diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/.gitignore b/dockerised_local_env/.gitignore
index c65f4d5..c88a11c 100644
--- a/dockerised_local_env/.gitignore
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/.gitignore
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@
 gerrit-1/bin
 gerrit-1/etc
 gerrit-1/tmp
+gerrit-1/lib
+gerrit-1/ssh/known_hosts
 gerrit-2/plugins
 gerrit-2/db
 gerrit-2/git
@@ -16,3 +18,8 @@
 gerrit-2/bin
 gerrit-2/etc
 gerrit-2/tmp
+gerrit-2/lib
+gerrit-2/ssh/known_hosts
+gerrit-2/bin
+syslog-sidecar/logs
+syslog-sidecar/socket
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/Makefile b/dockerised_local_env/Makefile
index ae1c85b..0b6b7e3 100644
--- a/dockerised_local_env/Makefile
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/Makefile
@@ -1,9 +1,9 @@
 GERRIT_JOB=Gerrit-bazel-stable-2.16
-BUILD_NUM=259
-GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY=./gerrit-1/plugins
-GERRIT_2_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY=./gerrit-2/plugins
+BUILD_NUM=377
 GERRIT_1_BIN_DIRECTORY=./gerrit-1/bin
 GERRIT_2_BIN_DIRECTORY=./gerrit-2/bin
+GERRIT_1_LIB_DIRECTORY=./gerrit-1/lib
+GERRIT_2_LIB_DIRECTORY=./gerrit-2/lib
 GERRIT_1_ETC_DIRECTORY=./gerrit-1/etc
 GERRIT_2_ETC_DIRECTORY=./gerrit-2/etc
 GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY=./gerrit-1/plugins
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@
 all: prepare download build
 
 prepare:
-	-mkdir -p $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_2_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_1_BIN_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_2_BIN_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_1_ETC_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_2_ETC_DIRECTORY)
+	-mkdir -p $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_2_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_1_BIN_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_2_BIN_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_1_ETC_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_2_ETC_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_1_LIB_DIRECTORY) $(GERRIT_2_LIB_DIRECTORY)
 
 download: gerrit plugin_websession_flatfile \
 	plugin_healthcheck \
@@ -26,19 +26,19 @@
 gerrit: prepare
 	$(WGET) $(CI_URL)/$(GERRIT_JOB)/lastSuccessfulBuild/artifact/gerrit/bazel-bin/release.war -P $(GERRIT_1_BIN_DIRECTORY)
 	cp $(GERRIT_1_BIN_DIRECTORY)/*.war $(GERRIT_2_BIN_DIRECTORY)
-	for plugin in $(CORE_PLUGINS); do $(WGET) $(CI_URL)/$(GERRIT_JOB)/lastSuccessfulBuild/artifact/gerrit/bazel-genfiles/plugins/$$plugin/$$plugin.jar -P $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY); done
+	for plugin in $(CORE_PLUGINS); do $(WGET) $(CI_URL)/$(GERRIT_JOB)/lastSuccessfulBuild/artifact/gerrit/bazel-bin/plugins/$$plugin/$$plugin.jar -P $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY); done
 	cp $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)/*.jar $(GERRIT_2_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)
 
 plugin_websession_flatfile: prepare
-	$(WGET) $(CI_URL)/plugin-websession-flatfile-bazel-master-stable-2.16/lastSuccessfulBuild/artifact/bazel-genfiles/plugins/websession-flatfile/websession-flatfile.jar -P $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)
+	$(WGET) $(CI_URL)/plugin-websession-flatfile-bazel-master-stable-2.16/lastSuccessfulBuild/artifact/bazel-bin/plugins/websession-flatfile/websession-flatfile.jar -P $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)
 	cp $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)/websession-flatfile.jar $(GERRIT_2_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)/websession-flatfile.jar
 
 plugin_multi_site: prepare
-	$(WGET) $(CI_URL)/plugin-multi-site-bazel-stable-2.16/lastSuccessfulBuild/artifact/bazel-genfiles/plugins/multi-site/multi-site.jar -P $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)
-	cp $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)/multi-site.jar $(GERRIT_2_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)/multi-site.jar
+	$(WGET) $(CI_URL)/plugin-multi-site-bazel-stable-2.16/lastSuccessfulBuild/artifact/bazel-bin/plugins/multi-site/multi-site.jar -P $(GERRIT_1_LIB_DIRECTORY)
+	cp $(GERRIT_1_LIB_DIRECTORY)/multi-site.jar $(GERRIT_2_LIB_DIRECTORY)/multi-site.jar
 
 plugin_healthcheck: prepare
-	$(WGET) $(CI_URL)/plugin-healthcheck-bazel-stable-2.16/lastSuccessfulBuild/artifact/bazel-genfiles/plugins/healthcheck/healthcheck.jar -P $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)
+	$(WGET) $(CI_URL)/plugin-healthcheck-bazel-stable-2.16/lastSuccessfulBuild/artifact/bazel-bin/plugins/healthcheck/healthcheck.jar -P $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)
 	cp $(GERRIT_1_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)/healthcheck.jar $(GERRIT_2_PLUGINS_DIRECTORY)/healthcheck.jar
 
 build:
@@ -46,11 +46,11 @@
 	docker build -t $(MYDIR) ./gerrit-2
 
 clean_gerrit: prepare
-	-rm -fr gerrit-{1,2}/{db,data,cache,db,git,index,etc,bin,tmp}/*
-	export GERRIT_REPLICATION_INSTANCE=gerrit-2 REPLICATE_ON_STARTUP=true; cat ./gerrit-common/replication.config.template | envsubst '$${GERRIT_REPLICATION_INSTANCE} $${REPLICATE_ON_STARTUP}'  > ./gerrit-1/etc/replication.config
-	export GERRIT_REPLICATION_INSTANCE=gerrit-1 REPLICATE_ON_STARTUP=false; cat ./gerrit-common/replication.config.template | envsubst '$${GERRIT_REPLICATION_INSTANCE} $${REPLICATE_ON_STARTUP}'  > ./gerrit-2/etc/replication.config
-	cp ./gerrit-common/gerrit.config ./gerrit-1/etc
-	cp ./gerrit-common/gerrit.config ./gerrit-2/etc
+	-rm -fr gerrit-{1,2}/{db,data,cache,db,git,index,etc,bin,tmp,plugins,lib}/*
+	export GERRIT_REPLICATION_INSTANCE=gerrit-2; cat ./gerrit-common/replication.config.template | envsubst '$${GERRIT_REPLICATION_INSTANCE}' > ./gerrit-1/etc/replication.config
+	export GERRIT_REPLICATION_INSTANCE=gerrit-1; cat ./gerrit-common/replication.config.template | envsubst '$${GERRIT_REPLICATION_INSTANCE}' > ./gerrit-2/etc/replication.config
+	cp ./gerrit-common/*.config ./gerrit-1/etc
+	cp ./gerrit-common/*.config ./gerrit-2/etc
 	cp ./gerrit-common/git-daemon.sh ./gerrit-1/bin
 	cp ./gerrit-common/git-daemon.sh ./gerrit-2/bin
 
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/common-gerrit-config/replication.config.template b/dockerised_local_env/common-gerrit-config/replication.config.template
deleted file mode 100644
index 537e8d8..0000000
--- a/dockerised_local_env/common-gerrit-config/replication.config.template
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,17 +0,0 @@
-[remote "Replication"]
-    url = git://${GERRIT_REPLICATION_INSTANCE}:9418/${name}.git
-    adminUrl = ssh://root@sshd:22/var/${GERRIT_REPLICATION_INSTANCE}/git/${name}.git
-    push = +refs/*:refs/*
-    timeout = 600
-    rescheduleDelay = 15
-    replicationDelay = 5
-    mirror = true
-    createMissingRepositories = true
-    replicateProjectDeletions = true
-    replicateHiddenProjects = true
-[gerrit]
-    autoReload = true
-    replicateOnStartup = true
-[replication]
-    lockErrorMaxRetries = 5
-    maxRetries = 5
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/docker-compose.yaml b/dockerised_local_env/docker-compose.yaml
index 9bf3fdf..b15684d 100644
--- a/dockerised_local_env/docker-compose.yaml
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/docker-compose.yaml
@@ -15,12 +15,17 @@
        - ./gerrit-1/etc:/var/gerrit/etc
        - ./gerrit-1/db:/var/gerrit/db
        - ./gerrit-1/plugins:/var/gerrit/plugins
+       - ./gerrit-1/lib:/var/gerrit/lib
        - ./gerrit-1/tmp:/var/gerrit/tmp
+       - ./gerrit-common/shared-dir:/var/gerrit/shared-dir
     ports:
-       - "29418:29418"
-       - "8080:8080"
+       - "39418:29418"
+       - "8081:8080"
     depends_on:
       - sshd
+      - zookeeper
+      - kafka-broker
+    container_name: gerrit-1
   gerrit-2:
     build: ./gerrit-2
     networks:
@@ -36,12 +41,17 @@
        - ./gerrit-2/etc:/var/gerrit/etc
        - ./gerrit-2/db:/var/gerrit/db
        - ./gerrit-2/plugins:/var/gerrit/plugins
+       - ./gerrit-2/lib:/var/gerrit/lib
        - ./gerrit-2/tmp:/var/gerrit/tmp
+       - ./gerrit-common/shared-dir:/var/gerrit/shared-dir
     ports:
-       - "39418:29418"
-       - "8081:8080"
+       - "49418:29418"
+       - "8082:8080"
     depends_on:
       - sshd
+      - zookeeper
+      - kafka-broker
+    container_name: gerrit-2
   sshd:
     build: ./sshd
     networks:
@@ -50,6 +60,52 @@
        - ./gerrit-2/git:/var/gerrit-2/git
        - ./gerrit-2/ssh:/root/.ssh
        - ./gerrit-1/git:/var/gerrit-1/git
+    container_name: sshd
+  zookeeper:
+    image: wurstmeister/zookeeper:latest
+    networks:
+      gerrit-net:
+    ports:
+      - "2181:2181"
+  kafka-broker:
+    image: wurstmeister/kafka:2.12-2.1.0
+    networks:
+      gerrit-net:
+    ports:
+      - "9092:9092"
+    container_name: kafka-broker
+    environment:
+      KAFKA_ADVERTISED_HOST_NAME: kafka-broker
+      KAFKA_ZOOKEEPER_CONNECT: zookeeper:2181
+  haproxy:
+    build: haproxy
+    ports:
+      - "8080:8080"
+      - "29418:29418"
+    networks:
+      gerrit-net:
+    depends_on:
+      - syslog-sidecar
+      - gerrit-1
+      - gerrit-2
+    environment:
+      - SYSLOG_SIDECAR=syslog-sidecar
+      - GERRIT_1=gerrit-1
+      - GERRIT_1_SSH=29418
+      - GERRIT_1_HTTP=8080
+      - GERRIT_2=gerrit-2
+      - GERRIT_2_SSH=29418
+      - GERRIT_2_HTTP=8080
+      - HAPROXY_HTTP_PORT=8080
+      - HAPROXY_SSH_PORT=29418
+  syslog-sidecar:
+    image: balabit/syslog-ng:3.19.1
+    volumes:
+      - "./syslog-sidecar/logs:/var/log/syslog-ng"
+      - "./syslog-sidecar/socket:/var/run/syslog-ng"
+      - "./syslog-sidecar/config/:/etc/syslog-ng"
+    networks:
+      gerrit-net:
 networks:
   gerrit-net:
     driver: bridge
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-1/ssh/known_hosts b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-1/ssh/known_hosts
deleted file mode 100644
index 012fa68..0000000
--- a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-1/ssh/known_hosts
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,2 +0,0 @@
-
-sshd,* ecdsa-sha2-nistp256 AAAAE2VjZHNhLXNoYTItbmlzdHAyNTYAAAAIbmlzdHAyNTYAAABBBKZRTdCgJ0FFTpP3ZzRgMMbYgaNmm6PDlg0e9QtOXzCG63GE41EExz2RWw7K9e6eRz+hSVf4hC/KMPgH3Clgo6w=
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-2/docker-entrypoint.sh b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-2/docker-entrypoint.sh
index 09a3f4d..532377c 100755
--- a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-2/docker-entrypoint.sh
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-2/docker-entrypoint.sh
@@ -9,8 +9,11 @@
   echo "Remove git repos created during init phase"
   rm -fr /var/gerrit/git/*
 
-  echo "Waiting for initial replication"
+  echo "Waiting for gerrit1 server to become available."
   sleep 120
+  ssh -p 29418 admin@gerrit-1 replication start
+  echo "Waiting for replication to complete."
+  sleep 30
 fi
 
 java -jar /var/gerrit/bin/gerrit.war daemon
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-2/ssh/known_hosts b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-2/ssh/known_hosts
deleted file mode 100644
index c6f2bdd..0000000
--- a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-2/ssh/known_hosts
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,2 +0,0 @@
-[localhost]:39418 ecdsa-sha2-nistp256 AAAAE2VjZHNhLXNoYTItbmlzdHAyNTYAAAAIbmlzdHAyNTYAAABBBHAfiYyOe3Df8h+nT1axmB5F4cQQg/qnzvBEJsfKHt3uCYjkOLjjadYjujCnkzb74LToaw4pToTfAnCJ42jw5Bk=
-[gerrit-1]:22 ecdsa-sha2-nistp256 AAAAE2VjZHNhLXNoYTItbmlzdHAyNTYAAAAIbmlzdHAyNTYAAABBBHAfiYyOe3Df8h+nT1axmB5F4cQQg/qnzvBEJsfKHt3uCYjkOLjjadYjujCnkzb74LToaw4pToTfAnCJ42jw5Bk=
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/gerrit.config b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/gerrit.config
index cefc723..0a47bea 100644
--- a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/gerrit.config
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/gerrit.config
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 	basePath = git
 	serverId = ff17821f-9571-42df-b690-30660f2d6e20
 	canonicalWebUrl = http://localhost:8080/
+	installModule = com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Module
 [database]
 	type = h2
 	database = db/ReviewDB
@@ -27,9 +28,12 @@
 	smtpServer = localhost
 [sshd]
 	listenAddress = *:29418
+	advertisedAddress = *:29418
 [httpd]
-	listenUrl = http://*:8080/
+	listenUrl = proxy-http://*:8080/
 [cache]
 	directory = cache
 [plugins]
 	allowRemoteAdmin = true
+[plugin "websession-flatfile"]
+    directory = /var/gerrit/shared-dir
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/healthcheck.config b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/healthcheck.config
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..849e23f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/healthcheck.config
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+[healthcheck]
+	timeout = 10s
+
+[healthcheck "querychanges"]
+	# No changes available when Gerrit is installed from scratch
+	enabled = false
+
+[healthcheck "auth"]
+	username = "admin"
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/multi-site.config b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/multi-site.config
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..04b9c2c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/multi-site.config
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+[index]
+  maxTries = 6
+  retryInterval = 30000
+  numStripedLocks = 100
+
+[kafka]
+	bootstrapServers = kafka-broker:9092
+	securityProtocol = PLAINTEXT
+	indexEventTopic = gerrit_index
+	streamEventTopic = gerrit_stream
+	projectListEventTopic = gerrit_list_project
+	cacheEventTopic = gerrit_cache_eviction
+
+[kafka "subscriber"]
+	enabled = true
+	pollingIntervalMs = 1000
+	KafkaProp-enableAutoCommit = true
+	KafkaProp-autoCommitIntervalMs = 1000
+	KafkaProp-autoOffsetReset = latest
+
+[kafka "publisher"]
+	enabled = true
+
+[ref-database "zookeeper"]
+	connectString = "zookeeper:2181"
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/replication.config.template b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/replication.config.template
index f51530f..3864e92 100644
--- a/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/replication.config.template
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/gerrit-common/replication.config.template
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@
     replicateHiddenProjects = true
 [gerrit]
     autoReload = true
-    replicateOnStartup = ${REPLICATE_ON_STARTUP}
+    replicateOnStartup = false
 [replication]
     lockErrorMaxRetries = 5
     maxRetries = 5
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/haproxy/Dockerfile b/dockerised_local_env/haproxy/Dockerfile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..dd3f9cd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/haproxy/Dockerfile
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+FROM haproxy:1.9.4
+
+RUN apt-get update && \
+    apt-get -y install gettext-base netcat && \
+    rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/* && \
+    mkdir /var/lib/haproxy && \
+    mkdir /var/run/haproxy && \
+    useradd haproxy && \
+    chown haproxy: /var/lib/haproxy /var/run/haproxy
+
+COPY haproxy.cfg /usr/local/etc/haproxy/haproxy.cfg.template
+
+COPY docker-entrypoint.sh /
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/haproxy/docker-entrypoint.sh b/dockerised_local_env/haproxy/docker-entrypoint.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..b78a994
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/haproxy/docker-entrypoint.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+envsubst < /usr/local/etc/haproxy/haproxy.cfg.template > /usr/local/etc/haproxy/haproxy.cfg
+haproxy -f /usr/local/etc/haproxy/haproxy.cfg
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/haproxy/haproxy.cfg b/dockerised_local_env/haproxy/haproxy.cfg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..000ed9e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/haproxy/haproxy.cfg
@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+global
+    log $SYSLOG_SIDECAR local0
+    maxconn 2048
+
+defaults
+  log     global
+  mode    http
+  option  httplog
+  option  dontlognull
+  timeout connect 5000
+  timeout client  900000
+  timeout server  900000
+  timeout check 30000
+
+frontend haproxynode
+    bind *:$HAPROXY_HTTP_PORT
+    mode http
+    acl redirect_reads url_reg -i git-upload-pack
+    acl redirect_reads url_reg -i clone.bundle
+    acl redirect_writes url_reg -i git-receive-pack
+    use_backend read-backendnodes if redirect_reads
+    use_backend write-backendnodes if redirect_writes
+    default_backend read-backendnodes
+
+frontend git_ssh
+    bind *:$HAPROXY_SSH_PORT
+    option tcplog
+    mode tcp
+    timeout client  5m
+    default_backend ssh
+
+backend read-backendnodes
+    mode http
+    balance source
+    option forwardfor
+    http-request set-header X-Forwarded-Port %[dst_port]
+    default-server inter 10s fall 3 rise 2
+    option httpchk GET /config/server/healthcheck~status HTTP/1.0
+    http-check expect status 200
+    server node1 $GERRIT_1:$GERRIT_1_HTTP check inter 10s
+    server node2 $GERRIT_2:$GERRIT_2_HTTP check inter 10s
+
+backend write-backendnodes
+    mode http
+    balance roundrobin
+    option forwardfor
+    http-request set-header X-Forwarded-Port %[dst_port]
+    default-server inter 10s fall 3 rise 2
+    option httpchk GET /config/server/healthcheck~status HTTP/1.0
+    http-check expect status 200
+    server node1 $GERRIT_1:$GERRIT_1_HTTP check inter 10s
+    server node2 $GERRIT_2:$GERRIT_2_HTTP check inter 10s backup
+
+backend ssh
+    mode tcp
+    option redispatch
+    option httpchk GET /config/server/healthcheck~status HTTP/1.0
+    http-check expect status 200
+    balance source
+    timeout connect 10s
+    timeout server 5m
+    server ssh_node1 $GERRIT_1:$GERRIT_1_SSH check inter 10s check port $GERRIT_1_HTTP inter 10s
+    server ssh_node2 $GERRIT_2:$GERRIT_2_SSH check inter 10s check port $GERRIT_2_HTTP inter 10s backup
diff --git a/dockerised_local_env/syslog-sidecar/config/syslog-ng.conf b/dockerised_local_env/syslog-sidecar/config/syslog-ng.conf
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bbd27b6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dockerised_local_env/syslog-sidecar/config/syslog-ng.conf
@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+@version: 3.11
+
+options {
+    keep_hostname(yes);
+    create_dirs(yes);
+    ts_format(iso);
+    time_reopen (10);
+    chain_hostnames (no);
+};
+
+source s_net {
+    tcp(
+     ip("0.0.0.0")
+    );
+    udp(
+     ip("0.0.0.0")
+    );
+    syslog(
+     ip("0.0.0.0")
+    );
+    unix-stream("/var/run/lock/syslog-ng.sock");
+};
+
+destination logfiles {
+    file("/var/log/syslog-ng/$PROGRAM.log");
+};
+
+log {
+    source(s_net);
+    destination(logfiles);
+};
diff --git a/src/main/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/Configuration.java b/src/main/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/Configuration.java
index 3764013..3226a42 100644
--- a/src/main/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/Configuration.java
+++ b/src/main/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/Configuration.java
@@ -18,7 +18,6 @@
 import static com.google.common.base.Suppliers.ofInstance;
 
 import com.google.common.annotations.VisibleForTesting;
-import com.google.common.base.CaseFormat;
 import com.google.common.base.Strings;
 import com.google.common.base.Supplier;
 import com.google.common.collect.ImmutableList;
@@ -62,25 +61,18 @@
   static final String THREAD_POOL_SIZE_KEY = "threadPoolSize";
   static final int DEFAULT_INDEX_MAX_TRIES = 2;
   static final int DEFAULT_INDEX_RETRY_INTERVAL = 30000;
-  private static final int DEFAULT_POLLING_INTERVAL_MS = 1000;
   static final int DEFAULT_THREAD_POOL_SIZE = 4;
   static final String NUM_STRIPED_LOCKS = "numStripedLocks";
   static final int DEFAULT_NUM_STRIPED_LOCKS = 10;
   static final String ENABLE_KEY = "enabled";
-  static final String DEFAULT_KAFKA_BOOTSTRAP_SERVERS = "localhost:9092";
-  static final boolean DEFAULT_ENABLE_PROCESSING = true;
-  static final String KAFKA_SECTION = "kafka";
-  public static final String KAFKA_PROPERTY_PREFIX = "KafkaProp-";
 
-  private final Supplier<KafkaPublisher> publisher;
   private final Supplier<Cache> cache;
   private final Supplier<Event> event;
   private final Supplier<Index> index;
-  private final Supplier<KafkaSubscriber> subscriber;
-  private final Supplier<Kafka> kafka;
   private final Supplier<SharedRefDatabase> sharedRefDb;
   private final Supplier<Collection<Message>> replicationConfigValidation;
   private final Config multiSiteConfig;
+  private final KafkaConfiguration kafkaConfig;
 
   @Inject
   Configuration(SitePaths sitePaths) {
@@ -91,10 +83,8 @@
   public Configuration(Config multiSiteConfig, Config replicationConfig) {
     Supplier<Config> lazyMultiSiteCfg = lazyLoad(multiSiteConfig);
     this.multiSiteConfig = multiSiteConfig;
+    this.kafkaConfig = new KafkaConfiguration(multiSiteConfig);
     replicationConfigValidation = lazyValidateReplicatioConfig(replicationConfig);
-    kafka = memoize(() -> new Kafka(lazyMultiSiteCfg));
-    publisher = memoize(() -> new KafkaPublisher(lazyMultiSiteCfg));
-    subscriber = memoize(() -> new KafkaSubscriber(lazyMultiSiteCfg));
     cache = memoize(() -> new Cache(lazyMultiSiteCfg));
     event = memoize(() -> new Event(lazyMultiSiteCfg));
     index = memoize(() -> new Index(lazyMultiSiteCfg));
@@ -110,11 +100,11 @@
   }
 
   public Kafka getKafka() {
-    return kafka.get();
+    return kafkaConfig.getKafka();
   }
 
   public KafkaPublisher kafkaPublisher() {
-    return publisher.get();
+    return kafkaConfig.kafkaPublisher();
   }
 
   public Cache cache() {
@@ -130,7 +120,7 @@
   }
 
   public KafkaSubscriber kafkaSubscriber() {
-    return subscriber.get();
+    return kafkaConfig.kafkaSubscriber();
   }
 
   public Collection<Message> validate() {
@@ -192,59 +182,6 @@
     }
   }
 
-  private static String getString(
-      Supplier<Config> cfg, String section, String subsection, String name, String defaultValue) {
-    String value = cfg.get().getString(section, subsection, name);
-    if (!Strings.isNullOrEmpty(value)) {
-      return value;
-    }
-    return defaultValue;
-  }
-
-  private static Map<EventFamily, Boolean> eventsEnabled(
-      Supplier<Config> config, String subsection) {
-    Map<EventFamily, Boolean> eventsEnabled = new HashMap<>();
-    for (EventFamily eventFamily : EventFamily.values()) {
-      String enabledConfigKey = eventFamily.lowerCamelName() + "Enabled";
-
-      eventsEnabled.put(
-          eventFamily,
-          config
-              .get()
-              .getBoolean(KAFKA_SECTION, subsection, enabledConfigKey, DEFAULT_ENABLE_PROCESSING));
-    }
-    return eventsEnabled;
-  }
-
-  private static void applyKafkaConfig(
-      Supplier<Config> configSupplier, String subsectionName, Properties target) {
-    Config config = configSupplier.get();
-    for (String section : config.getSubsections(KAFKA_SECTION)) {
-      if (section.equals(subsectionName)) {
-        for (String name : config.getNames(KAFKA_SECTION, section, true)) {
-          if (name.startsWith(KAFKA_PROPERTY_PREFIX)) {
-            Object value = config.getString(KAFKA_SECTION, subsectionName, name);
-            String configProperty = name.replaceFirst(KAFKA_PROPERTY_PREFIX, "");
-            String propName =
-                CaseFormat.LOWER_CAMEL
-                    .to(CaseFormat.LOWER_HYPHEN, configProperty)
-                    .replaceAll("-", ".");
-            log.info("[{}] Setting kafka property: {} = {}", subsectionName, propName, value);
-            target.put(propName, value);
-          }
-        }
-      }
-    }
-    target.put(
-        "bootstrap.servers",
-        getString(
-            configSupplier,
-            KAFKA_SECTION,
-            null,
-            "bootstrapServers",
-            DEFAULT_KAFKA_BOOTSTRAP_SERVERS));
-  }
-
   public static class Kafka {
     private final Map<EventFamily, String> eventTopics;
     private final String bootstrapServers;
@@ -263,14 +200,23 @@
     Kafka(Supplier<Config> config) {
       this.bootstrapServers =
           getString(
-              config, KAFKA_SECTION, null, "bootstrapServers", DEFAULT_KAFKA_BOOTSTRAP_SERVERS);
+              config,
+              KafkaConfiguration.KAFKA_SECTION,
+              null,
+              "bootstrapServers",
+              KafkaConfiguration.DEFAULT_KAFKA_BOOTSTRAP_SERVERS);
 
       this.eventTopics = new HashMap<>();
       for (Map.Entry<EventFamily, String> topicDefault : EVENT_TOPICS.entrySet()) {
         String topicConfigKey = topicDefault.getKey().lowerCamelName() + "Topic";
         eventTopics.put(
             topicDefault.getKey(),
-            getString(config, KAFKA_SECTION, null, topicConfigKey, topicDefault.getValue()));
+            getString(
+                config,
+                KafkaConfiguration.KAFKA_SECTION,
+                null,
+                topicConfigKey,
+                topicDefault.getValue()));
       }
     }
 
@@ -281,6 +227,15 @@
     public String getBootstrapServers() {
       return bootstrapServers;
     }
+
+    private static String getString(
+        Supplier<Config> cfg, String section, String subsection, String name, String defaultValue) {
+      String value = cfg.get().getString(section, subsection, name);
+      if (!Strings.isNullOrEmpty(value)) {
+        return value;
+      }
+      return defaultValue;
+    }
   }
 
   public static class KafkaPublisher extends Properties {
@@ -294,17 +249,20 @@
     private final boolean enabled;
     private final Map<EventFamily, Boolean> eventsEnabled;
 
-    private KafkaPublisher(Supplier<Config> cfg) {
+    KafkaPublisher(Supplier<Config> cfg) {
       enabled =
           cfg.get()
               .getBoolean(
-                  KAFKA_SECTION, KAFKA_PUBLISHER_SUBSECTION, ENABLE_KEY, DEFAULT_BROKER_ENABLED);
+                  KafkaConfiguration.KAFKA_SECTION,
+                  KAFKA_PUBLISHER_SUBSECTION,
+                  KafkaConfiguration.ENABLE_KEY,
+                  DEFAULT_BROKER_ENABLED);
 
-      eventsEnabled = eventsEnabled(cfg, KAFKA_PUBLISHER_SUBSECTION);
+      eventsEnabled = KafkaConfiguration.eventsEnabled(cfg, KAFKA_PUBLISHER_SUBSECTION);
 
       if (enabled) {
         setDefaults();
-        applyKafkaConfig(cfg, KAFKA_PUBLISHER_SUBSECTION, this);
+        KafkaConfiguration.applyKafkaConfig(cfg, KAFKA_PUBLISHER_SUBSECTION, this);
       }
     }
 
@@ -343,17 +301,22 @@
 
       this.pollingInterval =
           cfg.getInt(
-              KAFKA_SECTION,
+              KafkaConfiguration.KAFKA_SECTION,
               KAFKA_SUBSCRIBER_SUBSECTION,
               "pollingIntervalMs",
-              DEFAULT_POLLING_INTERVAL_MS);
+              KafkaConfiguration.DEFAULT_POLLING_INTERVAL_MS);
 
-      enabled = cfg.getBoolean(KAFKA_SECTION, KAFKA_SUBSCRIBER_SUBSECTION, ENABLE_KEY, false);
+      enabled =
+          cfg.getBoolean(
+              KafkaConfiguration.KAFKA_SECTION,
+              KAFKA_SUBSCRIBER_SUBSECTION,
+              KafkaConfiguration.ENABLE_KEY,
+              false);
 
-      eventsEnabled = eventsEnabled(configSupplier, KAFKA_SUBSCRIBER_SUBSECTION);
+      eventsEnabled = KafkaConfiguration.eventsEnabled(configSupplier, KAFKA_SUBSCRIBER_SUBSECTION);
 
       if (enabled) {
-        applyKafkaConfig(configSupplier, KAFKA_SUBSCRIBER_SUBSECTION, this);
+        KafkaConfiguration.applyKafkaConfig(configSupplier, KAFKA_SUBSCRIBER_SUBSECTION, this);
       }
     }
 
@@ -368,7 +331,11 @@
     public Properties initPropsWith(UUID instanceId) {
       String groupId =
           getString(
-              cfg, KAFKA_SECTION, KAFKA_SUBSCRIBER_SUBSECTION, "groupId", instanceId.toString());
+              cfg,
+              KafkaConfiguration.KAFKA_SECTION,
+              KAFKA_SUBSCRIBER_SUBSECTION,
+              "groupId",
+              instanceId.toString());
       this.put("group.id", groupId);
 
       return this;
diff --git a/src/main/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/KafkaConfiguration.java b/src/main/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/KafkaConfiguration.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3376b49
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/KafkaConfiguration.java
@@ -0,0 +1,145 @@
+// Copyright (C) 2019 The Android Open Source Project
+//
+// Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+// you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+// You may obtain a copy of the License at
+//
+// http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+//
+// Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+// distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+// WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+// See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+// limitations under the License.
+
+package com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite;
+
+import static com.google.common.base.Suppliers.memoize;
+import static com.google.common.base.Suppliers.ofInstance;
+
+import com.google.common.annotations.VisibleForTesting;
+import com.google.common.base.CaseFormat;
+import com.google.common.base.Strings;
+import com.google.common.base.Supplier;
+import com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.Kafka;
+import com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.KafkaPublisher;
+import com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.KafkaSubscriber;
+import com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.forwarder.events.EventFamily;
+import java.io.IOException;
+import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Properties;
+import org.eclipse.jgit.errors.ConfigInvalidException;
+import org.eclipse.jgit.lib.Config;
+import org.eclipse.jgit.storage.file.FileBasedConfig;
+import org.slf4j.Logger;
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+public class KafkaConfiguration {
+  private static final Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(KafkaConfiguration.class);
+
+  static final String KAFKA_PROPERTY_PREFIX = "KafkaProp-";
+  static final String KAFKA_SECTION = "kafka";
+  static final String ENABLE_KEY = "enabled";
+  static final String DEFAULT_KAFKA_BOOTSTRAP_SERVERS = "localhost:9092";
+  static final boolean DEFAULT_ENABLE_PROCESSING = true;
+  static final int DEFAULT_POLLING_INTERVAL_MS = 1000;
+
+  private final Supplier<KafkaSubscriber> subscriber;
+  private final Supplier<Kafka> kafka;
+  private final Supplier<KafkaPublisher> publisher;
+
+  @VisibleForTesting
+  public KafkaConfiguration(Config kafkaConfig) {
+    Supplier<Config> lazyCfg = lazyLoad(kafkaConfig);
+    kafka = memoize(() -> new Kafka(lazyCfg));
+    publisher = memoize(() -> new KafkaPublisher(lazyCfg));
+    subscriber = memoize(() -> new KafkaSubscriber(lazyCfg));
+  }
+
+  public Kafka getKafka() {
+    return kafka.get();
+  }
+
+  public KafkaSubscriber kafkaSubscriber() {
+    return subscriber.get();
+  }
+
+  static void applyKafkaConfig(
+      Supplier<Config> configSupplier, String subsectionName, Properties target) {
+    Config config = configSupplier.get();
+    for (String section : config.getSubsections(KAFKA_SECTION)) {
+      if (section.equals(subsectionName)) {
+        for (String name : config.getNames(KAFKA_SECTION, section, true)) {
+          if (name.startsWith(KAFKA_PROPERTY_PREFIX)) {
+            Object value = config.getString(KAFKA_SECTION, subsectionName, name);
+            String configProperty = name.replaceFirst(KAFKA_PROPERTY_PREFIX, "");
+            String propName =
+                CaseFormat.LOWER_CAMEL
+                    .to(CaseFormat.LOWER_HYPHEN, configProperty)
+                    .replaceAll("-", ".");
+            log.info("[{}] Setting kafka property: {} = {}", subsectionName, propName, value);
+            target.put(propName, value);
+          }
+        }
+      }
+    }
+    target.put(
+        "bootstrap.servers",
+        getString(
+            configSupplier,
+            KAFKA_SECTION,
+            null,
+            "bootstrapServers",
+            DEFAULT_KAFKA_BOOTSTRAP_SERVERS));
+  }
+
+  private static String getString(
+      Supplier<Config> cfg, String section, String subsection, String name, String defaultValue) {
+    String value = cfg.get().getString(section, subsection, name);
+    if (!Strings.isNullOrEmpty(value)) {
+      return value;
+    }
+    return defaultValue;
+  }
+
+  static Map<EventFamily, Boolean> eventsEnabled(Supplier<Config> config, String subsection) {
+    Map<EventFamily, Boolean> eventsEnabled = new HashMap<>();
+    for (EventFamily eventFamily : EventFamily.values()) {
+      String enabledConfigKey = eventFamily.lowerCamelName() + "Enabled";
+
+      eventsEnabled.put(
+          eventFamily,
+          config
+              .get()
+              .getBoolean(
+                  KafkaConfiguration.KAFKA_SECTION,
+                  subsection,
+                  enabledConfigKey,
+                  KafkaConfiguration.DEFAULT_ENABLE_PROCESSING));
+    }
+    return eventsEnabled;
+  }
+
+  public KafkaPublisher kafkaPublisher() {
+    return publisher.get();
+  }
+
+  private Supplier<Config> lazyLoad(Config config) {
+    if (config instanceof FileBasedConfig) {
+      return memoize(
+          () -> {
+            FileBasedConfig fileConfig = (FileBasedConfig) config;
+            String fileConfigFileName = fileConfig.getFile().getPath();
+            try {
+              log.info("Loading configuration from {}", fileConfigFileName);
+              fileConfig.load();
+            } catch (IOException | ConfigInvalidException e) {
+              log.error("Unable to load configuration from " + fileConfigFileName, e);
+            }
+            return fileConfig;
+          });
+    }
+    return ofInstance(config);
+  }
+}
diff --git a/src/test/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/ConfigurationTest.java b/src/test/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/ConfigurationTest.java
index 4ceead9..ec3a431 100644
--- a/src/test/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/ConfigurationTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/com/googlesource/gerrit/plugins/multisite/ConfigurationTest.java
@@ -23,11 +23,11 @@
 import static com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.Forwarding.DEFAULT_SYNCHRONIZE;
 import static com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.Forwarding.SYNCHRONIZE_KEY;
 import static com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.Index.INDEX_SECTION;
-import static com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.KAFKA_PROPERTY_PREFIX;
-import static com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.KAFKA_SECTION;
 import static com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.KafkaPublisher.KAFKA_PUBLISHER_SUBSECTION;
 import static com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.KafkaSubscriber.KAFKA_SUBSCRIBER_SUBSECTION;
 import static com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.Configuration.THREAD_POOL_SIZE_KEY;
+import static com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.KafkaConfiguration.KAFKA_PROPERTY_PREFIX;
+import static com.googlesource.gerrit.plugins.multisite.KafkaConfiguration.KAFKA_SECTION;
 
 import com.google.common.collect.ImmutableList;
 import org.eclipse.jgit.lib.Config;