Where is the bridge.ncconf file located in NCache?

On Windows, the file is located at %NCHOME%\config\bridge.ncconf. On Linux, it is found at /opt/ncache/config/bridge.ncconf. This single file contains the configurations for all bridges registered on that node.

Should I modify bridge.ncconf manually or use the Management Center?

The NCache Management Center is recommended for most users as it provides validation and maintains consistency. Manual edits are suitable for advanced performance tuning, such as adjusting queue thresholds or heartbeat intervals.

When should I enable the queue optimized setting in bridge.ncconf?

Enabling 'optimized="True"' is a best practice for production environments. It removes redundant operations (like multiple updates to the same key) from the queue before WAN transmission.

Does changing bridge.ncconf require a bridge restart?

Yes. To apply changes to nodes, topology, or queue sizes, you must restart the Bridge using the Stop-Bridge and Start-Bridge PowerShell cmdlets, or restart the NCache service.

Bridge Config (bridge.ncconf)

The bridge.ncconf file contains information for all registered Bridges used for multi-site replication, including their associated nodes, topology settings (such as Active or Passive mode), communication parameters, and connected caches. This file is installed with NCache and is automatically updated whenever a Bridge is added or configured through the NCache Management Center.

All Bridge-related configurations are maintained in a single bridge.ncconf file to ensure consistency across the replication setup. Users can modify Bridge settings either through the NCache Management Center or by editing the bridge.ncconf file directly.

Note

This file is located at %NCHOME%\config in Windows or /opt/ncache/config in Linux.

Bridge Config Syntax

The Bridge configuration file is explained below.

<configuration>
  <bridge-config config-id="64e33aab-966c-4ff3-a51e-05cfb77f6fc4" config-version="0" deployment-version="0" id="myBridge" bridge-nodes="20.200.20.39" num-bridge-nodes="1" bridge-active="20.200.20.39" bridge-port="10000" opt-timeout="60" src-cache="" topology="active-active" replicator-virtual-queue-size="2048MB" auto-start="False">
    <log enabled="True" trace-errors="True" trace-notices="False" trace-warnings="False" trace-debug="False"/>
    <queue optimized="False" size="2048"/>
    <perf-counter enabled="True"/>
  </bridge-config>
</configuration>

Understanding the Bridge Config Tags

The following section explains the tags mentioned in the file syntax.

<bridge-config>

<bridge-config config-id="64e33aab-966c-4ff3-a51e-05cfb77f6fc4" config-version="0" deployment-version="0" id="myBridge" bridge-nodes="20.200.20.39" num-bridge-nodes="1" bridge-active="20.200.20.39" bridge-port="10000" opt-timeout="60" src-cache="" topology="active-active" replicator-virtual-queue-size="2048MB" auto-start="False">

config-id: Identifies the Bridge cache configurations.
config-version: Specifies the number of updates to the Bridge configuration, maintaining version consistency across all nodes.
deployment-version: Specifies the number of changes made to the Bridge deployment, ensuring version consistency across all nodes.
id: Specifies a unique ID to identify the Bridge cache.
bridge-nodes: Specifies the IP address or comma-separated list of IP addresses of the server nodes where the Bridge is configured.
num-bridge-nodes: Determines the number of servers involved in making up the Bridge.
bridge-active: Specifies the IP address of the active Bridge node.
bridge-port: Port number on which the Bridge is hosted.
opt-timeout: Specifies the time after which the Bridge will consider itself disconnected from the connected caches. The default value is 60 seconds.
src-cache: Specifies the source cache name from which the Bridge replicates data.
topology: Specifies the Bridge topology, such as active-active or active-passive.
replicator-virtual-queue-size: It is the size of a virtual queue for the replicator that replicates data from the Bridge to the target cache. The default size is 2048 MB.
auto-start: When set to True, it automatically starts the Bridge on service restart. The default value is False.

<log>

NCache maintains a log file to write traces for information and debugging purposes. NCache provides different types of traces, as shown in the above XML tag. Using these tags, users can enable/disable the various traces. By default, only the Error trace is enabled, the rest of the traces are disabled. Error trace does not affect the cache performance but for other traces, we recommend not to enable them in a production environment as they affect the performance of NCache. Log files for each cache are created at %NCHOME%\log-files in Windows and /opt/ncache/log-files for Linux which contain information related to the enabled traces.

<log enabled="True" trace-errors="True" trace-notices="False" trace-warnings="False" trace-debug="False"/>

enabled: Specifies whether logging is enabled for the Bridge. If set to True, NCache records Bridge log messages according to the configured trace levels. If set to False, Bridge logging is disabled. By default, it is True.
trace-errors: Logs error traces, essential for identifying and troubleshooting critical issues. By default, it is True.
trace-notices: Logs notice traces for general informational messages. By default, it is False.
trace-warnings: Logs warning traces, useful for detecting and addressing potential issues. By default, it is False.
trace-debug: Logs detailed debug traces, helpful for diagnosing problems and analyzing system behavior during development or testing. By default, it is False.

<queue>

This tag defines the Bridge queue settings used for replication operations.

<queue optimized="False" size="2048"/>

optimized: When set to True, it enables the Bridge queue optimization. By default, it is False.
size: Specifies the maximum Bridge queue size in MB. The number of items in the queue is limited by the configured queue size and the amount of available free memory. The default value is 2048.

<perf-counter>

This tag controls whether NCache publishes PerfMon counters for the Bridge.

<perf-counter enabled="True"/>

enabled: Specifies whether PerfMon counters are enabled for the Bridge. If set to True, NCache publishes Bridge PerfMon counters for monitoring.

<cache>

<cache cache-id="demoClusteredCache.WestCoast" status="active" bulk-operation-size="500" enable-compression="False" connection-retry-interval="3" heart-beat-enabled="True" replicator-virtual-queue-size="2048MB" is-connected="True" is-master="False"/>

cache-id: Specifies a unique ID to identify the cache connected to the Bridge.
status: Determines the status of the cache connected to the Bridge. It can either be active or passive depending on the selected topology.
bulk-operation-size: Specifies an upper limit on the size of the bundled operation that is to be replicated on the target cache. The default size is 500.
enable-compression: Allows you to enable compression while sending operations to the Target Cache. The default value is False.
connection-retry-interval: Specifies the interval between two consecutive retry attempts when the Bridge tries to reconnect to the connected cache. The default value is 3.
heart-beat-enabled: Specifies whether heartbeat monitoring is enabled for the connected cache.
replicator-virtual-queue-size: Specifies the size of a virtual queue for the replicator that replicates data from the Bridge to the target cache. The default size is 2048 MB.
is-connected: Specifies if the cache is connected to the Bridge.
is-master: Specifies whether the connected cache acts as the master in an active-passive Bridge topology. When set to True, this cache is responsible for sending replication operations to the target (passive) cache.

<server>

This tag is specified under the <cache> tag and defines the cache endpoint used by the Bridge.

<server name="20.200.20.40" is-load-balancer="False"/>

name: Specifies the cache server IP address, host name, or Load Balancer endpoint.
is-load-balancer: Specifies whether the value provided in name represents a Load Balancer endpoint. Set this value to True if the Bridge connects to the cache through a Load Balancer.