diff --git a/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/ClusterFormationTasks.groovy b/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/ClusterFormationTasks.groovy
index d14ae498fe7f..90c839720fb7 100644
--- a/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/ClusterFormationTasks.groovy
+++ b/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/ClusterFormationTasks.groovy
@@ -326,7 +326,7 @@ class ClusterFormationTasks {
             if (unicastTransportUri != null) {
                 esConfig['discovery.zen.ping.unicast.hosts'] = "\"${unicastTransportUri}\""
             }
-            File configFile = new File(node.confDir, 'elasticsearch.yml')
+            File configFile = new File(node.pathConf, 'elasticsearch.yml')
             logger.info("Configuring ${configFile}")
             configFile.setText(esConfig.collect { key, value -> "${key}: ${value}" }.join('\n'), 'UTF-8')
         }
diff --git a/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/NodeInfo.groovy b/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/NodeInfo.groovy
index 522d1fa96c09..9aadc5cf4a44 100644
--- a/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/NodeInfo.groovy
+++ b/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/NodeInfo.groovy
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ class NodeInfo {
     File homeDir
 
     /** config directory */
-    File confDir
+    File pathConf
 
     /** data directory (as an Object, to allow lazy evaluation) */
     Object dataDir
@@ -110,13 +110,13 @@ class NodeInfo {
         pidFile = new File(baseDir, 'es.pid')
         this.nodeVersion = nodeVersion
         homeDir = homeDir(baseDir, config.distribution, nodeVersion)
-        confDir = confDir(baseDir, config.distribution, nodeVersion)
+        pathConf = pathConf(baseDir, config.distribution, nodeVersion)
         if (config.dataDir != null) {
             dataDir = "${config.dataDir(nodeNum)}"
         } else {
             dataDir = new File(homeDir, "data")
         }
-        configFile = new File(confDir, 'elasticsearch.yml')
+        configFile = new File(pathConf, 'elasticsearch.yml')
         // even for rpm/deb, the logs are under home because we dont start with real services
         File logsDir = new File(homeDir, 'logs')
         httpPortsFile = new File(logsDir, 'http.ports')
@@ -158,9 +158,9 @@ class NodeInfo {
                 args.add("${property.key.substring('tests.es.'.size())}=${property.value}")
             }
         }
-        env.put('CONF_DIR', confDir)
+        env.put('ES_PATH_CONF', pathConf)
         if (Version.fromString(nodeVersion).major == 5) {
-            args.addAll("-E", "path.conf=${confDir}")
+            args.addAll("-E", "path.conf=${pathConf}")
         }
         if (!System.properties.containsKey("tests.es.path.data")) {
             args.addAll("-E", "path.data=${-> dataDir.toString()}")
@@ -240,7 +240,7 @@ class NodeInfo {
         return new File(baseDir, path)
     }
 
-    static File confDir(File baseDir, String distro, String nodeVersion) {
+    static File pathConf(File baseDir, String distro, String nodeVersion) {
         switch (distro) {
             case 'integ-test-zip':
             case 'zip':
diff --git a/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/RestIntegTestTask.groovy b/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/RestIntegTestTask.groovy
index 6494e500f33a..dbfa1cdf9355 100644
--- a/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/RestIntegTestTask.groovy
+++ b/buildSrc/src/main/groovy/org/elasticsearch/gradle/test/RestIntegTestTask.groovy
@@ -24,7 +24,6 @@ import org.gradle.api.DefaultTask
 import org.gradle.api.Task
 import org.gradle.api.execution.TaskExecutionAdapter
 import org.gradle.api.internal.tasks.options.Option
-import org.gradle.api.plugins.JavaBasePlugin
 import org.gradle.api.tasks.Input
 import org.gradle.api.tasks.TaskState
 
@@ -68,7 +67,7 @@ public class RestIntegTestTask extends DefaultTask {
         // we pass all nodes to the rest cluster to allow the clients to round-robin between them
         // this is more realistic than just talking to a single node
         runner.systemProperty('tests.rest.cluster', "${-> nodes.collect{it.httpUri()}.join(",")}")
-        runner.systemProperty('tests.config.dir', "${-> nodes[0].confDir}")
+        runner.systemProperty('tests.config.dir', "${-> nodes[0].pathConf}")
         // TODO: our "client" qa tests currently use the rest-test plugin. instead they should have their own plugin
         // that sets up the test cluster and passes this transport uri instead of http uri. Until then, we pass
         // both as separate sysprops
diff --git a/distribution/build.gradle b/distribution/build.gradle
index 0e2254088e53..3522becc53ec 100644
--- a/distribution/build.gradle
+++ b/distribution/build.gradle
@@ -521,12 +521,12 @@ Map<String, String> expansionsForDistribution(distributionType) {
       'rpm': '/etc/sysconfig/elasticsearch',
       /* There isn't one of these files for tar or zip but its important to
         make an empty string here so the script can properly skip it. */
-      'def': 'if [ -z "$CONF_DIR" ]; then CONF_DIR="$ES_HOME"/config; done',
+      'def': 'if [ -z "$ES_PATH_CONF" ]; then ES_PATH_CONF="$ES_HOME"/config; done',
     ],
     'source.path.env': [
        'deb': 'if [ -f /etc/default/elasticsearch ]; then source /etc/default/elasticsearch; fi',
        'rpm': 'if [ -f /etc/sysconfig/elasticsearch ]; then source /etc/sysconfig/elasticsearch; fi',
-       'def': 'if [ -z "$CONF_DIR" ]; then CONF_DIR="$ES_HOME"/config; fi',
+       'def': 'if [ -z "$ES_PATH_CONF" ]; then ES_PATH_CONF="$ES_HOME"/config; fi',
     ],
     'path.logs': [
       'deb': packagingPathLogs,
diff --git a/distribution/deb/src/main/packaging/init.d/elasticsearch b/distribution/deb/src/main/packaging/init.d/elasticsearch
index f1de5dc21bf5..6d3efd99ca6f 100755
--- a/distribution/deb/src/main/packaging/init.d/elasticsearch
+++ b/distribution/deb/src/main/packaging/init.d/elasticsearch
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ MAX_OPEN_FILES=65536
 #MAX_LOCKED_MEMORY=
 
 # Elasticsearch configuration directory
-CONF_DIR=/etc/$NAME
+ES_PATH_CONF=/etc/$NAME
 
 # Maximum number of VMA (Virtual Memory Areas) a process can own
 MAX_MAP_COUNT=262144
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ DAEMON_OPTS="-d -p $PID_FILE"
 
 export ES_JAVA_OPTS
 export JAVA_HOME
-export CONF_DIR
+export ES_PATH_CONF
 
 if [ ! -x "$DAEMON" ]; then
 	echo "The elasticsearch startup script does not exists or it is not executable, tried: $DAEMON"
diff --git a/distribution/rpm/src/main/packaging/init.d/elasticsearch b/distribution/rpm/src/main/packaging/init.d/elasticsearch
index 55e5e422e9c8..01dc4e691c07 100644
--- a/distribution/rpm/src/main/packaging/init.d/elasticsearch
+++ b/distribution/rpm/src/main/packaging/init.d/elasticsearch
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ fi
 ES_HOME="/usr/share/elasticsearch"
 MAX_OPEN_FILES=65536
 MAX_MAP_COUNT=262144
-CONF_DIR="${path.conf}"
+ES_PATH_CONF="${path.conf}"
 
 PID_DIR="/var/run/elasticsearch"
 
@@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ pidfile="$PID_DIR/${prog}.pid"
 
 export ES_JAVA_OPTS
 export JAVA_HOME
-export CONF_DIR
+export ES_PATH_CONF
 export ES_STARTUP_SLEEP_TIME
 
 lockfile=/var/lock/subsys/$prog
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/packaging/env/elasticsearch b/distribution/src/main/packaging/env/elasticsearch
index c0f72dcb9f81..1c4095351379 100644
--- a/distribution/src/main/packaging/env/elasticsearch
+++ b/distribution/src/main/packaging/env/elasticsearch
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@
 #JAVA_HOME=
 
 # Elasticsearch configuration directory
-CONF_DIR=${path.conf}
+ES_PATH_CONF=${path.conf}
 
 # Elasticsearch PID directory
 #PID_DIR=/var/run/elasticsearch
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/packaging/scripts/postrm b/distribution/src/main/packaging/scripts/postrm
index b86901e2e258..48896109cb9f 100644
--- a/distribution/src/main/packaging/scripts/postrm
+++ b/distribution/src/main/packaging/scripts/postrm
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ LOG_DIR="/var/log/elasticsearch"
 PLUGINS_DIR="/usr/share/elasticsearch/plugins"
 PID_DIR="/var/run/elasticsearch"
 DATA_DIR="/var/lib/elasticsearch"
-CONF_DIR="/etc/elasticsearch"
+ES_PATH_CONF="/etc/elasticsearch"
 
 # Source the default env file
 if [ "$SOURCE_ENV_FILE" = "true" ]; then
@@ -86,8 +86,8 @@ if [ "$REMOVE_DIRS" = "true" ]; then
     fi
 
     # delete the conf directory if and only if empty
-    if [ -d "$CONF_DIR" ]; then
-        rmdir --ignore-fail-on-non-empty "$CONF_DIR"
+    if [ -d "$ES_PATH_CONF" ]; then
+        rmdir --ignore-fail-on-non-empty "$ES_PATH_CONF"
     fi
 
 fi
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/packaging/systemd/elasticsearch.service b/distribution/src/main/packaging/systemd/elasticsearch.service
index e33e6c871c5f..b52f97d875fc 100644
--- a/distribution/src/main/packaging/systemd/elasticsearch.service
+++ b/distribution/src/main/packaging/systemd/elasticsearch.service
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ After=network-online.target
 
 [Service]
 Environment=ES_HOME=/usr/share/elasticsearch
-Environment=CONF_DIR=${path.conf}
+Environment=ES_PATH_CONF=${path.conf}
 Environment=PID_DIR=/var/run/elasticsearch
 EnvironmentFile=-${path.env}
 
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch
index d0c06be0adc8..6602a9aa7ee3 100755
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
 # This script relies on a few environment variables to determine startup
 # behavior, those variables are:
 #
-#   CONF_DIR -- Path to config directory
+#   ES_PATH_CONF -- Path to config directory
 #   ES_JAVA_OPTS -- External Java Opts on top of the defaults set
 #
 # Optionally, exact memory values can be set using the `ES_JAVA_OPTS`. Note that
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ parse_jvm_options() {
   fi
 }
 
-ES_JVM_OPTIONS="$CONF_DIR"/jvm.options
+ES_JVM_OPTIONS="$ES_PATH_CONF"/jvm.options
 
 ES_JAVA_OPTS="`parse_jvm_options "$ES_JVM_OPTIONS"` $ES_JAVA_OPTS"
 
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ if ! echo $* | grep -E '(^-d |-d$| -d |--daemonize$|--daemonize )' > /dev/null;
     "$JAVA" \
     $ES_JAVA_OPTS \
     -Des.path.home="$ES_HOME" \
-    -Des.path.conf="$CONF_DIR" \
+    -Des.path.conf="$ES_PATH_CONF" \
     -cp "$ES_CLASSPATH" \
     org.elasticsearch.bootstrap.Elasticsearch \
     "$@"
@@ -41,7 +41,7 @@ else
     "$JAVA" \
     $ES_JAVA_OPTS \
     -Des.path.home="$ES_HOME" \
-    -Des.path.conf="$CONF_DIR" \
+    -Des.path.conf="$ES_PATH_CONF" \
     -cp "$ES_CLASSPATH" \
     org.elasticsearch.bootstrap.Elasticsearch \
     "$@" \
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-env b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-env
index c72d26970e94..83737ae12534 100644
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-env
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-env
@@ -67,7 +67,7 @@ fi
 
 ${source.path.env}
 
-if [ -z "$CONF_DIR" ]; then
-  echo "CONF_DIR must be set to the configuration path"
+if [ -z "$ES_PATH_CONF" ]; then
+  echo "ES_PATH_CONF must be set to the configuration path"
   exit 1
 fi
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-env.bat b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-env.bat
index 8e2f1c3528b1..7f3c9f99f037 100644
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-env.bat
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-env.bat
@@ -44,6 +44,6 @@ if not "%JAVA_OPTS%" == "" (
 rem check the Java version
 %JAVA% -cp "%ES_CLASSPATH%" "org.elasticsearch.tools.JavaVersionChecker" || exit /b 1
 
-if "%CONF_DIR%" == "" (
-  set CONF_DIR=!ES_HOME!\config
+if "%ES_PATH_CONF%" == "" (
+  set ES_PATH_CONF=!ES_HOME!\config
 )
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-keystore b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-keystore
index 61d7bb8e5d42..8797e7c07a61 100755
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-keystore
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-keystore
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ exec \
   "$JAVA" \
   $ES_JAVA_OPTS \
   -Des.path.home="$ES_HOME" \
-  -Des.path.conf="$CONF_DIR" \
+  -Des.path.conf="$ES_PATH_CONF" \
   -cp "$ES_CLASSPATH" \
   org.elasticsearch.common.settings.KeyStoreCli \
   "$@"
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-keystore.bat b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-keystore.bat
index cea6838d6cee..f12ffd60092d 100644
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-keystore.bat
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-keystore.bat
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ call "%~dp0elasticsearch-env.bat" || exit /b 1
 %JAVA% ^
   %ES_JAVA_OPTS% ^
   -Des.path.home="%ES_HOME%" ^
-  -Des.path.conf="%CONF_DIR%" ^
+  -Des.path.conf="%ES_PATH_CONF%" ^
   -cp "%ES_CLASSPATH%" ^
   org.elasticsearch.common.settings.KeyStoreCli ^
   %*
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-plugin b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-plugin
index 4b48964f97d1..a2e228d490af 100755
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-plugin
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-plugin
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ exec \
   "$JAVA" \
   $ES_JAVA_OPTS \
   -Des.path.home="$ES_HOME" \
-  -Des.path.conf="$CONF_DIR" \
+  -Des.path.conf="$ES_PATH_CONF" \
   -cp "$ES_CLASSPATH" \
   org.elasticsearch.plugins.PluginCli \
   "$@"
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-plugin.bat b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-plugin.bat
index 4efbdfc69416..95de9c1c4178 100644
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-plugin.bat
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-plugin.bat
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ call "%~dp0elasticsearch-env.bat" || exit /b 1
 %JAVA% ^
   %ES_JAVA_OPTS% ^
   -Des.path.home="%ES_HOME%" ^
-  -Des.path.conf="%CONF_DIR%" ^
+  -Des.path.conf="%ES_PATH_CONF%" ^
   -cp "%ES_CLASSPATH%" ^
   org.elasticsearch.plugins.PluginCli ^
   %*
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-service.bat b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-service.bat
index bb986d4e663a..b1270ec02983 100644
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-service.bat
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-service.bat
@@ -97,7 +97,7 @@ if exist "%JAVA_HOME%\bin\server\jvm.dll" (
 )
 
 :foundJVM
-set ES_JVM_OPTIONS=%CONF_DIR%\jvm.options
+set ES_JVM_OPTIONS=%ES_PATH_CONF%\jvm.options
 
 if not "%ES_JAVA_OPTS%" == "" set ES_JAVA_OPTS=%ES_JAVA_OPTS: =;%
 
@@ -174,7 +174,7 @@ if "%JVM_SS%" == "" (
   goto:eof
 )
 
-set ES_PARAMS=-Delasticsearch;-Des.path.home="%ES_HOME%";-Des.path.conf="%CONF_DIR%"
+set ES_PARAMS=-Delasticsearch;-Des.path.home="%ES_HOME%";-Des.path.conf="%ES_PATH_CONF%"
 
 if "%ES_START_TYPE%" == "" set ES_START_TYPE=manual
 if "%ES_STOP_TIMEOUT%" == "" set ES_STOP_TIMEOUT=0
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-translog b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-translog
index 4326bab8683f..dcb52c29ea38 100755
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-translog
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-translog
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ exec \
   "$JAVA" \
   $ES_JAVA_OPTS \
   -Des.path.home="$ES_HOME" \
-  -Des.path.conf="$CONF_DIR" \
+  -Des.path.conf="$ES_PATH_CONF" \
   -cp "$ES_CLASSPATH" \
   org.elasticsearch.index.translog.TranslogToolCli \
   "$@"
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-translog.bat b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-translog.bat
index f79a1b827951..9b375f283c29 100644
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-translog.bat
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch-translog.bat
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ call "%~dp0elasticsearch-env.bat" || exit /b 1
 %JAVA% ^
   %ES_JAVA_OPTS% ^
   -Des.path.home="%ES_HOME%" ^
-  -Des.path.conf="%CONF_DIR%" ^
+  -Des.path.conf="%ES_PATH_CONF%" ^
   -cp "%ES_CLASSPATH%" ^
   org.elasticsearch.index.translog.TranslogToolCli ^
   %*
diff --git a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch.bat b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch.bat
index fe46c8d78868..057e686cdad1 100644
--- a/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch.bat
+++ b/distribution/src/main/resources/bin/elasticsearch.bat
@@ -40,7 +40,7 @@ IF ERRORLEVEL 1 (
 	EXIT /B %ERRORLEVEL%
 )
 
-set "ES_JVM_OPTIONS=%CONF_DIR%\jvm.options"
+set "ES_JVM_OPTIONS=%ES_PATH_CONF%\jvm.options"
 
 @setlocal
 rem extract the options from the JVM options file %ES_JVM_OPTIONS%
@@ -48,6 +48,6 @@ rem such options are the lines beginning with '-', thus "findstr /b"
 for /F "usebackq delims=" %%a in (`findstr /b \- "%ES_JVM_OPTIONS%"`) do set JVM_OPTIONS=!JVM_OPTIONS! %%a
 @endlocal & set ES_JAVA_OPTS=%JVM_OPTIONS% %ES_JAVA_OPTS%
 
-%JAVA% %ES_JAVA_OPTS% -Delasticsearch -Des.path.home="%ES_HOME%" -Des.path.conf="%CONF_DIR%" -cp "%ES_CLASSPATH%" "org.elasticsearch.bootstrap.Elasticsearch" !newparams!
+%JAVA% %ES_JAVA_OPTS% -Delasticsearch -Des.path.home="%ES_HOME%" -Des.path.conf="%ES_PATH_CONF%" -cp "%ES_CLASSPATH%" "org.elasticsearch.bootstrap.Elasticsearch" !newparams!
 
 endlocal
diff --git a/docs/plugins/plugin-script.asciidoc b/docs/plugins/plugin-script.asciidoc
index 8b72509c057a..e7f4d2580238 100644
--- a/docs/plugins/plugin-script.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/plugins/plugin-script.asciidoc
@@ -172,7 +172,7 @@ can do this as follows:
 
 [source,sh]
 ---------------------
-sudo CONF_DIR=/path/to/conf/dir bin/elasticsearch-plugin install <plugin name>
+sudo ES_PATH_CONF=/path/to/conf/dir bin/elasticsearch-plugin install <plugin name>
 ---------------------
 
 [float]
diff --git a/docs/reference/migration/migrate_6_0/packaging.asciidoc b/docs/reference/migration/migrate_6_0/packaging.asciidoc
index 5ca3cccdd4a0..1eec3d72000e 100644
--- a/docs/reference/migration/migrate_6_0/packaging.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/reference/migration/migrate_6_0/packaging.asciidoc
@@ -16,9 +16,18 @@ Previous versions of Elasticsearch enabled setting `path.conf` as a
 setting. This was rather convoluted as it meant that you could start
 Elasticsearch with a config file that specified via `path.conf` that
 Elasticsearch should use another config file. Instead, to configure a custom
-config directory, use the <<config-files-location,`CONF_DIR` environment
+config directory, use the <<config-files-location,`ES_PATH_CONF` environment
 variable>>.
 
+==== `CONF_DIR` is no longer supported
+
+Previous versions of Elasticsearch enabled using the `CONF_DIR` environment
+variable to specify a custom configuration directory for some configuration
+files and some scripts (it was used inconsistently). Starting in Elasticsearch
+6.0.0, the usage of this environment variable has been superceded by
+`ES_PATH_CONF`, and this new environment variable is consistently used for all
+configuration files and scripts.
+
 ==== Default path settings are removed
 
 Previous versions of Elasticsearch enabled setting `default.path.data` and
@@ -56,7 +65,7 @@ are no longer maintaining this attempt.
 
 The environment variable `ES_JVM_OPTIONS` that enabled a custom location for the
 `jvm.options` file has been removed in favor of using the environment variable
-`CONF_DIR`. This environment variable is already used in the packaging to
+`ES_PATH_CONF`. This environment variable is already used in the packaging to
 support relocating the configuration files so this change merely aligns the
 other configuration files with the location of the `jvm.options` file.
 
diff --git a/docs/reference/setup/configuration.asciidoc b/docs/reference/setup/configuration.asciidoc
index c6741f9181e2..bad6da3701fb 100644
--- a/docs/reference/setup/configuration.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/reference/setup/configuration.asciidoc
@@ -25,24 +25,24 @@ on whether or not the installation is from an archive distribution (`tar.gz` or
 
 For the archive distributions, the config directory location defaults to
 `$ES_HOME/config`. The location of the config directory can be changed via the
-`CONF_DIR` environment variable as follows:
+`ES_PATH_CONF` environment variable as follows:
 
 [source,sh]
 -------------------------------
-CONF_DIR=/path/to/my/config ./bin/elasticsearch
+ES_PATH_CONF=/path/to/my/config ./bin/elasticsearch
 -------------------------------
 
-Alternatively, you can `export` the `CONF_DIR` environment variable via the
+Alternatively, you can `export` the `ES_PATH_CONF` environment variable via the
 command line or via your shell profile.
 
 For the package distributions, the config directory location defaults to
 `/etc/elasticsearch`. The location of the config directory can also be changed
-via the `CONF_DIR` environment variable, but note that setting this in your
+via the `ES_PATH_CONF` environment variable, but note that setting this in your
 shell is not sufficient. Instead, this variabled is sourced from
 `/etc/default/elasticsearch` (for the Debian package) and
 `/etc/sysconfig/elasticsearch` (for the RPM package). You will need to edit the
-`CONF_DIR=/etc/elasticsearch` entry in one of these files accordingly to change
-the config directory location.
+`ES_PATH_CONF=/etc/elasticsearch` entry in one of these files accordingly to
+change the config directory location.
 
 
 [float]
diff --git a/docs/reference/setup/install/deb.asciidoc b/docs/reference/setup/install/deb.asciidoc
index 86bffa5b2177..680753b99a2e 100644
--- a/docs/reference/setup/install/deb.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/reference/setup/install/deb.asciidoc
@@ -197,7 +197,7 @@ locations for a Debian-based system:
 | conf
   | Configuration files including `elasticsearch.yml`
   | /etc/elasticsearch
-  | <<config-files-location,CONF_DIR>>
+  | <<config-files-location,ES_PATH_CONF>>
 
 | conf
   | Environment variables including heap size, file descriptors.
diff --git a/docs/reference/setup/install/rpm.asciidoc b/docs/reference/setup/install/rpm.asciidoc
index 420c6da96b00..a62e324ad8c2 100644
--- a/docs/reference/setup/install/rpm.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/reference/setup/install/rpm.asciidoc
@@ -185,7 +185,7 @@ locations for an RPM-based system:
 | conf
   | Configuration files including `elasticsearch.yml`
   | /etc/elasticsearch
-  | <<config-files-location,CONF_DIR>>
+  | <<config-files-location,ES_PATH_CONF>>
 
 | conf
   | Environment variables including heap size, file descriptors.
diff --git a/docs/reference/setup/install/sysconfig-file.asciidoc b/docs/reference/setup/install/sysconfig-file.asciidoc
index c932493e1155..76a9fa22bfc8 100644
--- a/docs/reference/setup/install/sysconfig-file.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/reference/setup/install/sysconfig-file.asciidoc
@@ -21,10 +21,11 @@
     about `max_map_count`. This is set via `sysctl` before starting
     elasticsearch. Defaults to `262144`.
 
-`CONF_DIR`::
+`ES_PATH_CONF`::
 
-    Configuration file directory (which needs to include `elasticsearch.yml`
-    and `log4j2.properties` files), defaults to `/etc/elasticsearch`.
+    Configuration file directory (which needs to include `elasticsearch.yml`,
+    `jvm.options`, and `log4j2.properties` files); defaults to
+    `/etc/elasticsearch`.
 
 `ES_JAVA_OPTS`::
 
diff --git a/docs/reference/setup/install/zip-targz.asciidoc b/docs/reference/setup/install/zip-targz.asciidoc
index 19b79363d791..9f95a195cf3c 100644
--- a/docs/reference/setup/install/zip-targz.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/reference/setup/install/zip-targz.asciidoc
@@ -164,7 +164,7 @@ directory so that you do not delete important data later on.
 | conf
   | Configuration files including `elasticsearch.yml`
   | $ES_HOME/config
-  | <<config-files-location,CONF_DIR>>
+  | <<config-files-location,ES_PATH_CONF>>
 
 | data
   | The location of the data files of each index / shard allocated
diff --git a/docs/reference/setup/install/zip-windows.asciidoc b/docs/reference/setup/install/zip-windows.asciidoc
index bbfd089fced7..748d411f3a52 100644
--- a/docs/reference/setup/install/zip-windows.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/reference/setup/install/zip-windows.asciidoc
@@ -169,10 +169,11 @@ The Elasticsearch service can be configured prior to installation by setting the
     via the setting `path.logs` in the `elasticsearch.yml` configuration file,
     or on the command line.
 
-`CONF_DIR`::
+`ES_PATH_CONF`::
 
-    Configuration file directory (which needs to include `elasticsearch.yml`
-    and `log4j2.properties` files), defaults to `%ES_HOME%\conf`.
+    Configuration file directory (which needs to include `elasticsearch.yml`,
+    `jvm.options`, and `log4j2.properties` files), defaults to
+    `%ES_HOME%\config`.
 
 `ES_JAVA_OPTS`::
 
@@ -234,7 +235,7 @@ directory so that you do not delete important data later on.
 | conf
   | Configuration files including `elasticsearch.yml`
   | %ES_HOME%\config
-  | <<config-files-location,CONF_DIR>>
+  | <<config-files-location,ES_PATH_CONF>>
 
 | data
   | The location of the data files of each index / shard allocated
diff --git a/docs/reference/setup/rolling_upgrade.asciidoc b/docs/reference/setup/rolling_upgrade.asciidoc
index 2f5338928afd..f5b29913cdb2 100644
--- a/docs/reference/setup/rolling_upgrade.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/reference/setup/rolling_upgrade.asciidoc
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ default.
 
 It is a good idea to place these directories in a different location so that
 there is no chance of deleting them when upgrading Elasticsearch.  These custom
-paths can be <<path-settings,configured>> with the `CONF_DIR` environment
+paths can be <<path-settings,configured>> with the `ES_PATH_CONF` environment
 variable, and the `path.logs`, and `path.data` settings.
 
 The <<deb,Debian>> and <<rpm,RPM>> packages place these directories in the
@@ -89,7 +89,8 @@ To upgrade using a zip or compressed tarball:
 
 *   Either copy the files in the `config` directory from your old installation
     to your new installation, or set the environment variable
-    <<config-files-location,`CONF_DIR`>> to point to a custom config directory.
+    <<config-files-location,`ES_PATH_CONF`>> to point to a custom config
+    directory.
 
 *   Either copy the files in the `data` directory from your old installation
     to your new installation, or configure the location of the data directory
diff --git a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/20_tar_package.bats b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/20_tar_package.bats
index b6ef96b91e7c..645c8331317e 100644
--- a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/20_tar_package.bats
+++ b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/20_tar_package.bats
@@ -111,7 +111,7 @@ setup() {
 
 @test "[TAR] start Elasticsearch with custom JVM options" {
     local es_java_opts=$ES_JAVA_OPTS
-    local conf_dir=$CONF_DIR
+    local es_path_conf=$ES_PATH_CONF
     local temp=`mktemp -d`
     cp "$ESCONFIG"/elasticsearch.yml "$temp"
     cp "$ESCONFIG"/log4j2.properties "$temp"
@@ -123,13 +123,13 @@ setup() {
     # manager exception before we have configured logging; this will fail
     # startup since we detect usages of logging before it is configured
     echo "-Dlog4j2.disable.jmx=true" >> "$temp/jvm.options"
-    export CONF_DIR="$temp"
+    export ES_PATH_CONF="$temp"
     export ES_JAVA_OPTS="-XX:-UseCompressedOops"
     start_elasticsearch_service
     curl -s -XGET localhost:9200/_nodes | fgrep '"heap_init_in_bytes":536870912'
     curl -s -XGET localhost:9200/_nodes | fgrep '"using_compressed_ordinary_object_pointers":"false"'
     stop_elasticsearch_service
-    export CONF_DIR=$CONF_DIR
+    export ES_PATH_CONF=$es_path_conf
     export ES_JAVA_OPTS=$es_java_opts
 }
 
diff --git a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/60_systemd.bats b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/60_systemd.bats
index 97087b0ae2e5..3cce81a65f89 100644
--- a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/60_systemd.bats
+++ b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/60_systemd.bats
@@ -201,7 +201,7 @@ setup() {
     # startup since we detect usages of logging before it is configured
     echo "-Dlog4j2.disable.jmx=true" >> "$temp/jvm.options"
     cp $ESENVFILE "$temp/elasticsearch"
-    echo "CONF_DIR=\"$temp\"" >> $ESENVFILE
+    echo "ES_PATH_CONF=\"$temp\"" >> $ESENVFILE
     echo "ES_JAVA_OPTS=\"-XX:-UseCompressedOops\"" >> $ESENVFILE
     service elasticsearch start
     wait_for_elasticsearch_status
diff --git a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/70_sysv_initd.bats b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/70_sysv_initd.bats
index 4184a1c1c3d6..63186e63fb52 100644
--- a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/70_sysv_initd.bats
+++ b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/70_sysv_initd.bats
@@ -132,7 +132,7 @@ setup() {
     # startup since we detect usages of logging before it is configured
     echo "-Dlog4j2.disable.jmx=true" >> "$temp/jvm.options"
     cp $ESENVFILE "$temp/elasticsearch"
-    echo "CONF_DIR=\"$temp\"" >> $ESENVFILE
+    echo "ES_PATH_CONF=\"$temp\"" >> $ESENVFILE
     echo "ES_JAVA_OPTS=\"-XX:-UseCompressedOops\"" >> $ESENVFILE
     service elasticsearch start
     wait_for_elasticsearch_status
diff --git a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/module_and_plugin_test_cases.bash b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/module_and_plugin_test_cases.bash
index bb5d1a58c481..db94bf983d54 100644
--- a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/module_and_plugin_test_cases.bash
+++ b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/tests/module_and_plugin_test_cases.bash
@@ -117,11 +117,11 @@ fi
 
     move_config
 
-    CONF_DIR="$ESCONFIG" install_jvm_example
-    CONF_DIR="$ESCONFIG" start_elasticsearch_service
+    ES_PATH_CONF="$ESCONFIG" install_jvm_example
+    ES_PATH_CONF="$ESCONFIG" start_elasticsearch_service
     diff  <(curl -s localhost:9200/_cat/configured_example | sed 's/ //g') <(echo "foo")
     stop_elasticsearch_service
-    CONF_DIR="$ESCONFIG" remove_jvm_example
+    ES_PATH_CONF="$ESCONFIG" remove_jvm_example
 }
 
 @test "[$GROUP] install jvm-example plugin from a directory with a space" {
diff --git a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/utils/plugins.bash b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/utils/plugins.bash
index a788fb06c650..4d7e100ba9f9 100644
--- a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/utils/plugins.bash
+++ b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/utils/plugins.bash
@@ -38,11 +38,11 @@ install_plugin() {
 
     assert_file_exist "$path"
 
-    if [ ! -z "$CONF_DIR" ] ; then
+    if [ ! -z "$ES_PATH_CONF" ] ; then
         if is_dpkg; then
-            echo "CONF_DIR=$CONF_DIR" >> /etc/default/elasticsearch;
+            echo "ES_PATH_CONF=$ES_PATH_CONF" >> /etc/default/elasticsearch;
         elif is_rpm; then
-            echo "CONF_DIR=$CONF_DIR" >> /etc/sysconfig/elasticsearch;
+            echo "ES_PATH_CONF=$ES_PATH_CONF" >> /etc/sysconfig/elasticsearch;
         fi
     fi
 
diff --git a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/utils/utils.bash b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/utils/utils.bash
index b426d273ac29..58d49558b1be 100644
--- a/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/utils/utils.bash
+++ b/qa/vagrant/src/test/resources/packaging/utils/utils.bash
@@ -335,12 +335,12 @@ start_elasticsearch_service() {
 run_elasticsearch_service() {
     local expectedStatus=$1
     local commandLineArgs=$2
-    # Set the CONF_DIR setting in case we start as a service
-    if [ ! -z "$CONF_DIR" ] ; then
+    # Set the ES_PATH_CONF setting in case we start as a service
+    if [ ! -z "$ES_PATH_CONF" ] ; then
         if is_dpkg; then
-            echo "CONF_DIR=$CONF_DIR" >> /etc/default/elasticsearch;
+            echo "ES_PATH_CONF=$ES_PATH_CONF" >> /etc/default/elasticsearch;
         elif is_rpm; then
-            echo "CONF_DIR=$CONF_DIR" >> /etc/sysconfig/elasticsearch;
+            echo "ES_PATH_CONF=$ES_PATH_CONF" >> /etc/sysconfig/elasticsearch;
         fi
     fi
 
@@ -362,7 +362,7 @@ run_elasticsearch_service() {
 # This line is attempting to emulate the on login behavior of /usr/share/upstart/sessions/jayatana.conf
 [ -f /usr/share/java/jayatanaag.jar ] && export JAVA_TOOL_OPTIONS="-javaagent:/usr/share/java/jayatanaag.jar"
 # And now we can start Elasticsearch normally, in the background (-d) and with a pidfile (-p).
-export CONF_DIR=$CONF_DIR
+export ES_PATH_CONF=$ES_PATH_CONF
 export ES_JAVA_OPTS=$ES_JAVA_OPTS
 $timeoutCommand/tmp/elasticsearch/bin/elasticsearch $background -p /tmp/elasticsearch/elasticsearch.pid $commandLineArgs
 BASH