Configuration files are used to manage StreamBase Servers and processes. Where StreamBase functions with predefined parameters, a configuration file is optional: that is, if StreamBase detects one, it uses it to override or add to the default parameters. In other cases, a configuration file is required, not optional.
The StreamBase configuration files are XML files whose structure is internally validated (there is no schema or DTD). The reference documents linked to here describe the structure of each configuration file. In addition, the configuration files themselves are documented with commented descriptions.