NiFi best practices

This NiFi best practices page describes several efficient ways to use NiFi.

Flow design

The following best practices focus on structuring flows so they’re easy to maintain as complexity grows:

Minimize redundant processing: Avoid duplicating tasks by routing data efficiently and using shared resources.
Modularize with process groups: Break complex flows into smaller, logical groups to improve readability and maintainability.
Plan for scalability: Consider potential growth in data volume and design flows that can scale horizontally if needed.
Use descriptive names: Name processors, connections, and process groups clearly to reflect their purpose.

The following best practices address how FlowFiles move through a flow:

Avoid blocking queues: Monitor and configure queue thresholds to prevent back-pressure from slowing flows unnecessarily.
Manage large files carefully: Use streaming or chunked processing for very large FlowFiles to avoid memory issues.
Use attributes wisely: Store metadata in FlowFile attributes to simplify routing and transformation.
Validate data: Use schema validation or record processors to catch errors early.

The following best practices focus on configuring processors and shared services to ensure predictable behavior and efficient resource usage:

Check required properties: Ensure all processor properties are properly configured before starting.
Enable only what’s needed: Disable unused processors or services to reduce resource consumption.
Monitor dependencies: Before disabling or modifying a service, check which processors rely on it to avoid flow disruptions.
Test incrementally: Build and test flows in small increments to catch issues early.
Use controller services: Centralize shared connections and configuration for consistency and easier maintenance.

The following best practices help detect, diagnose, and resolve operational issues during flow execution:

Document common issues: Maintain a knowledge base of known problems and solutions for your team.
Keep an eye on queue sizes: Large queues indicate potential bottlenecks or resource constraints.
Monitor bulletins and logs: Regularly review warnings, errors, and system messages to catch issues early.
Use data provenance: Trace FlowFiles to understand data paths and transformations.

The following best practices focus on tuning scheduling, concurrency, and logging to maintain throughput under load:

Adjust scheduling and concurrency: Tune processor scheduling intervals and concurrent tasks based on data volume and system capacity.
Avoid excessive logging: Logging at the DEBUG level in production can impact performance; use it primarily for troubleshooting.
Balance flows: Distribute processing tasks evenly across processors to prevent hotspots.

The following best practices address access control, credential handling, and secure communication within and across NiFi flows:

Manage access control: Use NiFi’s policies and, if applicable, OpenID Connect (OIDC) authentication to control who can view or modify flows.
Protect sensitive information: Use NiFi’s sensitive property handling to secure passwords, keys, and tokens.
Scope appropriately: Use process group-level services for local, isolated configurations. Use global services for common resources.
Use secure connections: Enable TLS/SSL for HTTP and data transfers.

To get an overview of NiFi, refer to the NiFi in NexusOne page.
To learn practical ways to use NiFi in the NexusOne environment, refer to the NiFi hands-on examples page.
For more details about NiFi, refer to the NiFi official documentation.