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Apache Kafka is a high-throughput, distributed event streaming platform used by companies like Netflix, Uber, and LinkedIn to handle real-time data processing at scale. Below, we break down Kafka’s architecture, components, and practical commands to help you master it quickly.
🔹 Core Kafka Components
- Producers → Applications that send messages (events) to Kafka.
- Topics & Partitions → Logical channels that organize messages for parallel processing.
- Brokers → Kafka servers that store and manage message delivery.
- Consumers → Applications that read and process messages.
- Consumer Groups → Enable load balancing and parallel consumption.
- Replication → Ensures fault tolerance by duplicating data across brokers.
- Retention → Kafka stores messages for a configured duration (even after consumption).
🔹 Real-World Kafka Use Cases
- Uber: Real-time ride tracking
- Banking: Fraud detection
- Log Aggregation: Centralized logging
- User Activity Tracking: Real-time analytics
- Data Lakes: Streaming ETL pipelines
🔹 You Should Know: Kafka Commands & Practical Setup
1. Install Kafka (Linux/macOS)
Download Kafka wget https://downloads.apache.org/kafka/3.6.0/kafka_2.13-3.6.0.tgz tar -xzf kafka_2.13-3.6.0.tgz cd kafka_2.13-3.6.0
2. Start Zookeeper & Kafka Server
Start Zookeeper (Required for Kafka) bin/zookeeper-server-start.sh config/zookeeper.properties In a new terminal, start Kafka bin/kafka-server-start.sh config/server.properties
3. Create a Kafka Topic
bin/kafka-topics.sh --create --topic test-topic --bootstrap-server localhost:9092 --partitions 3 --replication-factor 1
4. Produce & Consume Messages
Start a Producer (Send messages) bin/kafka-console-producer.sh --topic test-topic --bootstrap-server localhost:9092 Start a Consumer (Read messages) bin/kafka-console-consumer.sh --topic test-topic --bootstrap-server localhost:9092 --from-beginning
5. List & Describe Topics
List all topics bin/kafka-topics.sh --list --bootstrap-server localhost:9092 Describe a topic (Partitions, Replicas) bin/kafka-topics.sh --describe --topic test-topic --bootstrap-server localhost:9092
6. Delete a Topic
bin/kafka-topics.sh --delete --topic test-topic --bootstrap-server localhost:9092
🔹 Advanced Kafka Commands
Check Consumer Group Status
bin/kafka-consumer-groups.sh --list --bootstrap-server localhost:9092 bin/kafka-consumer-groups.sh --describe --group my-group --bootstrap-server localhost:9092
Adjust Log Retention
bin/kafka-configs.sh --alter --topic test-topic --add-config retention.ms=86400000 --bootstrap-server localhost:9092
Monitor Kafka Performance
bin/kafka-run-class.sh kafka.tools.JmxTool --jmx-url service:jmx:rmi:///jndi/rmi://localhost:9999/jmxrmi
🔹 What Undercode Say
Kafka is a game-changer for real-time data processing. Mastering its CLI commands helps in debugging, scaling, and optimizing event-driven systems. Whether you’re handling logs, transactions, or streaming analytics, Kafka’s distributed architecture ensures reliability.
🔗 Further Reading:
Expected Output:
A fully functional Kafka setup with topic creation, message production/consumption, and monitoring. Use these commands to experiment and deploy Kafka in production. 🚀
References:
Reported By: Rocky Bhatia – Hackers Feeds
Extra Hub: Undercode MoN
Basic Verification: Pass ✅
