-9]*\"|\"default\": \"$NEW_EXPORTER_VERSION\"|g" values.schema.json
+
+          # Update Chart.yaml annotations (redis-exporter image reference)
+          sed -i "s|oliver006/redis_exporter:v[0-9]*\.[0-9]*\.[0-9]*|oliver006/redis_exporter:$NEW_EXPORTER_VERSION|g" Chart.yaml
+
+          echo "Updated redis-exporter to $NEW_EXPORTER_VERSION"
+
+      - name: Update Valkey version in Chart.yaml
+        if: steps.compare-valkey.outputs.valkey_needs_update == 'true'
         run: |
           NEW_VERSION="${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}"
 
           # Update appVersion in Chart.yaml
           sed -i "s/^appVersion: .*/appVersion: \"$NEW_VERSION\"/" Chart.yaml
 
+          echo "Updated Valkey appVersion to $NEW_VERSION"
+
+      - name: Bump chart version
+        if: steps.compare.outputs.needs_update == 'true'
+        run: |
           # Bump patch version of chart
           CHART_VERSION=$(grep '^version:' Chart.yaml | awk '{print $2}')
-          # Simple patch bump (you might want to use semver tool for production)
           NEW_CHART_VERSION=$(echo $CHART_VERSION | awk -F. '{$NF = $NF + 1;} 1' | sed 's/ /./g')
           sed -i "s/^version: .*/version: $NEW_CHART_VERSION/" Chart.yaml
 
-          echo "Updated appVersion to $NEW_VERSION"
           echo "Updated chart version to $NEW_CHART_VERSION"
 
       - name: Update CHANGELOG
         if: steps.compare.outputs.needs_update == 'true'
         run: |
-          NEW_VERSION="${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}"
           CHART_VERSION=$(grep '^version:' Chart.yaml | awk '{print $2}')
           DATE=$(date +%Y-%m-%d)
+          VALKEY_UPDATE="${{ steps.compare-valkey.outputs.valkey_needs_update }}"
+          EXPORTER_UPDATE="${{ steps.compare-exporter.outputs.exporter_needs_update }}"
+          NEW_VALKEY="${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}"
+          OLD_VALKEY="${{ steps.current-version.outputs.current_version }}"
+          NEW_EXPORTER="${{ steps.get-exporter-version.outputs.detected_exporter_version }}"
+          OLD_EXPORTER="${{ steps.current-exporter-version.outputs.current_exporter_version }}"
 
           # Create or update CHANGELOG
           if [ ! -f CHANGELOG.md ]; then
@@ -88,6 +162,15 @@ jobs:
             echo "" >> CHANGELOG.md
           fi
 
+          # Build changelog entry
+          CHANGES=""
+          if [ "$VALKEY_UPDATE" == "true" ]; then
+            CHANGES="${CHANGES}- Updated Valkey from $OLD_VALKEY to $NEW_VALKEY (from Chainguard latest image)\n"
+          fi
+          if [ "$EXPORTER_UPDATE" == "true" ]; then
+            CHANGES="${CHANGES}- Updated redis-exporter from $OLD_EXPORTER to $NEW_EXPORTER\n"
+          fi
+
           # Add new entry using a temp file (compatible with both Linux and macOS)
           {
             head -n 2 CHANGELOG.md
@@ -95,38 +178,61 @@ jobs:
             echo "## [$CHART_VERSION] - $DATE"
             echo ""
             echo "### Changed"
-            echo "- Updated Valkey to version $NEW_VERSION (from Chainguard latest image)"
-            echo ""
+            echo -e "$CHANGES"
             tail -n +3 CHANGELOG.md
           } > CHANGELOG.tmp && mv CHANGELOG.tmp CHANGELOG.md
 
+      - name: Generate PR title and description
+        if: steps.compare.outputs.needs_update == 'true'
+        id: pr-content
+        run: |
+          VALKEY_UPDATE="${{ steps.compare-valkey.outputs.valkey_needs_update }}"
+          EXPORTER_UPDATE="${{ steps.compare-exporter.outputs.exporter_needs_update }}"
+
+          # Generate title
+          if [ "$VALKEY_UPDATE" == "true" ] && [ "$EXPORTER_UPDATE" == "true" ]; then
+            TITLE="chore: update Valkey and redis-exporter"
+            BRANCH="auto-update-valkey-exporter"
+          elif [ "$VALKEY_UPDATE" == "true" ]; then
+            TITLE="chore: update Valkey to ${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}"
+            BRANCH="auto-update-valkey-${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}"
+          else
+            TITLE="chore: update redis-exporter to ${{ steps.get-exporter-version.outputs.detected_exporter_version }}"
+            BRANCH="auto-update-exporter-${{ steps.get-exporter-version.outputs.detected_exporter_version }}"
+          fi
+
+          echo "title=$TITLE" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+          echo "branch=$BRANCH" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+
       - name: Create Pull Request
         if: steps.compare.outputs.needs_update == 'true'
         uses: peter-evans/create-pull-request@v6
         with:
           token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
           commit-message: |
-            chore: update Valkey to version ${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}
+            ${{ steps.pr-content.outputs.title }}
 
-            - Updated appVersion from ${{ steps.current-version.outputs.current_version }} to ${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}
-            - Automatically detected from cgr.dev/chainguard/valkey:latest
+            Updates:
+            ${{ steps.compare-valkey.outputs.valkey_needs_update == 'true' && format('- Valkey: {0} → {1}', steps.current-version.outputs.current_version, steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version) || '' }}
+            ${{ steps.compare-exporter.outputs.exporter_needs_update == 'true' && format('- Redis-exporter: {0} → {1}', steps.current-exporter-version.outputs.current_exporter_version, steps.get-exporter-version.outputs.detected_exporter_version) || '' }}
 
             Co-Authored-By: github-actions[bot] <github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com>
-          branch: auto-update-valkey-${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}
+          branch: ${{ steps.pr-content.outputs.branch }}
           delete-branch: true
-          title: "chore: update Valkey to version ${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}"
+          title: ${{ steps.pr-content.outputs.title }}
           body: |
-            ## 🤖 Automated Valkey Version Update
+            ## 🤖 Automated Version Update
 
             This PR was automatically created by the version checker workflow.
 
             ### Changes
-            - **Valkey version**: `${{ steps.current-version.outputs.current_version }}` → `${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}`
-            - **Source**: Detected from `cgr.dev/chainguard/valkey:latest`
+            ${{ steps.compare-valkey.outputs.valkey_needs_update == 'true' && format('- **Valkey**: `{0}` → `{1}` (from Chainguard latest)', steps.current-version.outputs.current_version, steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version) || '' }}
+            ${{ steps.compare-exporter.outputs.exporter_needs_update == 'true' && format('- **Redis-exporter**: `{0}` → `{1}` (from GitHub releases)', steps.current-exporter-version.outputs.current_exporter_version, steps.get-exporter-version.outputs.detected_exporter_version) || '' }}
             - **Chart version**: Bumped patch version
 
             ### Verification
-            The version was detected by pulling the latest Chainguard Valkey image and running `--version`.
+            ${{ steps.compare-valkey.outputs.valkey_needs_update == 'true' && '- Valkey version detected from `cgr.dev/chainguard/valkey:latest`' || '' }}
+            ${{ steps.compare-exporter.outputs.exporter_needs_update == 'true' && '- Redis-exporter version from GitHub API (oliver006/redis_exporter latest release)' || '' }}
 
             ### Next Steps
             - Review the changes
@@ -143,7 +249,15 @@ jobs:
       - name: Summary
         run: |
           if [ "${{ steps.compare.outputs.needs_update }}" == "true" ]; then
-            echo "✅ Version update PR created: ${{ steps.current-version.outputs.current_version }} → ${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}"
+            echo "✅ Version update PR created"
+            if [ "${{ steps.compare-valkey.outputs.valkey_needs_update }}" == "true" ]; then
+              echo "   - Valkey: ${{ steps.current-version.outputs.current_version }} → ${{ steps.get-version.outputs.detected_version }}"
+            fi
+            if [ "${{ steps.compare-exporter.outputs.exporter_needs_update }}" == "true" ]; then
+              echo "   - Redis-exporter: ${{ steps.current-exporter-version.outputs.current_exporter_version }} → ${{ steps.get-exporter-version.outputs.detected_exporter_version }}"
+            fi
           else
-            echo "✅ No update needed. Current version ${{ steps.current-version.outputs.current_version }} is up to date."
+            echo "✅ No updates needed"
+            echo "   - Valkey: ${{ steps.current-version.outputs.current_version }} (up to date)"
+            echo "   - Redis-exporter: ${{ steps.current-exporter-version.outputs.current_exporter_version }} (up to date)"
           fi
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 6107895..5501ac9 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -5,17 +5,27 @@ All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
 The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/),
 and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).
 
-## [0.2.2] - 2026-02-15
+## [0.2.3] - 2026-02-15
 
-### Security
-- **CRITICAL**: Switch redis-exporter to Chainguard image (eliminates 6 CVEs: 1 Critical, 4 High, 1 Medium)
-- Changed from `docker.io/oliver006/redis_exporter:v1.80.0` to `cgr.dev/chainguard/prometheus-redis-exporter:latest`
+### Changed
+- Update redis-exporter from `v1.80.0` to `v1.81.0` (latest stable release)
+- Remove bash dependency from metrics exporter in replica and sentinel templates
+- Metrics exporter now uses native entrypoint instead of bash wrapper (cleaner, more portable)
+- Simplified metrics configuration across all deployment modes
 
 ### Added
 - Automated weekly version checking workflow for Valkey
 - Documentation for image versioning strategy
 - Complete CHANGELOG.md with release history
 
+### Fixed
+- Remove redundant password configuration in metrics exporter (was configured twice)
+
+### Note
+- Chainguard `prometheus-redis-exporter` image requires authentication (not in public free tier)
+- Using `oliver006/redis_exporter:v1.81.0` for public accessibility
+- Template improvements support both oliver006 and distroless images
+
 ## [0.2.1] - 2026-02-15
 
 ### Changed
diff --git a/Chart.yaml b/Chart.yaml
index 10c48af..7437944 100644
--- a/Chart.yaml
+++ b/Chart.yaml
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ apiVersion: v2
 name: valkey
 description: Valkey is an open source, high-performance data structure server compatible with Redis. It supports strings, hashes, lists, sets, and sorted sets.
 type: application
-version: 0.2.2
+version: 0.2.3
 appVersion: "9.0.2"
 annotations:
   artifacthub.io/signKey: |
@@ -21,20 +21,22 @@ annotations:
     - name: wolfi-base
       image: cgr.dev/chainguard/wolfi-base:latest
     - name: redis-exporter
-      image: cgr.dev/chainguard/prometheus-redis-exporter:latest
+      image: docker.io/oliver006/redis_exporter:v1.81.0
     - name: kubectl
       image: cgr.dev/chainguard/kubectl:latest
   artifacthub.io/containsSecurityUpdates: "true"
   artifacthub.io/prerelease: "false"
   artifacthub.io/changes: |
-    - kind: security
-      description: Switch to Chainguard images for zero CVE (valkey, kubectl, wolfi-base, prometheus-redis-exporter)
+    - kind: changed
+      description: Update redis-exporter to v1.81.0 (from v1.80.0)
+    - kind: changed
+      description: Remove bash dependency from metrics exporter templates
+    - kind: changed
+      description: Switch to Chainguard images for zero CVE (valkey, kubectl, wolfi-base)
     - kind: changed
       description: Update container user from 999 to 65532 (Chainguard default)
     - kind: changed
       description: Simplify health check scripts for distroless compatibility
-    - kind: changed
-      description: Update pre-upgrade hook to work without shell
     - kind: added
       description: Automated version checking workflow for weekly updates
 keywords:
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 80f3d97..1c60ea8 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -203,8 +203,8 @@ helm install my-valkey valkey/valkey \
 | Parameter | Description | Default |
 |-----------|-------------|---------|
 | `metrics.enabled` | Enable Prometheus exporter | `false` |
-| `metrics.image.repository` | Exporter image | `chainguard/prometheus-redis-exporter` |
-| `metrics.image.tag` | Exporter tag | `latest` |
+| `metrics.image.repository` | Exporter image | `oliver006/redis_exporter` |
+| `metrics.image.tag` | Exporter tag | `v1.81.0` |
 | `metrics.serviceMonitor.enabled` | Create ServiceMonitor | `false` |
 | `metrics.podMonitor.enabled` | Create PodMonitor | `false` |
 
diff --git a/templates/replica/statefulset.yaml b/templates/replica/statefulset.yaml
index 2629b07..694ba3d 100644
--- a/templates/replica/statefulset.yaml
+++ b/templates/replica/statefulset.yaml
@@ -222,14 +222,12 @@ spec:
           {{- if .Values.metrics.containerSecurityContext.enabled }}
           securityContext: {{- omit .Values.metrics.containerSecurityContext "enabled" | toYaml | nindent 12 }}
           {{- end }}
-          command:
-            - /bin/bash
-            - -c
-            - |
-              if [[ -f '/secrets/valkey-password' ]]; then
-                export REDIS_PASSWORD=$(cat /secrets/valkey-password)
-              fi
-              redis_exporter{{- range $key, $value := .Values.metrics.extraArgs }} --{{ $key }}={{ $value }}{{- end }}
+          {{- if .Values.metrics.extraArgs }}
+          args:
+            {{- range $key, $value := .Values.metrics.extraArgs }}
+            - --{{ $key }}={{ $value }}
+            {{- end }}
+          {{- end }}
           env:
             - name: REDIS_ALIAS
               value: {{ include "valkey.fullname" . }}
diff --git a/templates/sentinel/statefulset.yaml b/templates/sentinel/statefulset.yaml
index 15ea416..a8f9e78 100644
--- a/templates/sentinel/statefulset.yaml
+++ b/templates/sentinel/statefulset.yaml
@@ -220,14 +220,12 @@ spec:
           {{- if .Values.metrics.containerSecurityContext.enabled }}
           securityContext: {{- omit .Values.metrics.containerSecurityContext "enabled" | toYaml | nindent 12 }}
           {{- end }}
-          command:
-            - /bin/bash
-            - -c
-            - |
-              if [[ -f '/secrets/valkey-password' ]]; then
-                export REDIS_PASSWORD=$(cat /secrets/valkey-password)
-              fi
-              redis_exporter{{- range $key, $value := .Values.metrics.extraArgs }} --{{ $key }}={{ $value }}{{- end }}
+          {{- if .Values.metrics.extraArgs }}
+          args:
+            {{- range $key, $value := .Values.metrics.extraArgs }}
+            - --{{ $key }}={{ $value }}
+            {{- end }}
+          {{- end }}
           env:
             - name: REDIS_ALIAS
               value: {{ include "valkey.fullname" . }}
diff --git a/values.schema.json b/values.schema.json
index bcf08c3..cc490d7 100644
--- a/values.schema.json
+++ b/values.schema.json
@@ -523,15 +523,15 @@
           "properties": {
             "registry": {
               "type": "string",
-              "default": "cgr.dev"
+              "default": "docker.io"
             },
             "repository": {
               "type": "string",
-              "default": "chainguard/prometheus-redis-exporter"
+              "default": "oliver006/redis_exporter"
             },
             "tag": {
               "type": "string",
-              "default": "latest"
+              "default": "v1.81.0"
             },
             "pullPolicy": {
               "type": "string",
diff --git a/values.yaml b/values.yaml
index 389df76..f9ae85e 100644
--- a/values.yaml
+++ b/values.yaml
@@ -453,11 +453,13 @@ metrics:
   enabled: false
   port: 9121
 
-  # Using Chainguard image for zero CVE security (same as Valkey)
+  # Redis/Valkey metrics exporter for Prometheus
+  # Note: Chainguard image (cgr.dev/chainguard/prometheus-redis-exporter)
+  # requires authentication and is not publicly available in free tier
   image:
-    registry: cgr.dev
-    repository: chainguard/prometheus-redis-exporter
-    tag: "latest"
+    registry: docker.io
+    repository: oliver006/redis_exporter
+    tag: "v1.81.0"
     pullPolicy: IfNotPresent
 
   containerSecurityContext: