diff --git a/akka-cluster-sharding/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/ClusterSharding.scala b/akka-cluster-sharding/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/ClusterSharding.scala
index 66773593f4..c3c97b7b0e 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-sharding/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/ClusterSharding.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-sharding/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/ClusterSharding.scala
@@ -7,7 +7,6 @@ import java.net.URLEncoder
 import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentHashMap
 import akka.cluster.sharding.Shard.{ ShardCommand, StateChange }
 import akka.cluster.sharding.ShardCoordinator.Internal.SnapshotTick
-
 import scala.collection.immutable
 import scala.concurrent.Await
 import scala.concurrent.duration._
@@ -39,6 +38,7 @@ import akka.pattern.ask
 import akka.persistence._
 import akka.cluster.ClusterEvent.ClusterDomainEvent
 import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManager
+import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerSettings
 
 /**
  * This extension provides sharding functionality of actors in a cluster.
@@ -405,11 +405,12 @@ private[akka] class ClusterShardingGuardian extends Actor {
           val coordinatorProps = ShardCoordinator.props(handOffTimeout = HandOffTimeout, shardStartTimeout = ShardStartTimeout,
             rebalanceInterval = RebalanceInterval, snapshotInterval = SnapshotInterval, allocationStrategy)
           val singletonProps = ShardCoordinatorSupervisor.props(CoordinatorFailureBackoff, coordinatorProps)
+          val singletonSettings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(context.system)
+            .withSingletonName("singleton").withRole(role)
           context.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
             singletonProps,
-            singletonName = "singleton",
             terminationMessage = PoisonPill,
-            role = role),
+            singletonSettings),
             name = coordinatorSingletonManagerName)
         }
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster-sharding/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/ClusterShardingSpec.scala b/akka-cluster-sharding/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/ClusterShardingSpec.scala
index 03fe92d6f0..98d05a74a5 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-sharding/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/ClusterShardingSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-sharding/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/sharding/ClusterShardingSpec.scala
@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ package akka.cluster.sharding
 
 import akka.cluster.sharding.ShardCoordinator.Internal.{ ShardStopped, HandOff }
 import akka.cluster.sharding.ShardRegion.Passivate
-
 import language.postfixOps
 import scala.concurrent.duration._
 import com.typesafe.config.ConfigFactory
@@ -24,6 +23,7 @@ import akka.testkit.TestEvent.Mute
 import java.io.File
 import org.apache.commons.io.FileUtils
 import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManager
+import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerSettings
 
 object ClusterShardingSpec extends MultiNodeConfig {
   val controller = role("controller")
@@ -194,9 +194,8 @@ class ClusterShardingSpec extends MultiNodeSpec(ClusterShardingSpec) with STMult
         val rebalanceEnabled = coordinatorName.toLowerCase.startsWith("rebalancing")
         system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
           singletonProps = ShardCoordinatorSupervisor.props(failureBackoff = 5.seconds, coordinatorProps(rebalanceEnabled)),
-          singletonName = "singleton",
           terminationMessage = PoisonPill,
-          role = None),
+          settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(system)),
           name = coordinatorName + "Coordinator")
       }
   }
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/resources/reference.conf b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/resources/reference.conf
index 7c87468224..e02e9ffb2f 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/resources/reference.conf
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/resources/reference.conf
@@ -75,3 +75,44 @@ akka.cluster.client {
 # //#cluster-client-mailbox-config
 
 
+akka.cluster.singleton {
+  # The actor name of the child singleton actor.
+  singleton-name = "singleton"
+  
+  # Singleton among the nodes tagged with specified role.
+  # If the role is not specified it's a singleton among all nodes in the cluster.
+  role = ""
+  
+  # When a node is becoming oldest it sends hand-over request to previous oldest. 
+  # This is retried with the 'retry-interval' until the previous oldest confirms
+  # that the hand over has started, or this -max-hand-over-retries' limit has been
+  # reached. If the retry limit is reached it takes the decision to be the new oldest
+  # if previous oldest is unknown (typically removed), otherwise it initiates a new
+  # round by throwing 'akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerIsStuck' and expecting
+  # restart with fresh state. For a cluster with many members you might need to increase
+  # this retry limit because it takes longer time to propagate changes across all nodes.
+  max-hand-over-retries = 10
+  
+  # When a oldest node leaves the cluster it is not oldest any more and then it sends
+  # take over request to the new oldest to initiate the hand-over process. This is
+  # retried with the 'retry-interval' until this retry limit has been reached. If the
+  # retry limit is reached it initiates a new round by throwing 
+  # 'akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerIsStuck' and expecting restart with
+  # fresh state. This will also cause the singleton actor to be stopped.
+  # 'max-take-over-retries` must be less than 'max-hand-over-retries' to ensure that
+  # new oldest doesn't start singleton actor before previous is stopped for certain
+  # corner cases.
+  max-take-over-retries = 5
+  
+  # Interval for hand over and take over messages
+  retry-interval = 1s
+}
+
+akka.cluster.singleton-proxy {
+  # The role of the cluster nodes where the singleton can be deployed. 
+  # If the role is not specified then any node will do.
+  role = ""
+  
+  # Interval at which the proxy will try to resolve the singleton instance.
+  singleton-identification-interval = 1s 
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManager.scala b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManager.scala
index 439031a249..e1a4bddc9c 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManager.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManager.scala
@@ -4,12 +4,14 @@
 
 package akka.cluster.singleton
 
+import com.typesafe.config.Config
 import scala.concurrent.duration._
 import scala.collection.immutable
 import akka.actor.Actor
 import akka.actor.Actor.Receive
 import akka.actor.Deploy
 import akka.actor.ActorLogging
+import akka.actor.ActorSystem
 import akka.actor.ActorRef
 import akka.actor.ActorSelection
 import akka.actor.Address
@@ -21,6 +23,109 @@ import akka.cluster.ClusterEvent._
 import akka.cluster.Member
 import akka.cluster.MemberStatus
 import akka.AkkaException
+import akka.actor.NoSerializationVerificationNeeded
+
+object ClusterSingletonManagerSettings {
+
+  /**
+   * Create settings from the default configuration
+   * `akka.cluster.singleton`.
+   */
+  def apply(system: ActorSystem): ClusterSingletonManagerSettings =
+    apply(system.settings.config.getConfig("akka.cluster.singleton"))
+
+  /**
+   * Create settings from a configuration with the same layout as
+   * the default configuration `akka.cluster.singleton`.
+   */
+  def apply(config: Config): ClusterSingletonManagerSettings =
+    new ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(
+      singletonName = config.getString("singleton-name"),
+      role = roleOption(config.getString("role")),
+      maxHandOverRetries = config.getInt("max-hand-over-retries"),
+      maxTakeOverRetries = config.getInt("max-take-over-retries"),
+      retryInterval = config.getDuration("retry-interval", MILLISECONDS).millis)
+
+  /**
+   * Java API: Create settings from the default configuration
+   * `akka.cluster.singleton`.
+   */
+  def create(system: ActorSystem): ClusterSingletonManagerSettings = apply(system)
+
+  /**
+   * Java API: Create settings from a configuration with the same layout as
+   * the default configuration `akka.cluster.singleton`.
+   */
+  def create(config: Config): ClusterSingletonManagerSettings = apply(config)
+
+  /**
+   * INTERNAL API
+   */
+  private[akka] def roleOption(role: String): Option[String] =
+    if (role == "") None else Option(role)
+
+}
+
+/**
+ * @param singletonName The actor name of the child singleton actor.
+ *
+ * @param role Singleton among the nodes tagged with specified role.
+ *   If the role is not specified it's a singleton among all nodes in
+ *   the cluster.
+ *
+ * @param maxHandOverRetries When a node is becoming oldest it sends
+ *   hand-over request to previous oldest. This is retried with the
+ *   `retryInterval` until the previous oldest confirms that the hand
+ *   over has started, or this `maxHandOverRetries` limit has been
+ *   reached. If the retry limit is reached it takes the decision to be
+ *   the new oldest if previous oldest is unknown (typically removed),
+ *   otherwise it initiates a new round by throwing
+ *   [[akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerIsStuck]] and expecting
+ *   restart with fresh state. For a cluster with many members you might
+ *   need to increase this retry limit because it takes longer time to
+ *   propagate changes across all nodes.
+ *
+ * @param maxTakeOverRetries When a oldest node leaves the cluster it is
+ *   not oldest any more and then it sends take over request to the new oldest to
+ *   initiate the hand-over process. This is retried with the `retryInterval` until
+ *   this retry limit has been reached. If the retry limit is reached it initiates
+ *   a new round by throwing [[akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerIsStuck]]
+ *   and expecting restart with fresh state. This will also cause the singleton actor
+ *   to be stopped. `maxTakeOverRetries` must be less than `maxHandOverRetries` to
+ *   ensure that new oldest doesn't start singleton actor before previous is
+ *   stopped for certain corner cases.
+ *
+ * @param retryInterval Interval for hand over and take over messages
+ */
+final class ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(
+  val singletonName: String,
+  val role: Option[String],
+  val maxHandOverRetries: Int,
+  val maxTakeOverRetries: Int,
+  val retryInterval: FiniteDuration) extends NoSerializationVerificationNeeded {
+
+  // to ensure that new oldest doesn't start singleton actor before previous is stopped for certain corner cases
+  require(maxTakeOverRetries < maxHandOverRetries,
+    s"maxTakeOverRetries [${maxTakeOverRetries}]must be < maxHandOverRetries [${maxHandOverRetries}]")
+
+  def withSingletonName(name: String): ClusterSingletonManagerSettings = copy(singletonName = name)
+
+  def withRole(role: String): ClusterSingletonManagerSettings = copy(role = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings.roleOption(role))
+
+  def withRole(role: Option[String]) = copy(role = role)
+
+  def withRetry(maxHandOverRetries: Int, maxTakeOverRetries: Int, retryInterval: FiniteDuration): ClusterSingletonManagerSettings =
+    copy(maxHandOverRetries = maxHandOverRetries,
+      maxTakeOverRetries = maxTakeOverRetries,
+      retryInterval = retryInterval)
+
+  private def copy(singletonName: String = singletonName,
+                   role: Option[String] = role,
+                   maxHandOverRetries: Int = maxHandOverRetries,
+                   maxTakeOverRetries: Int = maxTakeOverRetries,
+                   retryInterval: FiniteDuration = retryInterval): ClusterSingletonManagerSettings =
+    new ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(singletonName, role, maxHandOverRetries, maxTakeOverRetries, retryInterval)
+}
 
 object ClusterSingletonManager {
 
@@ -29,39 +134,9 @@ object ClusterSingletonManager {
    */
   def props(
     singletonProps: Props,
-    singletonName: String,
     terminationMessage: Any,
-    role: Option[String],
-    maxHandOverRetries: Int = 10,
-    maxTakeOverRetries: Int = 5,
-    retryInterval: FiniteDuration = 1.second): Props =
-    Props(classOf[ClusterSingletonManager], singletonProps, singletonName, terminationMessage, role,
-      maxHandOverRetries, maxTakeOverRetries, retryInterval).withDeploy(Deploy.local)
-
-  /**
-   * Java API: Factory method for `ClusterSingletonManager` [[akka.actor.Props]].
-   */
-  def props(
-    singletonProps: Props,
-    singletonName: String,
-    terminationMessage: Any,
-    role: String,
-    maxHandOverRetries: Int,
-    maxTakeOverRetries: Int,
-    retryInterval: FiniteDuration): Props =
-    props(singletonProps, singletonName, terminationMessage,
-      ClusterSingletonManager.Internal.roleOption(role), maxHandOverRetries, maxTakeOverRetries, retryInterval)
-
-  /**
-   * Java API: Factory method for `ClusterSingletonManager` [[akka.actor.Props]]
-   * with default values.
-   */
-  def defaultProps(
-    singletonProps: Props,
-    singletonName: String,
-    terminationMessage: Any,
-    role: String): Props =
-    props(singletonProps, singletonName, terminationMessage, ClusterSingletonManager.Internal.roleOption(role))
+    settings: ClusterSingletonManagerSettings): Props =
+    Props(new ClusterSingletonManager(singletonProps, terminationMessage, settings)).withDeploy(Deploy.local)
 
   /**
    * INTERNAL API
@@ -132,11 +207,6 @@ object ClusterSingletonManager {
     val TakeOverRetryTimer = "take-over-retry"
     val CleanupTimer = "cleanup"
 
-    def roleOption(role: String): Option[String] = role match {
-      case null | "" ⇒ None
-      case _         ⇒ Some(role)
-    }
-
     object OldestChangedBuffer {
       /**
        * Request to deliver one more event.
@@ -292,13 +362,10 @@ class ClusterSingletonManagerIsStuck(message: String) extends AkkaException(mess
  * Use factory method [[ClusterSingletonManager#props]] to create the
  * [[akka.actor.Props]] for the actor.
  *
- * ==Arguments==
  *
- * '''''singletonProps''''' [[akka.actor.Props]] of the singleton actor instance.
+ * @param singletonProps [[akka.actor.Props]] of the singleton actor instance.
  *
- * '''''singletonName''''' The actor name of the child singleton actor.
- *
- * '''''terminationMessage''''' When handing over to a new oldest node
+ * @param terminationMessage When handing over to a new oldest node
  *   this `terminationMessage` is sent to the singleton actor to tell
  *   it to finish its work, close resources, and stop.
  *   The hand-over to the new oldest node is completed when the
@@ -306,51 +373,18 @@ class ClusterSingletonManagerIsStuck(message: String) extends AkkaException(mess
  *   Note that [[akka.actor.PoisonPill]] is a perfectly fine
  *   `terminationMessage` if you only need to stop the actor.
  *
- * '''''role''''' Singleton among the nodes tagged with specified role.
- *   If the role is not specified it's a singleton among all nodes in
- *   the cluster.
- *
- * '''''maxHandOverRetries''''' When a node is becoming oldest it sends
- *   hand-over request to previous oldest. This is retried with the
- *   `retryInterval` until the previous oldest confirms that the hand
- *   over has started, or this `maxHandOverRetries` limit has been
- *   reached. If the retry limit is reached it takes the decision to be
- *   the new oldest if previous oldest is unknown (typically removed),
- *   otherwise it initiates a new round by throwing
- *   [[akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerIsStuck]] and expecting
- *   restart with fresh state. For a cluster with many members you might
- *   need to increase this retry limit because it takes longer time to
- *   propagate changes across all nodes.
- *
- * '''''maxTakeOverRetries''''' When a oldest node is not oldest any more
- *   it sends take over request to the new oldest to initiate the normal
- *   hand-over process. This is especially useful when new node joins and becomes
- *   oldest immediately, without knowing who was previous oldest. This is retried
- *   with the `retryInterval` until this retry limit has been reached. If the retry
- *   limit is reached it initiates a new round by throwing
- *   [[akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerIsStuck]] and expecting
- *   restart with fresh state. This will also cause the singleton actor to be
- *   stopped. `maxTakeOverRetries` must be less than `maxHandOverRetries` to
- *   ensure that new oldest doesn't start singleton actor before previous is
- *   stopped for certain corner cases.
+ * @param settings see [[ClusterSingletonManagerSettings]]
  */
 class ClusterSingletonManager(
   singletonProps: Props,
-  singletonName: String,
   terminationMessage: Any,
-  role: Option[String],
-  maxHandOverRetries: Int,
-  maxTakeOverRetries: Int,
-  retryInterval: FiniteDuration)
+  settings: ClusterSingletonManagerSettings)
   extends Actor with FSM[ClusterSingletonManager.State, ClusterSingletonManager.Data] {
 
-  // to ensure that new oldest doesn't start singleton actor before previous is stopped for certain corner cases
-  require(maxTakeOverRetries < maxHandOverRetries,
-    s"maxTakeOverRetries [${maxTakeOverRetries}]must be < maxHandOverRetries [${maxHandOverRetries}]")
-
   import ClusterSingletonManager._
   import ClusterSingletonManager.Internal._
   import ClusterSingletonManager.Internal.OldestChangedBuffer._
+  import settings._
 
   val cluster = Cluster(context.system)
   val selfAddressOption = Some(cluster.selfAddress)
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonProxy.scala b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonProxy.scala
index f6f37d424b..0a5564ea77 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonProxy.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/main/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonProxy.scala
@@ -15,43 +15,76 @@ import akka.cluster.ClusterEvent.CurrentClusterState
 import akka.cluster.ClusterEvent.MemberExited
 import scala.concurrent.duration._
 import scala.language.postfixOps
+import com.typesafe.config.Config
+import akka.actor.NoSerializationVerificationNeeded
+
+object ClusterSingletonProxySettings {
+
+  /**
+   * Create settings from the default configuration
+   * `akka.cluster.singleton-proxy`.
+   */
+  def apply(system: ActorSystem): ClusterSingletonProxySettings =
+    apply(system.settings.config.getConfig("akka.cluster.singleton-proxy"))
+
+  /**
+   * Create settings from a configuration with the same layout as
+   * the default configuration `akka.cluster.singleton-proxy`.
+   */
+  def apply(config: Config): ClusterSingletonProxySettings =
+    new ClusterSingletonProxySettings(
+      role = roleOption(config.getString("role")),
+      singletonIdentificationInterval = config.getDuration("singleton-identification-interval", MILLISECONDS).millis)
+
+  /**
+   * Java API: Create settings from the default configuration
+   * `akka.cluster.singleton-proxy`.
+   */
+  def create(system: ActorSystem): ClusterSingletonProxySettings = apply(system)
+
+  /**
+   * Java API: Create settings from a configuration with the same layout as
+   * the default configuration `akka.cluster.singleton-proxy`.
+   */
+  def create(config: Config): ClusterSingletonProxySettings = apply(config)
+
+  /**
+   * INTERNAL API
+   */
+  private[akka] def roleOption(role: String): Option[String] =
+    if (role == "") None else Option(role)
+
+}
+
+/**
+ * @param role The role of the cluster nodes where the singleton can be deployed. If None, then any node will do.
+ * @param singletonIdentificationInterval Interval at which the proxy will try to resolve the singleton instance.
+ */
+final class ClusterSingletonProxySettings(
+  val role: Option[String],
+  val singletonIdentificationInterval: FiniteDuration) extends NoSerializationVerificationNeeded {
+
+  def withRole(role: String): ClusterSingletonProxySettings = copy(role = ClusterSingletonProxySettings.roleOption(role))
+
+  def withRole(role: Option[String]): ClusterSingletonProxySettings = copy(role = role)
+
+  def withSingletonIdentificationInterval(singletonIdentificationInterval: FiniteDuration): ClusterSingletonProxySettings =
+    copy(singletonIdentificationInterval = singletonIdentificationInterval)
+
+  private def copy(role: Option[String] = role,
+                   singletonIdentificationInterval: FiniteDuration = singletonIdentificationInterval): ClusterSingletonProxySettings =
+    new ClusterSingletonProxySettings(role, singletonIdentificationInterval)
+}
 
 object ClusterSingletonProxy {
   /**
    * Scala API: Factory method for `ClusterSingletonProxy` [[akka.actor.Props]].
    *
    * @param singletonPath The logical path of the singleton, i.e., /user/singletonManager/singleton.
-   * @param role The role of the cluster nodes where the singleton can be deployed. If None, then any node will do.
-   * @param singletonIdentificationInterval Interval at which the proxy will try to resolve the singleton instance.
-   * @return The singleton proxy Props.
+   * @param settings see [[ClusterSingletonProxySettings]]
    */
-  def props(singletonPath: String, role: Option[String], singletonIdentificationInterval: FiniteDuration = 1.second): Props = Props(classOf[ClusterSingletonProxy], singletonPath, role, singletonIdentificationInterval)
-
-  /**
-   * Java API: Factory method for `ClusterSingletonProxy` [[akka.actor.Props]].
-   *
-   * @param singletonPath The logical path of the singleton, i.e., /user/singletonManager/singleton.
-   * @param role The role of the cluster nodes where the singleton can be deployed. If null, then any node will do.
-   * @param singletonIdentificationInterval Interval at which the proxy will try to resolve the singleton instance.
-   * @return The singleton proxy Props.
-   */
-  def props(singletonPath: String, role: String, singletonIdentificationInterval: FiniteDuration): Props =
-    props(singletonPath, roleOption(role), singletonIdentificationInterval)
-
-  /**
-   * Java API: Factory method for `ClusterSingletonProxy` [[akka.actor.Props]]. The interval at which the proxy will try
-   * to resolve the singleton instance is set to 1 second.
-   *
-   * @param singletonPath The logical path of the singleton, i.e., /user/singletonManager/singleton.
-   * @param role The role of the cluster nodes where the singleton can be deployed. If null, then any node will do.
-   * @return The singleton proxy Props.
-   */
-  def defaultProps(singletonPath: String, role: String): Props = props(singletonPath, role, 1 second)
-
-  private def roleOption(role: String): Option[String] = role match {
-    case null | "" ⇒ None
-    case _         ⇒ Some(role)
-  }
+  def props(singletonPath: String, settings: ClusterSingletonProxySettings): Props =
+    Props(new ClusterSingletonProxy(singletonPath, settings)).withDeploy(Deploy.local)
 
   private case object TryToIdentifySingleton
 
@@ -74,16 +107,9 @@ object ClusterSingletonProxy {
  *
  * Note that this is a best effort implementation: messages can always be lost due to the distributed nature of the
  * actors involved.
- *
- * @param singletonPathString The logical path of the singleton. This does not include the node address or actor system
- *                            name, e.g., it can be something like /user/singletonManager/singleton.
- * @param role Cluster role on which the singleton is deployed. This is required to keep track only of the members where
- *             the singleton can actually exist.
- * @param singletonIdentificationInterval Periodicity at which the proxy sends the `Identify` message to the current
- *                                        singleton actor selection.
  */
-class ClusterSingletonProxy(singletonPathString: String, role: Option[String], singletonIdentificationInterval: FiniteDuration) extends Actor with Stash with ActorLogging {
-
+class ClusterSingletonProxy(singletonPathString: String, settings: ClusterSingletonProxySettings) extends Actor with Stash with ActorLogging {
+  import settings._
   val singletonPath = singletonPathString.split("/")
   var identifyCounter = 0
   var identifyId = createIdentifyId(identifyCounter)
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerChaosSpec.scala b/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerChaosSpec.scala
index 5da1515bac..0c166b9ea3 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerChaosSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerChaosSpec.scala
@@ -79,9 +79,8 @@ class ClusterSingletonManagerChaosSpec extends MultiNodeSpec(ClusterSingletonMan
   def createSingleton(): ActorRef = {
     system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
       singletonProps = Props(classOf[Echo], testActor),
-      singletonName = "echo",
       terminationMessage = PoisonPill,
-      role = None),
+      settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(system).withSingletonName("echo")),
       name = "singleton")
   }
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerLeaveSpec.scala b/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerLeaveSpec.scala
index 6312ea0604..b3b03ca145 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerLeaveSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerLeaveSpec.scala
@@ -77,16 +77,15 @@ class ClusterSingletonManagerLeaveSpec extends MultiNodeSpec(ClusterSingletonMan
   def createSingleton(): ActorRef = {
     system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
       singletonProps = Props(classOf[Echo], testActor),
-      singletonName = "echo",
       terminationMessage = PoisonPill,
-      role = None),
+      settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(system).withSingletonName("echo")),
       name = "singleton")
   }
 
   lazy val echoProxy: ActorRef = {
     system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.props(
       singletonPath = "/user/singleton/echo",
-      role = None),
+      settings = ClusterSingletonProxySettings(system)),
       name = "echoProxy")
   }
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerSpec.scala b/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerSpec.scala
index 66b7a29270..4178c5ef03 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerSpec.scala
@@ -259,9 +259,9 @@ class ClusterSingletonManagerSpec extends MultiNodeSpec(ClusterSingletonManagerS
     //#create-singleton-manager
     system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
       singletonProps = Props(classOf[Consumer], queue, testActor),
-      singletonName = "consumer",
       terminationMessage = End,
-      role = Some("worker")),
+      settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(system)
+        .withSingletonName("consumer").withRole("worker")),
       name = "singleton")
     //#create-singleton-manager
   }
@@ -270,7 +270,7 @@ class ClusterSingletonManagerSpec extends MultiNodeSpec(ClusterSingletonManagerS
     //#create-singleton-proxy
     system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.props(
       singletonPath = "/user/singleton/consumer",
-      role = Some("worker")),
+      settings = ClusterSingletonProxySettings(system).withRole("worker")),
       name = "consumerProxy")
     //#create-singleton-proxy
   }
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerStartupSpec.scala b/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerStartupSpec.scala
index 114cbaac79..d7c442bb09 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerStartupSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/multi-jvm/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerStartupSpec.scala
@@ -71,16 +71,15 @@ class ClusterSingletonManagerStartupSpec extends MultiNodeSpec(ClusterSingletonM
   def createSingleton(): ActorRef = {
     system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
       singletonProps = Props(classOf[Echo], testActor),
-      singletonName = "echo",
       terminationMessage = PoisonPill,
-      role = None),
+      settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(system).withSingletonName("echo")),
       name = "singleton")
   }
 
   lazy val echoProxy: ActorRef = {
     system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.props(
       singletonPath = "/user/singleton/echo",
-      role = None),
+      settings = ClusterSingletonProxySettings(system)),
       name = "echoProxy")
   }
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/test/java/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerTest.java b/akka-cluster-tools/src/test/java/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerTest.java
index 654ce00ee5..45ac45aa02 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/test/java/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerTest.java
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/test/java/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonManagerTest.java
@@ -31,12 +31,16 @@ public class ClusterSingletonManagerTest {
     final ActorRef testActor = null;
 
     //#create-singleton-manager
-    system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.defaultProps(Props.create(Consumer.class, queue, testActor), "consumer",
-        new End(), "worker"), "singleton");
+    final ClusterSingletonManagerSettings settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings.create(system)
+        .withSingletonName("consumer").withRole("worker");
+    system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(Props.create(Consumer.class, queue, testActor), 
+        new End(), settings), "singleton");
     //#create-singleton-manager
 
     //#create-singleton-proxy
-    system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.defaultProps("user/singleton/consumer", "worker"), "consumerProxy");
+    ClusterSingletonProxySettings proxySettings = 
+        ClusterSingletonProxySettings.create(system).withRole("worker");
+    system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.props("user/singleton/consumer", proxySettings), "consumerProxy");
     //#create-singleton-proxy
   }
 
diff --git a/akka-cluster-tools/src/test/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonProxySpec.scala b/akka-cluster-tools/src/test/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonProxySpec.scala
index bbbd3cea10..659f2b55de 100644
--- a/akka-cluster-tools/src/test/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonProxySpec.scala
+++ b/akka-cluster-tools/src/test/scala/akka/cluster/singleton/ClusterSingletonProxySpec.scala
@@ -40,14 +40,14 @@ object ClusterSingletonProxySpec {
     cluster.registerOnMemberUp {
       system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
         singletonProps = Props[Singleton],
-        singletonName = "singleton",
         terminationMessage = PoisonPill,
-        role = None,
-        maxHandOverRetries = 5,
-        maxTakeOverRetries = 2), name = "singletonManager")
+        settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(system)
+          .withRetry(maxHandOverRetries = 5, maxTakeOverRetries = 2, retryInterval = 1.second)),
+        name = "singletonManager")
     }
 
-    val proxy = system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.props("user/singletonManager/singleton", None), s"singletonProxy-${cluster.selfAddress.port.getOrElse(0)}")
+    val proxy = system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.props("user/singletonManager/singleton",
+      settings = ClusterSingletonProxySettings(system)), s"singletonProxy-${cluster.selfAddress.port.getOrElse(0)}")
 
     def testProxy(msg: String) {
       val probe = TestProbe()
diff --git a/akka-docs/rst/project/migration-guide-2.3.x-2.4.x.rst b/akka-docs/rst/project/migration-guide-2.3.x-2.4.x.rst
index f069abc62d..e9690f3469 100644
--- a/akka-docs/rst/project/migration-guide-2.3.x-2.4.x.rst
+++ b/akka-docs/rst/project/migration-guide-2.3.x-2.4.x.rst
@@ -217,3 +217,11 @@ named ``akka-cluster-sharding``. You need to replace this dependency if you use
 The classes changed package name from ``akka.contrib.pattern`` to ``akka.cluster.sharding``.
 
 The configuration properties changed name to ``akka.cluster.sharding``.
+
+ClusterSingletonManager and ClusterSingletonProxy construction
+==============================================================
+
+Parameters to the ``Props`` factory methods have been moved to settings object ``ClusterSingletonManagerSettings`
+and ``ClusterSingletonProxySettings``. These can be created from system configuration properties and also
+amended with API as needed.
+
diff --git a/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-java/src/main/java/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleOneMasterMain.java b/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-java/src/main/java/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleOneMasterMain.java
index 8ae86a89d0..c620e45df6 100644
--- a/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-java/src/main/java/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleOneMasterMain.java
+++ b/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-java/src/main/java/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleOneMasterMain.java
@@ -7,7 +7,9 @@ import akka.actor.ActorSystem;
 import akka.actor.PoisonPill;
 import akka.actor.Props;
 import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManager;
+import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerSettings;
 import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonProxy;
+import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonProxySettings;
 
 public class StatsSampleOneMasterMain {
 
@@ -32,14 +34,18 @@ public class StatsSampleOneMasterMain {
       ActorSystem system = ActorSystem.create("ClusterSystem", config);
 
       //#create-singleton-manager
-      system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.defaultProps(
-          Props.create(StatsService.class), "statsService",
-          PoisonPill.getInstance(), "compute"), "singleton");
+      ClusterSingletonManagerSettings settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings.create(system)
+          .withSingletonName("statsService").withRole("compute");
+      system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
+          Props.create(StatsService.class), PoisonPill.getInstance(), settings),
+          "singleton");
       //#create-singleton-manager
 
       //#singleton-proxy
-      system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.defaultProps("/user/singleton/statsService",
-        "compute"), "statsServiceProxy");
+      ClusterSingletonProxySettings proxySettings =
+          ClusterSingletonProxySettings.create(system).withRole("compute");
+      system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.props("/user/singleton/statsService",
+          proxySettings), "statsServiceProxy");
       //#singleton-proxy
     }
 
diff --git a/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-java/src/multi-jvm/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec.scala b/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-java/src/multi-jvm/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec.scala
index 9e8e0e5cf1..89c6b1ec13 100644
--- a/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-java/src/multi-jvm/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-java/src/multi-jvm/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec.scala
@@ -15,11 +15,13 @@ import akka.cluster.MemberStatus
 import akka.cluster.ClusterEvent.CurrentClusterState
 import akka.cluster.ClusterEvent.MemberUp
 import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManager
+import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerSettings
 import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonProxy
 import akka.remote.testkit.MultiNodeConfig
 import akka.remote.testkit.MultiNodeSpec
 import akka.testkit.ImplicitSender
 import sample.cluster.stats.StatsMessages._
+import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonProxySettings
 
 object StatsSampleSingleMasterSpecConfig extends MultiNodeConfig {
   // register the named roles (nodes) of the test
@@ -100,14 +102,14 @@ abstract class StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec extends MultiNodeSpec(StatsSampleSing
 
       Cluster(system).unsubscribe(testActor)
 
-      system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.defaultProps(
+      system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
         Props[StatsService],
-        singletonName = "statsService",
         terminationMessage = PoisonPill,
-        role = null), name = "singleton")
+        settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(system).withSingletonName("statsService")),
+        name = "singleton")
 
-      system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.defaultProps("/user/singleton/statsService",
-        "compute"), "statsServiceProxy");
+      system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.props("/user/singleton/statsService",
+        ClusterSingletonProxySettings(system).withRole("compute")), "statsServiceProxy")
 
       testConductor.enter("all-up")
     }
@@ -126,4 +128,4 @@ abstract class StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec extends MultiNodeSpec(StatsSampleSing
     }
   }
 
-}
\ No newline at end of file
+}
diff --git a/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-scala/src/main/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleOneMaster.scala b/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-scala/src/main/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleOneMaster.scala
index 49809e3eca..c6f28788a3 100644
--- a/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-scala/src/main/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleOneMaster.scala
+++ b/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-scala/src/main/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleOneMaster.scala
@@ -5,7 +5,9 @@ import akka.actor.ActorSystem
 import akka.actor.PoisonPill
 import akka.actor.Props
 import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManager
+import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerSettings
 import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonProxy
+import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonProxySettings
 
 object StatsSampleOneMaster {
   def main(args: Array[String]): Unit = {
@@ -29,14 +31,17 @@ object StatsSampleOneMaster {
 
       //#create-singleton-manager
       system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
-        singletonProps = Props[StatsService], singletonName = "statsService",
-        terminationMessage = PoisonPill, role = Some("compute")),
+        singletonProps = Props[StatsService],
+        terminationMessage = PoisonPill,
+        settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(system)
+          .withSingletonName("statsService").withRole("compute")),
         name = "singleton")
       //#create-singleton-manager
 
       //#singleton-proxy
       system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.props(singletonPath = "/user/singleton/statsService",
-        role = Some("compute")), name = "statsServiceProxy")
+        settings = ClusterSingletonProxySettings(system).withRole("compute")),
+        name = "statsServiceProxy")
       //#singleton-proxy
     }
   }
diff --git a/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-scala/src/multi-jvm/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec.scala b/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-scala/src/multi-jvm/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec.scala
index cb599ac59f..9b31858deb 100644
--- a/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-scala/src/multi-jvm/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec.scala
+++ b/akka-samples/akka-sample-cluster-scala/src/multi-jvm/scala/sample/cluster/stats/StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec.scala
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ import akka.actor.PoisonPill
 import akka.actor.Props
 import akka.actor.RootActorPath
 import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManager
+import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonManagerSettings
 import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonProxy
 import akka.cluster.Cluster
 import akka.cluster.Member
@@ -19,6 +20,7 @@ import akka.cluster.ClusterEvent.MemberUp
 import akka.remote.testkit.MultiNodeConfig
 import akka.remote.testkit.MultiNodeSpec
 import akka.testkit.ImplicitSender
+import akka.cluster.singleton.ClusterSingletonProxySettings
 
 object StatsSampleSingleMasterSpecConfig extends MultiNodeConfig {
   // register the named roles (nodes) of the test
@@ -100,11 +102,14 @@ abstract class StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec extends MultiNodeSpec(StatsSampleSing
       Cluster(system).unsubscribe(testActor)
 
       system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonManager.props(
-        singletonProps = Props[StatsService], singletonName = "statsService",
-        terminationMessage = PoisonPill, role = Some("compute")), name = "singleton")
+        singletonProps = Props[StatsService], terminationMessage = PoisonPill,
+        settings = ClusterSingletonManagerSettings(system)
+          .withSingletonName("statsService").withRole("compute")),
+        name = "singleton")
 
       system.actorOf(ClusterSingletonProxy.props(singletonPath = "/user/singleton/statsService",
-        role = Some("compute")), name = "statsServiceProxy")
+        ClusterSingletonProxySettings(system).withRole("compute")),
+        name = "statsServiceProxy")
 
       testConductor.enter("all-up")
     }
@@ -124,4 +129,4 @@ abstract class StatsSampleSingleMasterSpec extends MultiNodeSpec(StatsSampleSing
     }
   }
 
-}
\ No newline at end of file
+}