Which file needs to be updated to configure engines, ZooKeeper, and Kafka on different servers?

To configure engines, ZooKeeper, and Kafka on different servers within the Appian platform, it’s essential to focus on the appian-topology.xml file. This file plays a critical role in defining the topology of the Appian application server, including the configuration of various nodes in a clustered environment.

When deploying Appian in a distributed setup, it is necessary to specify how different components communicate, including which servers handle specific roles like executing engine tasks or managing messaging through Kafka. The appian-topology.xml allows administrators to delineate these roles and ensure that each component, such as engines and ZooKeeper, operates on the designated server.

In contrast, other options serve different purposes. The appian-config.xml is mainly for general configuration settings, process-models.xml pertains to the definitions of individual process models, and engine-settings.xml customizes particular engine configurations but does not manage the broader topology. Thus, for the task of setting up a distributed architecture with the necessary configurations, the appian-topology.xml is the correct file to update.