The VMware Carbon Black EDR Server Configuration Guide describes the contents of the cb.conf file, which is the primary configuration file for Carbon Black EDR. The first time you install the Carbon Black EDR server, running cbinit creates the cb.conf file from a template that includes the standard parameters and default settings.

By changing the values of parameters in cb.conf, you can change the behavior and performance of Carbon Black EDR.

Before editing cb.conf , you should be sufficiently familiar with the features and operation of Carbon Black EDR to make judgments about whether and when to change its configuration. For details about using Carbon Black EDR, see the VMware Carbon Black EDR User Guide.

In a many environments, there is no need to modify cb.conf directly — many configuration options are either set during installation or through the Carbon Black EDR console. Configuration options described in this document, however, can be useful for troubleshooting issues with the server, customizing the configuration for local integration, or making other customizations and for enabling features such as Live Response.

Some advanced settings in the console can be additionally limited for use via a corresponding cb.conf setting. For these settings, if there is no value in cb.conf , the console interface controls behavior. If there is a value in cb.conf , that value is fixed and cannot be altered through the console interface. This lets you control whether console users can modify these settings. Among the settings are:

  • CbLREnabled – controls whether Live Response is available.
  • ShowGDPR Banner – controls displays of a banner to indicate an EU instance.
  • CbServerCertWarnBeforeExpirationDays – determines whether and how far in advance a warning appears when a server communication certificate is expiring.
  • CbServerSSLCertStrictCheck – determines whether a strict certificate check is required for server-sensor communication certificates: a setting that, if set incorrectly for your environment, can prevent sensor check-in.
  • ForceBlockLeadingWildcardsInSearchTo and ForceBlockCoreJoinsInSearchTo – determines whether to allow certain process searches that have high performance impact

In some cases you change the value of a setting that is already in the cb.conf file. In others, you must add both the setting and its value because they are not in the cb.conf file that is created during server initialization.

Note: While not always required, the best practice is to restart the server (or in a clustered environment, all members of the cluster) when you change the cb.conf file.