:_mod-docs-content-type: PROCEDURE

[id='proc-cruise-control-topic-replication-{context}']

= Using Cruise Control to modify topic replication factor

[role="_abstract"]
Change the replication factor of topics by updating the `KafkaTopic` resource managed by the Topic Operator. 
You can adjust the replication factor for specific purposes, such as:

* Setting a lower replication factor for non-critical topics or because of resource shortages
* Setting a higher replication factor to improve data durability and fault tolerance

The Topic Operator uses Cruise Control to make the necessary changes, so Cruise Control must be deployed with Strimzi.

The Topic Operator watches and periodically reconciles all managed and unpaused `KafkaTopic` resources to detect changes to `.spec.replicas` configuration by comparing the replication factor of the topic in Kafka.
One or more replication factor updates are then sent to Cruise Control for processing in a single request.

Progress is reflected in the status of the `KafkaTopic` resource.

.Prerequisites

* xref:deploying-cluster-operator-str[The Cluster Operator must be deployed.]
* xref:deploying-the-topic-operator-using-the-cluster-operator-str[The Topic Operator must be deployed] to manage topics through the `KafkaTopic` custom resource. 
* xref:proc-configuring-deploying-cruise-control-str[Cruise Control is deployed with Kafka.]

.Procedure

. Edit the `KafkaTopic` resource to change the `replicas` value. 
+
In this procedure, we change the `replicas` value for `my-topic` from 1 to 3. 
+
.Kafka topic replication factor configuration
[source,yaml,subs="attributes+"]
----
apiVersion: {KafkaTopicApiVersion}
kind: KafkaTopic
metadata:
  name: my-topic
  labels:
    strimzi.io/cluster: my-cluster
spec:
  partitions: 1
  replicas: 3
  # ...
----

. Apply the change to the `KafkaTopic` configuration and wait for the Topic Operator to update the topic.
. Check the status of the `KafkaTopic` resource to make sure the request was successful: 
+
[source,shell,subs="+quotes"]
----
oc get kafkatopics my-topic -o yaml
----
+
.Status for the replication factor change
[source,shell,subs="+attributes"]
----
apiVersion: {KafkaTopicApiVersion}
kind: KafkaTopic
metadata:
  name: my-topic
  labels:
    strimzi.io/cluster: my-cluster
spec:
  partitions: 1
  replicas: 3
  # ...

# ...
status:
  conditions:
  - lastTransitionTime: "2024-01-18T16:13:50.490918232Z"
    status: "True"
    type: Ready
  observedGeneration: 2
  replicasChange: 
    sessionId: 1aa418ca-53ed-4b93-b0a4-58413c4fc0cb # <1>
    state: ongoing # <2>
    targetReplicas: 3 # <3>
  topicName: my-topic
----
<1> The session ID for the Cruise Control operation, which is shown when process moves out of a pending state.
<2> The state of the update. Moves from `pending` to `ongoing`, and then the entire `replicasChange` status is removed when the change is complete. 
<3> The requested change to the number of replicas.
+
An error message is shown in the status if the request fails before completion.
The request is periodically retried if it enters a failed state.

.Changing topic replication factor using the standalone Topic Operator

If you are using the standalone Topic Operator and aim to change the topic replication factor through configuration, you still need to use the Topic Operator in unidirectional mode alongside a Cruise Control deployment.
You also need to include the following environment variables in the standalone Topic Operator deployment so that it can integrate with Cruise Control.

.Example standalone Topic Operator deployment configuration
[source,shell,subs=+quotes]
----
apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: strimzi-topic-operator
  labels:
    app: strimzi
spec:
  # ...
  template:
    # ...
    spec:
      # ...
      containers:
        - name: strimzi-topic-operator
          # ...
          env:
            # ...
            - name: STRIMZI_CRUISE_CONTROL_ENABLED # <1>
              value: true
            - name: STRIMZI_CRUISE_CONTROL_RACK_ENABLED # <2>
              value: false
            - name: STRIMZI_CRUISE_CONTROL_HOSTNAME # <3>
              value: cruise-control-api.namespace.svc
            - name: STRIMZI_CRUISE_CONTROL_PORT # <4>
              value: 9090
            - name: STRIMZI_CRUISE_CONTROL_SSL_ENABLED # <5>
              value: true
            - name: STRIMZI_CRUISE_CONTROL_AUTH_ENABLED # <6>
              value: true    
----
<1> Integrates Cruise Control with the Topic Operator.
<2> Flag to indicate whether rack awareness is enabled on the Kafka cluster. If so, replicas can be spread across different racks, data centers, or availability zones.
<3> Cruise Control hostname.
<4> Cruise control port.
<5> Enables TLS authentication and encryption for accessing the Kafka cluster.
<6> Enables basic authorization for accessing the Cruise Control API. 

If you enable TLS authentication and authorization, mount the required certificates as follows:

* Public certificates of the Cluster CA (certificate authority) in `/etc/cluster-ca-certs/ca.crt`
* Basic authorization credentials (user name and password) in `/etc/eto-cc-api/topic-operator.apiAdminName` and `/etc/eto-cc-api/topic-operator.apiAdminPassword`
