diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/api/http/servlet/VersionApiServletTest.java b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/api/http/servlet/VersionApiServletTest.java
index 976dbc3..8dcfa26 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/api/http/servlet/VersionApiServletTest.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/api/http/servlet/VersionApiServletTest.java
@@ -33,13 +33,10 @@
 import org.apache.asterix.api.http.server.VersionApiServlet;
 import org.apache.asterix.common.config.BuildProperties;
 import org.apache.asterix.runtime.utils.CcApplicationContext;
-import org.apache.asterix.test.runtime.SqlppExecutionTest;
 import org.apache.hyracks.api.client.IHyracksClientConnection;
 import org.apache.hyracks.http.api.IServletRequest;
 import org.apache.hyracks.http.api.IServletResponse;
-import org.junit.After;
 import org.junit.Assert;
-import org.junit.Before;
 import org.junit.Test;
 
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.ObjectMapper;
@@ -47,19 +44,12 @@
 
 import io.netty.handler.codec.http.FullHttpRequest;
 import io.netty.handler.codec.http.HttpMethod;
+import io.netty.util.internal.logging.Log4J2LoggerFactory;
 
 public class VersionApiServletTest {
-
-    @Before
-    public void setup() throws Exception {
-        // Starts test asterixdb cluster.
-        SqlppExecutionTest.setUp();
-    }
-
-    @After
-    public void teardown() throws Exception {
-        // Tears down the asterixdb cluster.
-        SqlppExecutionTest.tearDown();
+    static {
+        // bootstrap netty with log4j2 logging
+        io.netty.util.internal.logging.InternalLoggerFactory.setDefaultFactory(Log4J2LoggerFactory.INSTANCE);
     }
 
     @Test
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/runtime/HDFSCluster.java b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/runtime/HDFSCluster.java
index a89304a..c0b4841 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/runtime/HDFSCluster.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/runtime/HDFSCluster.java
@@ -59,17 +59,18 @@
 
     /**
      * Instantiates the (Mini) DFS Cluster with the configured number of datanodes.
-     * Post instantiation, data is laoded to HDFS.
+     * Post instantiation, data is loaded to HDFS.
      * Called prior to running the Runtime test suite.
      */
     public void setup() throws Exception {
-        setup("");
+        setup(new File("."));
     }
 
-    public void setup(String basePath) throws Exception {
-        conf.addResource(new Path(basePath + PATH_TO_HADOOP_CONF + "/core-site.xml"));
-        conf.addResource(new Path(basePath + PATH_TO_HADOOP_CONF + "/mapred-site.xml"));
-        conf.addResource(new Path(basePath + PATH_TO_HADOOP_CONF + "/hdfs-site.xml"));
+    public void setup(File basePath) throws Exception {
+        File hadoopConfDir = new File(basePath, PATH_TO_HADOOP_CONF);
+        conf.addResource(new Path(new File(hadoopConfDir, "core-site.xml").getPath()));
+        conf.addResource(new Path(new File(hadoopConfDir, "mapred-site.xml").getPath()));
+        conf.addResource(new Path(new File(hadoopConfDir, "hdfs-site.xml").getPath()));
         cleanupLocal();
         conf.set(MiniDFSCluster.HDFS_MINIDFS_BASEDIR, MINIDFS_BASEDIR);
         MiniDFSCluster.Builder build = new MiniDFSCluster.Builder(conf);
@@ -81,10 +82,10 @@
         loadData(basePath);
     }
 
-    private void loadData(String localDataRoot) throws IOException {
+    private void loadData(File localDataRoot) throws IOException {
         Path destDir = new Path(HDFS_PATH);
         dfs.mkdirs(destDir);
-        File srcDir = new File(localDataRoot + DATA_PATH);
+        File srcDir = new File(localDataRoot, DATA_PATH);
         if (srcDir.exists()) {
             File[] listOfFiles = srcDir.listFiles();
             for (File srcFile : listOfFiles) {
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/AbstractExecutionIT.java b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/AbstractExecutionIT.java
index 1a2f9ba..35bf7e4 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/AbstractExecutionIT.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/AbstractExecutionIT.java
@@ -14,12 +14,15 @@
  */
 package org.apache.asterix.test.server;
 
+import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.APP_HOME;
+import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.ASTERIX_APP_DIR;
 import static org.apache.hyracks.util.file.FileUtil.joinPath;
 
 import java.io.File;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
 import java.util.Collection;
 import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Objects;
 
 import org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants;
 import org.apache.asterix.external.util.IdentitiyResolverFactory;
@@ -29,7 +32,6 @@
 import org.apache.asterix.testframework.context.TestFileContext;
 import org.apache.asterix.testframework.xml.TestCase.CompilationUnit;
 import org.apache.asterix.testframework.xml.TestGroup;
-import org.apache.commons.lang3.StringUtils;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.LogManager;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.Logger;
 import org.codehaus.plexus.util.FileUtils;
@@ -75,20 +77,18 @@
         File outdir = new File(PATH_ACTUAL);
         outdir.mkdirs();
 
-        File externalTestsJar =
-                new File(StringUtils.join(new String[] { "..", "asterix-external-data", "target" }, File.separator))
-                        .listFiles((dir, name) -> name.matches("asterix-external-data-.*-tests.jar"))[0];
+        File externalTestsJar = Objects.requireNonNull(new File(joinPath("..", "asterix-external-data", "target"))
+                .listFiles((dir, name) -> name.matches("asterix-external-data-.*-tests.jar")))[0];
 
-        FileUtils.copyFile(externalTestsJar,
-                new File(NCServiceExecutionIT.APP_HOME + "/repo", externalTestsJar.getName()));
+        FileUtils.copyFile(externalTestsJar, new File(APP_HOME, joinPath("repo", externalTestsJar.getName())));
 
         NCServiceExecutionIT.setUp();
 
         FileUtils.copyDirectoryStructure(new File(joinPath("..", "asterix-app", "data")),
-                new File(NCServiceExecutionIT.ASTERIX_APP_DIR + "/clusters/local/working_dir/data"));
+                new File(ASTERIX_APP_DIR, joinPath("clusters", "local", "working_dir", "data")));
 
         FileUtils.copyDirectoryStructure(new File(joinPath("..", "asterix-app", "target", "data")),
-                new File(NCServiceExecutionIT.ASTERIX_APP_DIR + "/clusters/local/working_dir/target/data"));
+                new File(ASTERIX_APP_DIR, joinPath("clusters", "local", "working_dir", "target", "data")));
 
         // Set the node resolver to be the identity resolver that expects node names
         // to be node controller ids; a valid assumption in test environment.
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/NCServiceExecutionIT.java b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/NCServiceExecutionIT.java
index 64506f5..d64dcb5 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/NCServiceExecutionIT.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/NCServiceExecutionIT.java
@@ -18,19 +18,22 @@
  */
 package org.apache.asterix.test.server;
 
+import static org.apache.hyracks.util.file.FileUtil.joinPath;
+
 import java.io.File;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Arrays;
 import java.util.Collection;
 import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Random;
 import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+import java.util.stream.Stream;
 
 import org.apache.asterix.test.common.TestExecutor;
 import org.apache.asterix.test.runtime.HDFSCluster;
 import org.apache.asterix.testframework.context.TestCaseContext;
 import org.apache.asterix.testframework.xml.TestGroup;
 import org.apache.commons.io.FileUtils;
-import org.apache.commons.lang3.StringUtils;
 import org.apache.hyracks.test.server.process.HyracksCCProcess;
 import org.apache.hyracks.test.server.process.HyracksNCServiceProcess;
 import org.apache.hyracks.test.server.process.HyracksVirtualCluster;
@@ -55,46 +58,64 @@
     // Important paths and files for this test.
 
     // The "target" subdirectory of asterix-server. All outputs go here.
-    public static final String TARGET_DIR =
-            StringUtils.join(new String[] { "../asterix-server/target" }, File.separator);
+    public static final String TARGET_DIR = joinPath("..", "asterix-server", "target");
 
     // Directory where the NCs create and store all data, as configured by
     // src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/cc.conf.
-    public static final String INSTANCE_DIR = StringUtils.join(new String[] { TARGET_DIR, "tmp" }, File.separator);
+    public static final String INSTANCE_DIR = joinPath(TARGET_DIR, "tmp");
 
     // The log directory, where all CC, NCService, and NC logs are written. CC and
     // NCService logs are configured on the HyracksVirtualCluster below. NC logs
     // are configured in src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/ncservice*.conf.
-    public static final String LOG_DIR =
-            StringUtils.join(new String[] { TARGET_DIR, "failsafe-reports" }, File.separator);
+    public static final String LOG_DIR = joinPath(TARGET_DIR, "failsafe-reports");
 
     // Directory where *.conf files are located.
-    public static final String CONF_DIR =
-            StringUtils.join(new String[] { TARGET_DIR, "test-classes", "NCServiceExecutionIT" }, File.separator);
+    public static final String CONF_DIR = joinPath(TARGET_DIR, "test-classes", "NCServiceExecutionIT");
 
     // The app.home specified for HyracksVirtualCluster. The NCService expects
     // to find the NC startup script in ${app.home}/bin.
-    public static final String APP_HOME = StringUtils.join(new String[] { TARGET_DIR, "appassembler" }, File.separator);
+    public static final File APP_HOME = new File(TARGET_DIR, "appassembler");
 
     // Path to the asterix-app directory. This is used as the current working
     // directory for the CC and NCService processes, which allows relative file
     // paths in "load" statements in test queries to find the right data. It is
     // also used for HDFSCluster.
-    public static final String ASTERIX_APP_DIR = StringUtils.join(new String[] { "..", "asterix-app" }, File.separator);
+    public static final File ASTERIX_APP_DIR = new File(joinPath("..", "asterix-app"));
 
     // Path to the actual AQL test files, which we borrow from asterix-app. This is
     // passed to TestExecutor.
-    protected static final String TESTS_DIR =
-            StringUtils.join(new String[] { ASTERIX_APP_DIR, "src", "test", "resources", "runtimets" }, File.separator);
+    protected static final File TESTS_DIR =
+            new File(ASTERIX_APP_DIR, joinPath("src", "test", "resources", "runtimets"));
 
     // Path that actual results are written to. We create and clean this directory
     // here, and also pass it to TestExecutor which writes the test output there.
-    public static final String ACTUAL_RESULTS_DIR =
-            StringUtils.join(new String[] { TARGET_DIR, "ittest" }, File.separator);
+    public static final File ACTUAL_RESULTS_DIR = new File(TARGET_DIR, "ittest");
 
     private static final Logger LOGGER = LogManager.getLogger();
     private static boolean startHdfs;
 
+    @AfterClass
+    public static void checkLogFiles() {
+        NCServiceExecutionIT.checkLogFiles(new File(TARGET_DIR, NCServiceExecutionIT.class.getSimpleName()),
+                "asterix_nc1", "asterix_nc2");
+    }
+
+    public static void checkLogFiles(File logsPath, String... ncNames) {
+        LOGGER.info("verifying server log files");
+        Assert.assertTrue("logs dir (" + logsPath + ") missing!", logsPath.exists());
+        List<String> allFiles = new ArrayList<>();
+        Stream.of(ncNames).map(NCServiceExecutionIT::addNcFiles).forEach(allFiles::addAll);
+        allFiles.add("access.log");
+        allFiles.add("cc.log");
+        allFiles.forEach(file -> {
+            Assert.assertTrue(file + " missing!", new File(logsPath, file).exists());
+        });
+    }
+
+    private static List<String> addNcFiles(String ncName) {
+        return Arrays.asList("access-" + ncName + ".log", "nc-" + ncName + ".log", "trace-" + ncName + ".log");
+    }
+
     enum KillCommand {
         CC,
         NC1,
@@ -126,8 +147,7 @@
     public static void setUp(boolean startHdfs) throws Exception {
         NCServiceExecutionIT.startHdfs = startHdfs;
         // Create actual-results output directory.
-        File outDir = new File(ACTUAL_RESULTS_DIR);
-        outDir.mkdirs();
+        ACTUAL_RESULTS_DIR.mkdirs();
 
         // Remove any instance data from previous runs.
         File instanceDir = new File(INSTANCE_DIR);
@@ -136,17 +156,16 @@
         }
 
         if (startHdfs) {
-            // HDFSCluster requires the input directory to end with a file separator.
-            HDFSCluster.getInstance().setup(ASTERIX_APP_DIR + File.separator);
+            HDFSCluster.getInstance().setup(ASTERIX_APP_DIR);
         }
 
-        cluster = new HyracksVirtualCluster(new File(APP_HOME), new File(ASTERIX_APP_DIR));
-        nc1 = cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice1.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "ncservice1.log"));
+        cluster = new HyracksVirtualCluster(APP_HOME, ASTERIX_APP_DIR);
+        nc1 = cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice1.conf"), null);
 
-        nc2 = cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice2.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "ncservice2.log"));
+        nc2 = cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice2.conf"), null);
 
         // Start CC
-        cc = cluster.start(new File(CONF_DIR, "cc.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "asterixcc.out.log"));
+        cc = cluster.start(new File(CONF_DIR, "cc.conf"), null);
 
         testExecutor.waitForClusterActive(30, TimeUnit.SECONDS);
         clusterActive = true;
@@ -154,10 +173,9 @@
 
     @AfterClass
     public static void tearDown() throws Exception {
-        File outdir = new File(ACTUAL_RESULTS_DIR);
-        File[] files = outdir.listFiles();
+        File[] files = ACTUAL_RESULTS_DIR.listFiles();
         if (files == null || files.length == 0) {
-            outdir.delete();
+            ACTUAL_RESULTS_DIR.delete();
         }
         cluster.stop();
         if (startHdfs) {
@@ -176,7 +194,7 @@
         Collection<Object[]> testArgs = new ArrayList<>();
         Random random = getRandom();
         TestCaseContext.Builder b = new TestCaseContext.Builder();
-        for (TestCaseContext ctx : b.build(new File(TESTS_DIR))) {
+        for (TestCaseContext ctx : b.build(TESTS_DIR)) {
             if (!skip(ctx)) {
                 testArgs.add(new Object[] { ctx, ctx, null });
             }
@@ -234,7 +252,7 @@
     @Test
     public void test() throws Exception {
         if (tcCtx != null) {
-            testExecutor.executeTest(ACTUAL_RESULTS_DIR, tcCtx, null, false);
+            testExecutor.executeTest(ACTUAL_RESULTS_DIR.getPath(), tcCtx, null, false);
             testExecutor.cleanup(tcCtx.toString(), badTestCases);
         } else {
             switch (killType) {
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/NcLifecycleIT.java b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/NcLifecycleIT.java
index 4ae9d96..a31e36f 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/NcLifecycleIT.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/NcLifecycleIT.java
@@ -18,11 +18,8 @@
  */
 package org.apache.asterix.test.server;
 
-import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.APP_HOME;
-import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.ASTERIX_APP_DIR;
-import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.INSTANCE_DIR;
-import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.LOG_DIR;
-import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.TARGET_DIR;
+import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.*;
+import static org.apache.hyracks.util.file.FileUtil.joinPath;
 
 import java.io.File;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
@@ -33,12 +30,11 @@
 import org.apache.asterix.test.common.TestExecutor;
 import org.apache.asterix.testframework.context.TestCaseContext;
 import org.apache.commons.io.FileUtils;
-import org.apache.commons.lang3.StringUtils;
 import org.apache.hyracks.test.server.process.HyracksVirtualCluster;
-import org.apache.hyracks.util.file.FileUtil;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.LogManager;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.Logger;
 import org.junit.After;
+import org.junit.AfterClass;
 import org.junit.Before;
 import org.junit.Rule;
 import org.junit.Test;
@@ -49,13 +45,11 @@
 @RunWith(Parameterized.class)
 public class NcLifecycleIT {
 
-    private static final String PATH_BASE =
-            FileUtil.joinPath("src", "test", "resources", "integrationts", "NcLifecycle");
-    private static final String CONF_DIR =
-            StringUtils.join(new String[] { TARGET_DIR, "test-classes", "NcLifecycleIT" }, File.separator);
-    private static final String PATH_ACTUAL = FileUtil.joinPath("target", "ittest");
+    private static final String PATH_BASE = joinPath("src", "test", "resources", "integrationts", "NcLifecycle");
+    private static final String CONF_DIR = joinPath(TARGET_DIR, "test-classes", "NcLifecycleIT");
+    private static final String PATH_ACTUAL = joinPath("target", "ittest");
     private static final Logger LOGGER = LogManager.getLogger();
-    private static String reportPath = new File(FileUtil.joinPath("target", "failsafe-reports")).getAbsolutePath();
+    private static final File reportPath = new File("target", "failsafe-reports");
     private static final TestExecutor testExecutor = new TestExecutor();
     private static HyracksVirtualCluster cluster;
 
@@ -66,7 +60,7 @@
     }
 
     @Rule
-    public TestRule retainLogs = new RetainLogsRule(NCServiceExecutionIT.ASTERIX_APP_DIR, reportPath, this);
+    public TestRule retainLogs = new RetainLogsRule(ASTERIX_APP_DIR, reportPath, this);
 
     @Before
     public void before() throws Exception {
@@ -76,12 +70,12 @@
             FileUtils.deleteDirectory(instanceDir);
         }
 
-        cluster = new HyracksVirtualCluster(new File(APP_HOME), new File(ASTERIX_APP_DIR));
-        cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice1.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "ncservice1.log"));
-        cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice2.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "ncservice2.log"));
+        cluster = new HyracksVirtualCluster(APP_HOME, ASTERIX_APP_DIR);
+        cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice1.conf"), null);
+        cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice2.conf"), null);
 
         // Start CC
-        cluster.start(new File(CONF_DIR, "cc.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "cc.log"));
+        cluster.start(new File(CONF_DIR, "cc.conf"), null);
         LOGGER.info("Instance created.");
         testExecutor.waitForClusterActive(30, TimeUnit.SECONDS);
         LOGGER.info("Instance is in ACTIVE state.");
@@ -94,6 +88,12 @@
         LOGGER.info("Instance destroyed.");
     }
 
+    @AfterClass
+    public static void checkLogFiles() {
+        NCServiceExecutionIT.checkLogFiles(new File(TARGET_DIR, NcLifecycleIT.class.getSimpleName()), "asterix_nc1",
+                "asterix_nc2");
+    }
+
     @Test
     public void test() throws Exception {
         testExecutor.executeTest(PATH_ACTUAL, tcCtx, null, false);
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/RecoveryIT.java b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/RecoveryIT.java
index 9123a5d..214eb5a 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/RecoveryIT.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/RecoveryIT.java
@@ -18,17 +18,19 @@
  */
 package org.apache.asterix.test.server;
 
+import static org.apache.hyracks.util.file.FileUtil.joinPath;
+
 import java.io.File;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
 import java.util.Collection;
 import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Objects;
 
 import org.apache.asterix.test.base.RetainLogsRule;
 import org.apache.asterix.test.common.TestExecutor;
 import org.apache.asterix.test.runtime.HDFSCluster;
 import org.apache.asterix.testframework.context.TestCaseContext;
 import org.apache.commons.io.FileUtils;
-import org.apache.commons.lang3.StringUtils;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.LogManager;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.Logger;
 import org.junit.AfterClass;
@@ -44,9 +46,9 @@
 public class RecoveryIT {
 
     private static final Logger LOGGER = LogManager.getLogger();
-    private static final String PATH_ACTUAL = "target" + File.separator + "rttest" + File.separator;
+    private static final String PATH_ACTUAL = joinPath("target", "rttest");
     private static final String PATH_BASE = "src/test/resources/transactionts/";
-    private static final String HDFS_BASE = "../asterix-app/";
+    private static final File HDFS_BASE = new File("..", "asterix-app");
     private TestCaseContext tcCtx;
     private static File asterixInstallerPath;
     private static File installerTargetPath;
@@ -68,17 +70,17 @@
         File outdir = new File(PATH_ACTUAL);
         outdir.mkdirs();
 
-        File externalTestsJar =
-                new File(StringUtils.join(new String[] { "..", "asterix-external-data", "target" }, File.separator))
-                        .listFiles((dir, name) -> name.matches("asterix-external-data-.*-tests.jar"))[0];
+        File externalTestsJar = Objects.requireNonNull(new File(joinPath("..", "asterix-external-data", "target"))
+                .listFiles((dir, name) -> name.matches("asterix-external-data-.*-tests.jar")))[0];
 
         asterixInstallerPath = new File(System.getProperty("user.dir"));
         installerTargetPath = new File(new File(asterixInstallerPath.getParentFile(), "asterix-server"), "target");
         reportPath = new File(installerTargetPath, "failsafe-reports").getAbsolutePath();
-        ncServiceSubDirName =
-                installerTargetPath.list((dir, name) -> name.matches("asterix-server.*binary-assembly"))[0];
+        ncServiceSubDirName = Objects.requireNonNull(
+                installerTargetPath.list((dir, name) -> name.matches("asterix-server.*binary-assembly")))[0];
         ncServiceSubPath = new File(installerTargetPath, ncServiceSubDirName).getAbsolutePath();
-        ncServiceHomeDirName = new File(ncServiceSubPath).list(((dir, name) -> name.matches("apache-asterixdb.*")))[0];
+        ncServiceHomeDirName = Objects.requireNonNull(
+                new File(ncServiceSubPath).list(((dir, name) -> name.matches("apache-asterixdb.*"))))[0];
         ncServiceHomePath = new File(ncServiceSubPath, ncServiceHomeDirName).getAbsolutePath();
 
         LOGGER.info("NCSERVICE_HOME=" + ncServiceHomePath);
@@ -89,14 +91,12 @@
         env = pb.environment();
         env.put("NCSERVICE_HOME", ncServiceHomePath);
         env.put("JAVA_HOME", System.getProperty("java.home"));
-        scriptHomePath = asterixInstallerPath + File.separator + "src" + File.separator + "test" + File.separator
-                + "resources" + File.separator + "transactionts" + File.separator + "scripts";
+        scriptHomePath =
+                joinPath(asterixInstallerPath.getPath(), "src", "test", "resources", "transactionts", "scripts");
         env.put("SCRIPT_HOME", scriptHomePath);
 
-        TestExecutor.executeScript(pb,
-                scriptHomePath + File.separator + "setup_teardown" + File.separator + "configure_and_validate.sh");
-        TestExecutor.executeScript(pb,
-                scriptHomePath + File.separator + "setup_teardown" + File.separator + "stop_and_delete.sh");
+        TestExecutor.executeScript(pb, joinPath(scriptHomePath, "setup_teardown", "configure_and_validate.sh"));
+        TestExecutor.executeScript(pb, joinPath(scriptHomePath, "setup_teardown", "stop_and_delete.sh"));
         HDFSCluster.getInstance().setup(HDFS_BASE);
     }
 
@@ -104,11 +104,9 @@
     public static void tearDown() throws Exception {
         File outdir = new File(PATH_ACTUAL);
         FileUtils.deleteDirectory(outdir);
-        File dataCopyDir =
-                new File(ncServiceHomePath + File.separator + ".." + File.separator + ".." + File.separator + "data");
+        File dataCopyDir = new File(joinPath(ncServiceHomePath, "..", "..", "data"));
         FileUtils.deleteDirectory(dataCopyDir);
-        TestExecutor.executeScript(pb,
-                scriptHomePath + File.separator + "setup_teardown" + File.separator + "stop_and_delete.sh");
+        TestExecutor.executeScript(pb, joinPath(scriptHomePath, "setup_teardown", "stop_and_delete.sh"));
         HDFSCluster.getInstance().cleanup();
     }
 
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/ReplicationIT.java b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/ReplicationIT.java
index 0f058bc..1de71c4 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/ReplicationIT.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/server/ReplicationIT.java
@@ -18,11 +18,8 @@
  */
 package org.apache.asterix.test.server;
 
-import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.APP_HOME;
-import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.ASTERIX_APP_DIR;
-import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.INSTANCE_DIR;
-import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.LOG_DIR;
-import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.TARGET_DIR;
+import static org.apache.asterix.test.server.NCServiceExecutionIT.*;
+import static org.apache.hyracks.util.file.FileUtil.joinPath;
 
 import java.io.File;
 import java.net.InetAddress;
@@ -37,12 +34,11 @@
 import org.apache.asterix.test.common.TestExecutor;
 import org.apache.asterix.testframework.context.TestCaseContext;
 import org.apache.commons.io.FileUtils;
-import org.apache.commons.lang3.StringUtils;
 import org.apache.hyracks.test.server.process.HyracksVirtualCluster;
-import org.apache.hyracks.util.file.FileUtil;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.LogManager;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.Logger;
 import org.junit.After;
+import org.junit.AfterClass;
 import org.junit.Before;
 import org.junit.Rule;
 import org.junit.Test;
@@ -53,13 +49,11 @@
 @RunWith(Parameterized.class)
 public class ReplicationIT {
 
-    private static final String PATH_BASE =
-            FileUtil.joinPath("src", "test", "resources", "integrationts", "replication");
-    private static final String CONF_DIR =
-            StringUtils.join(new String[] { TARGET_DIR, "test-classes", "ReplicationIT" }, File.separator);
-    private static final String PATH_ACTUAL = FileUtil.joinPath("target", "ittest");
+    private static final String PATH_BASE = joinPath("src", "test", "resources", "integrationts", "replication");
+    private static final String CONF_DIR = joinPath(TARGET_DIR, "test-classes", "ReplicationIT");
+    private static final String PATH_ACTUAL = joinPath("target", "ittest");
     private static final Logger LOGGER = LogManager.getLogger();
-    private static String reportPath = new File(FileUtil.joinPath("target", "failsafe-reports")).getAbsolutePath();
+    private static File reportPath = new File("target", "failsafe-reports");
     private static final TestExecutor testExecutor = new TestExecutor();
     private static HyracksVirtualCluster cluster;
 
@@ -82,7 +76,7 @@
     }
 
     @Rule
-    public TestRule retainLogs = new RetainLogsRule(NCServiceExecutionIT.ASTERIX_APP_DIR, reportPath, this);
+    public TestRule retainLogs = new RetainLogsRule(ASTERIX_APP_DIR, reportPath, this);
 
     @Before
     public void before() throws Exception {
@@ -92,12 +86,12 @@
             FileUtils.deleteDirectory(instanceDir);
         }
 
-        cluster = new HyracksVirtualCluster(new File(APP_HOME), new File(ASTERIX_APP_DIR));
-        cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice1.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "ncservice1.log"));
-        cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice2.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "ncservice2.log"));
+        cluster = new HyracksVirtualCluster(APP_HOME, ASTERIX_APP_DIR);
+        cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice1.conf"), null);
+        cluster.addNCService(new File(CONF_DIR, "ncservice2.conf"), null);
 
         // Start CC
-        cluster.start(new File(CONF_DIR, "cc.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "cc.log"));
+        cluster.start(new File(CONF_DIR, "cc.conf"), null);
         LOGGER.info("Instance created.");
         testExecutor.waitForClusterActive(30, TimeUnit.SECONDS);
         LOGGER.info("Instance is in ACTIVE state.");
@@ -110,6 +104,12 @@
         LOGGER.info("Instance destroyed.");
     }
 
+    @AfterClass
+    public static void checkLogFiles() {
+        NCServiceExecutionIT.checkLogFiles(new File(TARGET_DIR, ReplicationIT.class.getSimpleName()), "asterix_nc1",
+                "asterix_nc2");
+    }
+
     @Test
     public void test() throws Exception {
         testExecutor.executeTest(PATH_ACTUAL, tcCtx, null, false);
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/cc.conf b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/cc.conf
index 2a92c5d..1c6d574 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/cc.conf
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/cc.conf
@@ -46,5 +46,5 @@
 heartbeat.max.misses=25
 
 [common]
-log.dir = ../asterix-server/target/failsafe-reports/
+log.dir = ../asterix-server/target/NCServiceExecutionIT
 log.level = INFO
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/ncservice1.conf b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/ncservice1.conf
index ba10142..e178cfa 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/ncservice1.conf
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/ncservice1.conf
@@ -16,5 +16,4 @@
 ; under the License.
 
 [ncservice]
-logdir=../asterix-server/target/failsafe-reports
-
+logdir=-
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/ncservice2.conf b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/ncservice2.conf
index 2036584..43aecf0 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/ncservice2.conf
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceExecutionIT/ncservice2.conf
@@ -16,6 +16,5 @@
 ; under the License.
 
 [ncservice]
-logdir=../asterix-server/target/failsafe-reports
+logdir=-
 port=9091
-
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/cc.conf b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/cc.conf
index dc80e56..a91622b 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/cc.conf
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/cc.conf
@@ -46,3 +46,4 @@
 
 [common]
 log.level = INFO
+log.dir=../asterix-server/target/NcLifecycleIT
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/ncservice1.conf b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/ncservice1.conf
index ba10142..e178cfa 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/ncservice1.conf
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/ncservice1.conf
@@ -16,5 +16,4 @@
 ; under the License.
 
 [ncservice]
-logdir=../asterix-server/target/failsafe-reports
-
+logdir=-
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/ncservice2.conf b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/ncservice2.conf
index 2036584..43aecf0 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/ncservice2.conf
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/NcLifecycleIT/ncservice2.conf
@@ -16,6 +16,5 @@
 ; under the License.
 
 [ncservice]
-logdir=../asterix-server/target/failsafe-reports
+logdir=-
 port=9091
-
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/cc.conf b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/cc.conf
index 19e951f..b88cbd4 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/cc.conf
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/cc.conf
@@ -47,6 +47,7 @@
 
 [common]
 log.level = INFO
+log.dir=../asterix-server/target/ReplicationIT
 replication.enabled=true
 replication.strategy=all
 replication.factor=2
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/ncservice1.conf b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/ncservice1.conf
index ba10142..e178cfa 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/ncservice1.conf
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/ncservice1.conf
@@ -16,5 +16,4 @@
 ; under the License.
 
 [ncservice]
-logdir=../asterix-server/target/failsafe-reports
-
+logdir=-
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/ncservice2.conf b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/ncservice2.conf
index 2036584..43aecf0 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/ncservice2.conf
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-server/src/test/resources/ReplicationIT/ncservice2.conf
@@ -16,6 +16,5 @@
 ; under the License.
 
 [ncservice]
-logdir=../asterix-server/target/failsafe-reports
+logdir=-
 port=9091
-
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-cc/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/cc/CCLogConfigurationFactory.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-cc/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/cc/CCLogConfigurationFactory.java
index 22dea9f..a635084 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-cc/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/cc/CCLogConfigurationFactory.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-cc/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/cc/CCLogConfigurationFactory.java
@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@
 
 import org.apache.hyracks.control.common.controllers.CCConfig;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.Level;
+import org.apache.logging.log4j.LogManager;
+import org.apache.logging.log4j.Logger;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.core.LoggerContext;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.core.config.Configuration;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.core.config.ConfigurationFactory;
@@ -34,6 +36,7 @@
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.core.config.builder.impl.BuiltConfiguration;
 
 public class CCLogConfigurationFactory extends ConfigurationFactory {
+    private static final Logger LOGGER = LogManager.getLogger();
     private CCConfig config;
 
     public CCLogConfigurationFactory(CCConfig config) {
@@ -42,6 +45,8 @@
 
     public Configuration createConfiguration(ConfigurationBuilder<BuiltConfiguration> builder) {
         File logDir = new File(config.getLogDir());
+        File ccLog = new File(logDir, "cc.log");
+        LOGGER.warn("logs are being redirected to: {}", ccLog::getAbsolutePath);
         builder.setStatusLevel(Level.WARN);
         builder.setConfigurationName("RollingBuilder");
         // create a rolling file appender
@@ -50,10 +55,9 @@
         ComponentBuilder triggeringPolicy = builder.newComponent("Policies")
                 .addComponent(builder.newComponent("CronTriggeringPolicy").addAttribute("schedule", "0 0 0 * * ?"))
                 .addComponent(builder.newComponent("SizeBasedTriggeringPolicy").addAttribute("size", "50M"));
-        AppenderComponentBuilder defaultRoll =
-                builder.newAppender("default", "RollingFile").addAttribute("fileName", new File(logDir, "cc.log"))
-                        .addAttribute("filePattern", new File(logDir, "cc-%d{MM-dd-yy}.log.gz")).add(defaultLayout)
-                        .addComponent(triggeringPolicy);
+        AppenderComponentBuilder defaultRoll = builder.newAppender("default", "RollingFile")
+                .addAttribute("fileName", ccLog).addAttribute("filePattern", new File(logDir, "cc-%d{MM-dd-yy}.log.gz"))
+                .add(defaultLayout).addComponent(triggeringPolicy);
         builder.add(defaultRoll);
 
         // create the new logger
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/common/NodeControllerData.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/common/NodeControllerData.java
index 24a3e57..c37acab 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/common/NodeControllerData.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/common/NodeControllerData.java
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@
 
     private final Map<String, String> systemProperties;
 
-    private final long pid;
+    private final int pid;
 
     private final HeartbeatSchema hbSchema;
 
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/common/controllers/NodeRegistration.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/common/controllers/NodeRegistration.java
index 474bc0a..437b001 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/common/controllers/NodeRegistration.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/common/controllers/NodeRegistration.java
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@
 
     private final NetworkAddress messagingPort;
 
-    private final long pid;
+    private final int pid;
 
     private final NodeCapacity capacity;
 
@@ -190,7 +190,7 @@
         return messagingPort;
     }
 
-    public long getPid() {
+    public int getPid() {
         return pid;
     }
 }
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/main/resources/log4j2.xml b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/resources/log4j2.xml
similarity index 100%
rename from asterixdb/asterix-app/src/main/resources/log4j2.xml
rename to hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/resources/log4j2.xml
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/nc/NCLogConfigurationFactory.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/nc/NCLogConfigurationFactory.java
index a657d6b..fad6b3e 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/nc/NCLogConfigurationFactory.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/control/nc/NCLogConfigurationFactory.java
@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@
 
 import org.apache.hyracks.control.common.controllers.NCConfig;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.Level;
+import org.apache.logging.log4j.LogManager;
+import org.apache.logging.log4j.Logger;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.core.LoggerContext;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.core.config.Configuration;
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.core.config.ConfigurationFactory;
@@ -34,6 +36,7 @@
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.core.config.builder.impl.BuiltConfiguration;
 
 public class NCLogConfigurationFactory extends ConfigurationFactory {
+    private static final Logger LOGGER = LogManager.getLogger();
     private NCConfig config;
 
     public NCLogConfigurationFactory(NCConfig config) {
@@ -43,6 +46,8 @@
     public Configuration createConfiguration(ConfigurationBuilder<BuiltConfiguration> builder) {
         String nodeId = config.getNodeId();
         File logDir = new File(config.getLogDir());
+        File ncLog = new File(logDir, "nc-" + nodeId + ".log");
+        LOGGER.warn("logs are being redirected to: {}", ncLog::getAbsolutePath);
         builder.setStatusLevel(Level.WARN);
         builder.setConfigurationName("RollingBuilder");
         // create a rolling file appender
@@ -51,11 +56,11 @@
         ComponentBuilder triggeringPolicy = builder.newComponent("Policies")
                 .addComponent(builder.newComponent("CronTriggeringPolicy").addAttribute("schedule", "0 0 0 * * ?"))
                 .addComponent(builder.newComponent("SizeBasedTriggeringPolicy").addAttribute("size", "50M"));
-        AppenderComponentBuilder defaultRoll = builder.newAppender("default", "RollingFile")
-                .addAttribute("fileName", new File(logDir, "nc-" + nodeId + ".log").getAbsolutePath())
-                .addAttribute("filePattern",
-                        new File(logDir, "nc-" + nodeId + "-%d{MM-dd-yy-ss}.log.gz").getAbsolutePath())
-                .add(defaultLayout).addComponent(triggeringPolicy);
+        AppenderComponentBuilder defaultRoll =
+                builder.newAppender("default", "RollingFile").addAttribute("fileName", ncLog.getAbsolutePath())
+                        .addAttribute("filePattern",
+                                new File(logDir, "nc-" + nodeId + "-%d{MM-dd-yy-ss}.log.gz").getAbsolutePath())
+                        .add(defaultLayout).addComponent(triggeringPolicy);
         builder.add(defaultRoll);
 
         // create the new logger
@@ -74,9 +79,9 @@
         LayoutComponentBuilder traceLayout = builder.newLayout("PatternLayout").addAttribute("pattern", "%m,%n")
                 .addAttribute("header", "[").addAttribute("footer", "]");
         AppenderComponentBuilder traceRoll = builder.newAppender("trace", "RollingFile")
-                .addAttribute("fileName", logDir + "trace-" + nodeId + ".log")
-                .addAttribute("filePattern", logDir + "trace-" + nodeId + "-%d{MM-dd-yy-ss}.log.gz").add(traceLayout)
-                .addComponent(triggeringPolicy);
+                .addAttribute("fileName", new File(logDir, "trace-" + nodeId + ".log"))
+                .addAttribute("filePattern", new File(logDir, "trace-" + nodeId + "-%d{MM-dd-yy-ss}.log.gz"))
+                .add(traceLayout).addComponent(triggeringPolicy);
         builder.add(traceRoll);
         builder.add(builder.newLogger("org.apache.hyracks.util.trace.Tracer.Traces", Level.forName("TRACER", 570))
                 .add(builder.newAppenderRef("trace")).addAttribute("additivity", false));
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-http/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/http/server/HttpServer.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-http/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/http/server/HttpServer.java
index 94a6440..152f6c7 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-http/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/http/server/HttpServer.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-http/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/http/server/HttpServer.java
@@ -50,8 +50,6 @@
 import io.netty.handler.codec.http.FullHttpRequest;
 import io.netty.handler.logging.LogLevel;
 import io.netty.handler.logging.LoggingHandler;
-import io.netty.util.internal.logging.InternalLoggerFactory;
-import io.netty.util.internal.logging.Log4J2LoggerFactory;
 
 public class HttpServer {
     // Constants
@@ -84,10 +82,6 @@
     private Throwable cause;
     private HttpServerConfig config;
 
-    static {
-        InternalLoggerFactory.setDefaultFactory(Log4J2LoggerFactory.INSTANCE);
-    }
-
     public HttpServer(EventLoopGroup bossGroup, EventLoopGroup workerGroup, int port, HttpServerConfig config) {
         this(bossGroup, workerGroup, new InetSocketAddress(port), config, null);
     }
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-http/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/http/server/WebManager.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-http/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/http/server/WebManager.java
index 55741e4..b8347ae 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-http/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/http/server/WebManager.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-http/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/http/server/WebManager.java
@@ -24,12 +24,18 @@
 
 import io.netty.channel.EventLoopGroup;
 import io.netty.channel.nio.NioEventLoopGroup;
+import io.netty.util.internal.logging.Log4J2LoggerFactory;
 
 public class WebManager {
     private final List<HttpServer> servers;
     private final EventLoopGroup bosses;
     private final EventLoopGroup workers;
 
+    static {
+        // bootstrap netty with log4j2 logging
+        io.netty.util.internal.logging.InternalLoggerFactory.setDefaultFactory(Log4J2LoggerFactory.INSTANCE);
+    }
+
     /**
      * Create a web manager with number of bosses = 1
      * and number of workers = MultithreadEventLoopGroup.DEFAULT_EVENT_LOOP_THREADS
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/pom.xml b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/pom.xml
index 7e566d6..6c5639f 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/pom.xml
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/pom.xml
@@ -185,9 +185,5 @@
       <groupId>org.apache.logging.log4j</groupId>
       <artifactId>log4j-api</artifactId>
     </dependency>
-    <dependency>
-      <groupId>commons-io</groupId>
-      <artifactId>commons-io</artifactId>
-    </dependency>
   </dependencies>
 </project>
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/NCServiceIT.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/NCServiceIT.java
index 5cbc5b4..cd0359f 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/NCServiceIT.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/NCServiceIT.java
@@ -21,11 +21,8 @@
 import java.io.File;
 import java.io.IOException;
 import java.net.InetAddress;
-import java.nio.file.Files;
-import java.nio.file.StandardOpenOption;
 import java.util.Iterator;
 
-import org.apache.commons.io.FileUtils;
 import org.apache.http.HttpResponse;
 import org.apache.http.HttpStatus;
 import org.apache.http.client.HttpClient;
@@ -58,13 +55,9 @@
     @BeforeClass
     public static void setUp() throws Exception {
         cluster = new HyracksVirtualCluster(new File(APP_HOME), null);
-        File tempConf = new File(TARGET_DIR, "cc.conf");
-        FileUtils.copyFile(new File(RESOURCE_DIR, "cc.conf"), tempConf);
-        Files.write(tempConf.toPath(), ("log.dir: " + LOG_DIR).getBytes(), StandardOpenOption.APPEND);
-        File log4jPath = new File(FileUtil.joinPath("..", "..", "src", "test", "resources", "log4j2-hyracks-test.xml"));
 
-        cluster.addNCService(new File(RESOURCE_DIR, "nc-red.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "nc-red.log"), log4jPath);
-        cluster.addNCService(new File(RESOURCE_DIR, "nc-blue.conf"), new File(LOG_DIR, "nc-blue.log"), log4jPath);
+        cluster.addNCService(new File(RESOURCE_DIR, "nc-red.conf"), null);
+        cluster.addNCService(new File(RESOURCE_DIR, "nc-blue.conf"), null);
 
         try {
             Thread.sleep(2000);
@@ -72,7 +65,7 @@
         }
 
         // Start CC
-        cluster.start(tempConf, new File(LOG_DIR, "cc.log"), log4jPath);
+        cluster.start(new File(RESOURCE_DIR, "cc.conf"), null);
 
         try {
             Thread.sleep(10000);
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksCCProcess.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksCCProcess.java
index a79d033..0b529fb 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksCCProcess.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksCCProcess.java
@@ -25,18 +25,14 @@
 
 public class HyracksCCProcess extends HyracksServerProcess {
 
-    public HyracksCCProcess(File configFile, File logFile, File appHome, File workingDir) {
+    HyracksCCProcess(File configFile, File logFile, File appHome, File workingDir) {
+        super(" cc");
         this.configFile = configFile;
         this.logFile = logFile;
         this.appHome = appHome;
         this.workingDir = workingDir;
     }
 
-    public HyracksCCProcess(File configFile, File logFile, File appHome, File workingDir, File log4jPath) {
-        this(configFile, logFile, appHome, workingDir);
-        args.add("-Dlog4j.configurationFile=file://" + log4jPath.getAbsolutePath());
-    }
-
     @Override
     protected String getMainClassName() {
         return CCDriver.class.getName();
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksNCServiceProcess.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksNCServiceProcess.java
index d0e0244..958eb9a 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksNCServiceProcess.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksNCServiceProcess.java
@@ -20,23 +20,21 @@
 
 import java.io.File;
 import java.util.List;
+import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicInteger;
 
 import org.apache.hyracks.control.nc.service.NCService;
 
 public class HyracksNCServiceProcess extends HyracksServerProcess {
+    private static final AtomicInteger ncServiceCounter = new AtomicInteger();
 
-    public HyracksNCServiceProcess(File configFile, File logFile, File appHome, File workingDir) {
+    HyracksNCServiceProcess(File configFile, File logFile, File appHome, File workingDir) {
+        super("nc" + ncServiceCounter.incrementAndGet());
         this.configFile = configFile;
         this.logFile = logFile;
         this.appHome = appHome;
         this.workingDir = workingDir;
     }
 
-    public HyracksNCServiceProcess(File configFile, File logFile, File appHome, File workingDir, File log4jPath) {
-        this(configFile, logFile, appHome, workingDir);
-        args.add("-Dlog4j.configurationFile=file://" + log4jPath.getAbsolutePath());
-    }
-
     @Override
     protected String getMainClassName() {
         return NCService.class.getName();
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksServerProcess.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksServerProcess.java
index a8c363b..59ab4f7 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksServerProcess.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksServerProcess.java
@@ -18,9 +18,12 @@
  */
 package org.apache.hyracks.test.server.process;
 
+import java.io.BufferedReader;
 import java.io.File;
 import java.io.FileWriter;
 import java.io.IOException;
+import java.io.InputStreamReader;
+import java.nio.charset.StandardCharsets;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
 import java.util.Arrays;
 import java.util.List;
@@ -32,14 +35,21 @@
 abstract class HyracksServerProcess {
     private static final Logger LOGGER = LogManager.getLogger();
 
+    protected final String processName;
     protected Process process;
+    protected Thread pipeThread;
     protected File configFile = null;
     protected File logFile = null;
     protected File appHome = null;
     protected File workingDir = null;
     protected List<String> args = new ArrayList<>();
 
+    protected HyracksServerProcess(String processName) {
+        this.processName = processName;
+    }
+
     public void start() throws IOException {
+
         String[] cmd = buildCommand();
         if (LOGGER.isInfoEnabled()) {
             LOGGER.info("Starting command: " + Arrays.toString(cmd));
@@ -47,34 +57,45 @@
 
         ProcessBuilder pb = new ProcessBuilder(cmd);
         pb.redirectErrorStream(true);
+        pb.directory(workingDir);
         if (logFile != null) {
-            if (LOGGER.isInfoEnabled()) {
-                LOGGER.info("Logging to: " + logFile.getCanonicalPath());
-            }
+            LOGGER.info("Logging to: " + logFile.getCanonicalPath());
             logFile.getParentFile().mkdirs();
             try (FileWriter writer = new FileWriter(logFile, true)) {
                 writer.write("---------------------\n");
             }
             pb.redirectOutput(ProcessBuilder.Redirect.appendTo(logFile));
+            process = pb.start();
         } else {
-            if (LOGGER.isInfoEnabled()) {
-                LOGGER.info("Logfile not set, subprocess will output to stdout");
-            }
+            pb.redirectOutput(ProcessBuilder.Redirect.PIPE);
+            process = pb.start();
+            pipeThread = new Thread(() -> {
+                try (BufferedReader reader =
+                        new BufferedReader(new InputStreamReader(process.getInputStream(), StandardCharsets.UTF_8))) {
+                    String line;
+                    while ((line = reader.readLine()) != null) {
+                        System.out.println(processName + ": " + line);
+                    }
+                } catch (IOException e) {
+                    LOGGER.debug("exception reading process pipe", e);
+                }
+            });
+            pipeThread.start();
         }
-        pb.directory(workingDir);
-        process = pb.start();
     }
 
     public void stop() {
         process.destroy();
         try {
             boolean success = process.waitFor(30, TimeUnit.SECONDS);
-            if (LOGGER.isWarnEnabled()) {
-                LOGGER.warn("Killing unresponsive NC Process");
-            }
             if (!success) {
+                LOGGER.warn("Killing unresponsive NC Process");
                 process.destroyForcibly();
             }
+            if (pipeThread != null) {
+                pipeThread.interrupt();
+                pipeThread.join();
+            }
         } catch (InterruptedException e) {
             Thread.currentThread().interrupt();
         }
@@ -106,7 +127,7 @@
             cList.add(configFile.getAbsolutePath());
         }
         addCmdLineArgs(cList);
-        return cList.toArray(new String[cList.size()]);
+        return cList.toArray(new String[0]);
     }
 
     protected void addJvmArgs(List<String> cList) {
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksVirtualCluster.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksVirtualCluster.java
index 6c77628..062d429 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksVirtualCluster.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/java/org/apache/hyracks/test/server/process/HyracksVirtualCluster.java
@@ -65,22 +65,6 @@
     }
 
     /**
-     * Creates and starts an NCService.
-     *
-     * @param configFile
-     *            - full path to an ncservice.conf. May be null to accept all defaults.
-     * @throws IOException
-     *             - if there are errors starting the process.
-     */
-    public HyracksNCServiceProcess addNCService(File configFile, File logFile, File log4jConfig) throws IOException {
-        HyracksNCServiceProcess proc =
-                new HyracksNCServiceProcess(configFile, logFile, appHome, workingDir, log4jConfig);
-        proc.start();
-        ncProcs.add(proc);
-        return proc;
-    }
-
-    /**
      * Starts the CC, initializing the cluster. Expects that any NCs referenced
      * in the cluster configuration have already been started with addNCService().
      *
@@ -97,22 +81,6 @@
     }
 
     /**
-     * Starts the CC, initializing the cluster. Expects that any NCs referenced
-     * in the cluster configuration have already been started with addNCService().
-     *
-     * @param ccConfigFile
-     *            - full path to a cluster conf file. May be null to accept all
-     *            defaults, although this is seldom useful since there are no NCs.
-     * @throws IOException
-     *             - if there are errors starting the process.
-     */
-    public HyracksCCProcess start(File ccConfigFile, File logFile, File log4jConfig) throws IOException {
-        ccProc = new HyracksCCProcess(ccConfigFile, logFile, appHome, workingDir, log4jConfig);
-        ccProc.start();
-        return ccProc;
-    }
-
-    /**
      * Stops all processes in the cluster.
      * QQQ Someday this should probably do a graceful stop of NCs rather than
      * killing the NCService.
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/cc.conf b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/cc.conf
index 9c80c7d..9b1a1cd 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/cc.conf
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/cc.conf
@@ -30,3 +30,4 @@
 console.listen.port = 12345
 
 [common]
+log.dir=target/NCServiceIT
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/nc-blue.conf b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/nc-blue.conf
index 6eb38dd..baccd46 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/nc-blue.conf
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/nc-blue.conf
@@ -18,3 +18,4 @@
 [ncservice]
 address=127.0.0.1
 port=9091
+logdir=-
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/nc-red.conf b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/nc-red.conf
index 286bd32..7616b37 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/nc-red.conf
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-server/src/test/resources/NCServiceIT/nc-red.conf
@@ -18,3 +18,4 @@
 [ncservice]
 address=127.0.0.1
 port=9090
+logdir=-
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/PidHelper.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/PidHelper.java
index 46e77e3..5a8edbd 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/PidHelper.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/PidHelper.java
@@ -21,7 +21,6 @@
 import java.lang.management.ManagementFactory;
 import java.lang.management.RuntimeMXBean;
 import java.lang.reflect.Field;
-import java.lang.reflect.InvocationTargetException;
 import java.lang.reflect.Method;
 
 import org.apache.logging.log4j.Level;
@@ -35,20 +34,11 @@
     private PidHelper() {
     }
 
-    public static long getPid() {
+    public static int getPid() {
         return getPid(ManagementFactory.getRuntimeMXBean());
     }
 
-    public static long getPid(RuntimeMXBean runtimeMXBean) {
-        // TODO: replace with direct invoke of getPid() once compatibility is at JDK 10 or higher
-        try {
-            Method getPidMethod = runtimeMXBean.getClass().getMethod("getPid");
-            return (Long) getPidMethod.invoke(runtimeMXBean);
-        } catch (NoSuchMethodException e) {
-            LOGGER.debug("ignoring exception trying to find getPid() (expected pre-JDK 10)", e);
-        } catch (IllegalAccessException | InvocationTargetException e) {
-            LOGGER.debug("ignoring exception trying to execute getPid()", e);
-        }
+    public static int getPid(RuntimeMXBean runtimeMXBean) {
         try {
             Field jvmField = runtimeMXBean.getClass().getDeclaredField("jvm");
             jvmField.setAccessible(true);
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/trace/Event.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/trace/Event.java
index b744198..b5fe3d3 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/trace/Event.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/trace/Event.java
@@ -28,14 +28,14 @@
     public final long cat;
     public final ITracer.Phase ph;
     public final long ts;
-    public final long pid;
+    public final int pid;
     public final long tid;
     public final ITracer.Scope scope;
     public final String args;
     public final TraceCategoryRegistry registry;
 
-    private Event(String name, long cat, ITracer.Phase ph, long ts, long pid, long tid, ITracer.Scope scope,
-            String args, TraceCategoryRegistry registry) {
+    private Event(String name, long cat, ITracer.Phase ph, long ts, int pid, long tid, ITracer.Scope scope, String args,
+            TraceCategoryRegistry registry) {
         this.name = name;
         this.cat = cat;
         this.ph = ph;
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@
         return (System.nanoTime() - NANOTIME_DELTA_TO_EPOCH) / 1000;
     }
 
-    public static Event create(String name, long cat, ITracer.Phase ph, long pid, long tid, ITracer.Scope scope,
+    public static Event create(String name, long cat, ITracer.Phase ph, int pid, long tid, ITracer.Scope scope,
             String args, TraceCategoryRegistry registry) {
         return new Event(name, cat, ph, timestamp(), pid, tid, scope, args, registry);
     }
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/trace/Tracer.java b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/trace/Tracer.java
index c1c38cf..9019fdf 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/trace/Tracer.java
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/hyracks/hyracks-util/src/main/java/org/apache/hyracks/util/trace/Tracer.java
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@
     private long categories;
     private final TraceCategoryRegistry registry;
 
-    private static final long pid = PidHelper.getPid();
+    private static final int pid = PidHelper.getPid();
 
     public Tracer(String name, long categories, TraceCategoryRegistry registry) {
         final String traceLoggerName = Tracer.class.getName() + ".Traces." + name;