diff --git a/api/v1beta1/rabbitmqcluster_types.go b/api/v1beta1/rabbitmqcluster_types.go
index e4c77b653..be162eb9c 100644
--- a/api/v1beta1/rabbitmqcluster_types.go
+++ b/api/v1beta1/rabbitmqcluster_types.go
@@ -280,7 +280,7 @@ type Plugin string
 
 // RabbitMQ-related configuration.
 type RabbitmqClusterConfigurationSpec struct {
-	// List of plugins to enable in addition to essential plugins: rabbitmq_management, rabbitmq_prometheus, and rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s.
+	// List of plugins to enable in addition to essential plugins: rabbitmq_management, and rabbitmq_prometheus.
 	// +kubebuilder:validation:MaxItems:=100
 	AdditionalPlugins []Plugin `json:"additionalPlugins,omitempty"`
 	// Modify to add to the rabbitmq.conf file in addition to default configurations set by the operator.
diff --git a/config/crd/bases/rabbitmq.com_rabbitmqclusters.yaml b/config/crd/bases/rabbitmq.com_rabbitmqclusters.yaml
index 9efb4b22b..9f3a0c380 100644
--- a/config/crd/bases/rabbitmq.com_rabbitmqclusters.yaml
+++ b/config/crd/bases/rabbitmq.com_rabbitmqclusters.yaml
@@ -3496,7 +3496,7 @@ spec:
                       maxLength: 2000
                       type: string
                     additionalPlugins:
-                      description: 'List of plugins to enable in addition to essential plugins: rabbitmq_management, rabbitmq_prometheus, and rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s.'
+                      description: 'List of plugins to enable in addition to essential plugins: rabbitmq_management, and rabbitmq_prometheus.'
                       items:
                         description: A Plugin to enable on the RabbitmqCluster.
                         maxLength: 100
diff --git a/controllers/reconcile_rabbitmq_configurations.go b/controllers/reconcile_rabbitmq_configurations.go
index 717dea470..734fc0f12 100644
--- a/controllers/reconcile_rabbitmq_configurations.go
+++ b/controllers/reconcile_rabbitmq_configurations.go
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ func (r *RabbitmqClusterReconciler) annotateIfNeeded(ctx context.Context, logger
 		annotationKey string
 	)
 
-	switch builder.(type) {
+	switch b := builder.(type) {
 
 	case *resource.RabbitmqPluginsConfigMapBuilder:
 		if operationResult != controllerutil.OperationResultUpdated {
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ func (r *RabbitmqClusterReconciler) annotateIfNeeded(ctx context.Context, logger
 		annotationKey = pluginsUpdateAnnotation
 
 	case *resource.ServerConfigMapBuilder:
-		if operationResult != controllerutil.OperationResultUpdated {
+		if operationResult != controllerutil.OperationResultUpdated || !b.UpdateRequiresStsRestart {
 			return nil
 		}
 		obj = &corev1.ConfigMap{}
diff --git a/controllers/reconcile_rabbitmq_configurations_test.go b/controllers/reconcile_rabbitmq_configurations_test.go
index 96f2bd3cf..c9d639c51 100644
--- a/controllers/reconcile_rabbitmq_configurations_test.go
+++ b/controllers/reconcile_rabbitmq_configurations_test.go
@@ -1,14 +1,16 @@
 package controllers_test
 
 import (
-	rabbitmqv1beta1 "github.com/rabbitmq/cluster-operator/api/v1beta1"
 	"time"
 
+	rabbitmqv1beta1 "github.com/rabbitmq/cluster-operator/api/v1beta1"
+
 	. "github.com/onsi/ginkgo"
 	. "github.com/onsi/ginkgo/extensions/table"
 	. "github.com/onsi/gomega"
 
 	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
+	"k8s.io/utils/pointer"
 )
 
 var _ = Describe("Reconcile rabbitmq Configurations", func() {
@@ -16,66 +18,96 @@ var _ = Describe("Reconcile rabbitmq Configurations", func() {
 		cluster          *rabbitmqv1beta1.RabbitmqCluster
 		defaultNamespace = "default"
 	)
-	DescribeTable("Server configurations updates",
-		func(testCase string) {
-			// create rabbitmqcluster
+
+	AfterEach(func() {
+		Expect(client.Delete(ctx, cluster)).To(Succeed())
+		waitForClusterDeletion(ctx, cluster, client)
+	})
+
+	DescribeTable("Server configurations updates", func(testCase string) {
+		cluster = &rabbitmqv1beta1.RabbitmqCluster{
+			ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
+				Namespace: defaultNamespace,
+				Name:      "rabbitmq-" + testCase,
+			},
+		}
+		Expect(client.Create(ctx, cluster)).To(Succeed())
+		waitForClusterCreation(ctx, cluster, client)
+
+		// ensure that cfm and statefulSet does not have annotations set when cluster just got created
+		cfm := configMap(ctx, cluster, "server-conf")
+		Expect(cfm.Annotations).ShouldNot(HaveKey("rabbitmq.com/serverConfUpdatedAt"))
+		sts := statefulSet(ctx, cluster)
+		Expect(sts.Annotations).ShouldNot(HaveKey("rabbitmq.com/lastRestartAt"))
+
+		// update rabbitmq server configurations
+		Expect(updateWithRetry(cluster, func(r *rabbitmqv1beta1.RabbitmqCluster) {
+			if testCase == "additional-config" {
+				r.Spec.Rabbitmq.AdditionalConfig = "test_config=0"
+			}
+			if testCase == "advanced-config" {
+				r.Spec.Rabbitmq.AdvancedConfig = "sample-advanced-config."
+			}
+			if testCase == "env-config" {
+				r.Spec.Rabbitmq.EnvConfig = "some-env-variable"
+			}
+		})).To(Succeed())
+
+		By("annotating the server-conf ConfigMap")
+		// ensure annotations from the server-conf ConfigMap
+		var annotations map[string]string
+		Eventually(func() map[string]string {
+			cfm := configMap(ctx, cluster, "server-conf")
+			annotations = cfm.Annotations
+			return annotations
+		}, 5).Should(HaveKey("rabbitmq.com/serverConfUpdatedAt"))
+		_, err := time.Parse(time.RFC3339, annotations["rabbitmq.com/serverConfUpdatedAt"])
+		Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred(), "Annotation rabbitmq.com/serverConfUpdatedAt was not a valid RFC3339 timestamp")
+
+		By("annotating the sts podTemplate")
+		// ensure statefulSet annotations
+		Eventually(func() map[string]string {
+			sts := statefulSet(ctx, cluster)
+			annotations = sts.Spec.Template.Annotations
+			return annotations
+		}, 5).Should(HaveKey("rabbitmq.com/lastRestartAt"))
+		_, err = time.Parse(time.RFC3339, annotations["rabbitmq.com/lastRestartAt"])
+		Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred(), "Annotation rabbitmq.com/lastRestartAt was not a valid RFC3339 timestamp")
+	},
+
+		Entry("spec.rabbitmq.additionalConfig is updated", "additional-config"),
+		Entry("spec.rabbitmq.advancedConfig is updated", "advanced-config"),
+		Entry("spec.rabbitmq.envConfig is updated", "env-config"),
+	)
+
+	Context("scale out", func() {
+		It("does not restart StatefulSet", func() {
 			cluster = &rabbitmqv1beta1.RabbitmqCluster{
 				ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
-					Name:      "rabbitmq-" + testCase,
 					Namespace: defaultNamespace,
+					Name:      "rabbitmq-scale-out",
 				},
 			}
 			Expect(client.Create(ctx, cluster)).To(Succeed())
 			waitForClusterCreation(ctx, cluster, client)
 
-			// ensure that cfm and statefulSet does not have annotations set when configurations haven't changed
 			cfm := configMap(ctx, cluster, "server-conf")
 			Expect(cfm.Annotations).ShouldNot(HaveKey("rabbitmq.com/serverConfUpdatedAt"))
-
 			sts := statefulSet(ctx, cluster)
 			Expect(sts.Annotations).ShouldNot(HaveKey("rabbitmq.com/lastRestartAt"))
 
-			// update rabbitmq server configurations
 			Expect(updateWithRetry(cluster, func(r *rabbitmqv1beta1.RabbitmqCluster) {
-				if testCase == "additional-config" {
-					r.Spec.Rabbitmq.AdditionalConfig = "test_config=0"
-				}
-				if testCase == "advanced-config" {
-					r.Spec.Rabbitmq.AdvancedConfig = "sample-advanced-config."
-				}
-				if testCase == "env-config" {
-					r.Spec.Rabbitmq.EnvConfig = "some-env-variable"
-				}
+				r.Spec.Replicas = pointer.Int32Ptr(5)
 			})).To(Succeed())
 
-			By("annotating the server-conf ConfigMap")
-			// ensure annotations from the server-conf ConfigMap
-			var annotations map[string]string
-			Eventually(func() map[string]string {
-				cfm := configMap(ctx, cluster, "server-conf")
-				annotations = cfm.Annotations
-				return annotations
-			}, 5).Should(HaveKey("rabbitmq.com/serverConfUpdatedAt"))
-			_, err := time.Parse(time.RFC3339, annotations["rabbitmq.com/serverConfUpdatedAt"])
-			Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred(), "Annotation rabbitmq.com/serverConfUpdatedAt was not a valid RFC3339 timestamp")
-
-			By("annotating the sts podTemplate")
-			// ensure statefulSet annotations
-			Eventually(func() map[string]string {
-				sts := statefulSet(ctx, cluster)
-				annotations = sts.Spec.Template.Annotations
-				return annotations
-			}, 5).Should(HaveKey("rabbitmq.com/lastRestartAt"))
-			_, err = time.Parse(time.RFC3339, annotations["rabbitmq.com/lastRestartAt"])
-			Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred(), "Annotation rabbitmq.com/lastRestartAt was not a valid RFC3339 timestamp")
-
-			// delete rmq cluster
-			Expect(client.Delete(ctx, cluster)).To(Succeed())
-			waitForClusterDeletion(ctx, cluster, client)
-		},
+			Consistently(func() map[string]string {
+				return configMap(ctx, cluster, "server-conf").Annotations
+			}, 3, 0.3).ShouldNot(HaveKey("rabbitmq.com/serverConfUpdatedAt"))
 
-		Entry("spec.rabbitmq.additionalConfig is updated", "additional-config"),
-		Entry("spec.rabbitmq.advancedConfig is updated", "advanced-config"),
-		Entry("spec.rabbitmq.envConfig is updated", "env-config"),
-	)
+			Consistently(func() map[string]string {
+				sts := statefulSet(ctx, cluster)
+				return sts.Spec.Template.Annotations
+			}, 3, 0.3).ShouldNot(HaveKey("rabbitmq.com/lastRestartAt"))
+		})
+	})
 })
diff --git a/docs/api/rabbitmq.com.ref.asciidoc b/docs/api/rabbitmq.com.ref.asciidoc
index 5f8d4f64d..31d25f13b 100644
--- a/docs/api/rabbitmq.com.ref.asciidoc
+++ b/docs/api/rabbitmq.com.ref.asciidoc
@@ -148,7 +148,7 @@ RabbitMQ-related configuration.
 [cols="25a,75a", options="header"]
 |===
 | Field | Description
-| *`additionalPlugins`* __xref:{anchor_prefix}-github-com-rabbitmq-cluster-operator-api-v1beta1-plugin[$$Plugin$$] array__ | List of plugins to enable in addition to essential plugins: rabbitmq_management, rabbitmq_prometheus, and rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s.
+| *`additionalPlugins`* __xref:{anchor_prefix}-github-com-rabbitmq-cluster-operator-api-v1beta1-plugin[$$Plugin$$] array__ | List of plugins to enable in addition to essential plugins: rabbitmq_management, and rabbitmq_prometheus.
 | *`additionalConfig`* __string__ | Modify to add to the rabbitmq.conf file in addition to default configurations set by the operator. Modifying this property on an existing RabbitmqCluster will trigger a StatefulSet rolling restart and will cause rabbitmq downtime. For more information on this config, see https://www.rabbitmq.com/configure.html#config-file
 | *`advancedConfig`* __string__ | Specify any rabbitmq advanced.config configurations to apply to the cluster. For more information on advanced config, see https://www.rabbitmq.com/configure.html#advanced-config-file
 | *`envConfig`* __string__ | Modify to add to the rabbitmq-env.conf file. Modifying this property on an existing RabbitmqCluster will trigger a StatefulSet rolling restart and will cause rabbitmq downtime. For more information on env config, see https://www.rabbitmq.com/man/rabbitmq-env.conf.5.html
@@ -298,7 +298,7 @@ Spec is the desired state of the RabbitmqCluster Custom Resource.
 | Field | Description
 | *`replicas`* __integer__ | Replicas is the number of nodes in the RabbitMQ cluster. Each node is deployed as a Replica in a StatefulSet. Only 1, 3, 5 replicas clusters are tested. This value should be an odd number to ensure the resultant cluster can establish exactly one quorum of nodes in the event of a fragmenting network partition.
 | *`image`* __string__ | Image is the name of the RabbitMQ docker image to use for RabbitMQ nodes in the RabbitmqCluster. Must be provided together with ImagePullSecrets in order to use an image in a private registry.
-| *`imagePullSecrets`* __link:https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/generated/kubernetes-api/v1.20/#localobjectreference-v1-core[$$LocalObjectReference$$] array__ | List of Secret resource containing access credentials to the registry for the RabbitMQ image. Required if the docker registry is private.
+| *`imagePullSecrets`* __link:https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/generated/kubernetes-api/v1.20/#localobjectreference-v1-core[$$LocalObjectReference$$]__ | List of Secret resource containing access credentials to the registry for the RabbitMQ image. Required if the docker registry is private.
 | *`service`* __xref:{anchor_prefix}-github-com-rabbitmq-cluster-operator-api-v1beta1-rabbitmqclusterservicespec[$$RabbitmqClusterServiceSpec$$]__ | The desired state of the Kubernetes Service to create for the cluster.
 | *`persistence`* __xref:{anchor_prefix}-github-com-rabbitmq-cluster-operator-api-v1beta1-rabbitmqclusterpersistencespec[$$RabbitmqClusterPersistenceSpec$$]__ | The desired persistent storage configuration for each Pod in the cluster.
 | *`resources`* __link:https://kubernetes.io/docs/reference/generated/kubernetes-api/v1.20/#resourcerequirements-v1-core[$$ResourceRequirements$$]__ | The desired compute resource requirements of Pods in the cluster.
diff --git a/internal/resource/configmap.go b/internal/resource/configmap.go
index 00a2cebb8..fdae3820d 100644
--- a/internal/resource/configmap.go
+++ b/internal/resource/configmap.go
@@ -14,25 +14,25 @@ import (
 	"strings"
 
 	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/client"
-
 	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/controller/controllerutil"
 
 	"gopkg.in/ini.v1"
 
 	"github.com/rabbitmq/cluster-operator/internal/metadata"
 	corev1 "k8s.io/api/core/v1"
+	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/equality"
 	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
+	"k8s.io/utils/pointer"
 )
 
 const (
 	ServerConfigMapName = "server-conf"
+	operatorDefaults    = "operatorDefaults.conf"
 	defaultRabbitmqConf = `
-cluster_formation.peer_discovery_backend = rabbit_peer_discovery_k8s
-cluster_formation.k8s.host = kubernetes.default
-cluster_formation.k8s.address_type = hostname
 cluster_partition_handling = pause_minority
 queue_master_locator = min-masters
 disk_free_limit.absolute = 2GB
+cluster_formation.peer_discovery_backend = classic_config
 cluster_formation.randomized_startup_delay_range.min = 0
 cluster_formation.randomized_startup_delay_range.max = 60`
 
@@ -56,10 +56,12 @@ prometheus.ssl.port      = 15691
 
 type ServerConfigMapBuilder struct {
 	*RabbitmqResourceBuilder
+	// Set to true if the config change requires RabbitMQ nodes to be restarted.
+	UpdateRequiresStsRestart bool
 }
 
 func (builder *RabbitmqResourceBuilder) ServerConfigMap() *ServerConfigMapBuilder {
-	return &ServerConfigMapBuilder{builder}
+	return &ServerConfigMapBuilder{builder, true}
 }
 
 func (builder *ServerConfigMapBuilder) Build() (client.Object, error) {
@@ -79,6 +81,7 @@ func (builder *ServerConfigMapBuilder) UpdateMayRequireStsRecreate() bool {
 
 func (builder *ServerConfigMapBuilder) Update(object client.Object) error {
 	configMap := object.(*corev1.ConfigMap)
+	previousConfigMap := configMap.DeepCopy()
 
 	ini.PrettySection = false // Remove trailing new line because rabbitmq.conf has only a default section.
 	operatorConfiguration, err := ini.Load([]byte(defaultRabbitmqConf))
@@ -87,6 +90,15 @@ func (builder *ServerConfigMapBuilder) Update(object client.Object) error {
 	}
 	defaultSection := operatorConfiguration.Section("")
 
+	var i int32
+	for i = 0; i < pointer.Int32PtrDerefOr(builder.Instance.Spec.Replicas, 1); i++ {
+		if _, err := defaultSection.NewKey(
+			fmt.Sprintf("cluster_formation.classic_config.nodes.%d", i+1),
+			fmt.Sprintf("rabbit@%s-%d.%s.%s", builder.Instance.ChildResourceName(stsSuffix), i, builder.Instance.ChildResourceName(headlessServiceSuffix), builder.Instance.Namespace)); err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+	}
+
 	if _, err := defaultSection.NewKey("cluster_name", builder.Instance.Name); err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
@@ -207,7 +219,7 @@ func (builder *ServerConfigMapBuilder) Update(object client.Object) error {
 		configMap.Data = make(map[string]string)
 	}
 
-	configMap.Data["operatorDefaults.conf"] = rmqConfBuffer.String()
+	configMap.Data[operatorDefaults] = rmqConfBuffer.String()
 
 	rmqConfBuffer.Reset()
 
@@ -229,6 +241,45 @@ func (builder *ServerConfigMapBuilder) Update(object client.Object) error {
 		return fmt.Errorf("failed setting controller reference: %v", err)
 	}
 
+	updatedConfigMap := configMap.DeepCopy()
+	if err := removeConfigNotRequiringNodeRestart(previousConfigMap); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	if err := removeConfigNotRequiringNodeRestart(updatedConfigMap); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	if equality.Semantic.DeepEqual(previousConfigMap, updatedConfigMap) {
+		builder.UpdateRequiresStsRestart = false
+	}
+
+	return nil
+}
+
+// removeConfigNotRequiringNodeRestart removes configuration data that does not require a restart of RabbitMQ nodes.
+// As of now, this data consists of peer discovery nodes:
+// In the case of scale out (i.e. adding more RabbitMQ nodes to the RabbitMQ cluster), new RabbitMQ nodes will
+// be added to the peer discovery configuration. New nodes will receive the configuration containing all peers.
+// However, exisiting nodes do not need to receive the new peer discovery configuration since the cluster is already formed.
+func removeConfigNotRequiringNodeRestart(configMap *corev1.ConfigMap) error {
+	operatorConf := configMap.Data[operatorDefaults]
+	if operatorConf == "" {
+		return nil
+	}
+	conf, err := ini.Load([]byte(operatorConf))
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	defaultSection := conf.Section("")
+	for _, key := range defaultSection.KeyStrings() {
+		if strings.HasPrefix(key, "cluster_formation.classic_config.nodes.") {
+			defaultSection.DeleteKey(key)
+		}
+	}
+	var b strings.Builder
+	if _, err := conf.WriteTo(&b); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	configMap.Data[operatorDefaults] = b.String()
 	return nil
 }
 
diff --git a/internal/resource/configmap_test.go b/internal/resource/configmap_test.go
index aae2a6fda..a1265e296 100644
--- a/internal/resource/configmap_test.go
+++ b/internal/resource/configmap_test.go
@@ -23,21 +23,9 @@ import (
 	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime"
 	defaultscheme "k8s.io/client-go/kubernetes/scheme"
+	"k8s.io/utils/pointer"
 )
 
-func defaultRabbitmqConf(instanceName string) string {
-	return iniString(`
-cluster_formation.peer_discovery_backend = rabbit_peer_discovery_k8s
-cluster_formation.k8s.host               = kubernetes.default
-cluster_formation.k8s.address_type       = hostname
-cluster_partition_handling               = pause_minority
-queue_master_locator                     = min-masters
-disk_free_limit.absolute                 = 2GB
-cluster_formation.randomized_startup_delay_range.min = 0
-cluster_formation.randomized_startup_delay_range.max = 60
-cluster_name                             = ` + instanceName)
-}
-
 var _ = Describe("GenerateServerConfigMap", func() {
 	var (
 		instance         rabbitmqv1beta1.RabbitmqCluster
@@ -139,7 +127,17 @@ var _ = Describe("GenerateServerConfigMap", func() {
 		It("returns the default rabbitmq configuration", func() {
 			builder.Instance.Spec.Rabbitmq.AdditionalConfig = ""
 
-			expectedConfiguration := defaultRabbitmqConf(builder.Instance.Name)
+			name := builder.Instance.Name
+			expectedConfiguration := fmt.Sprintf(
+				`cluster_partition_handling                           = pause_minority
+queue_master_locator                                 = min-masters
+disk_free_limit.absolute                             = 2GB
+cluster_formation.peer_discovery_backend             = classic_config
+cluster_formation.randomized_startup_delay_range.min = 0
+cluster_formation.randomized_startup_delay_range.max = 60
+cluster_formation.classic_config.nodes.1             = rabbit@%s-server-0.%s-nodes.%s
+cluster_name                                         = %s
+`, name, name, builder.Instance.Namespace, name)
 
 			Expect(configMapBuilder.Update(configMap)).To(Succeed())
 			Expect(configMap.Data).To(HaveKeyWithValue("operatorDefaults.conf", expectedConfiguration))
@@ -543,6 +541,60 @@ CONSOLE_LOG=new`
 			Expect(configMapBuilder.Update(configMap)).To(Succeed())
 			Expect(configMap.Annotations).To(BeEmpty())
 		})
+
+		Context("multiple replicas", func() {
+			It("adds nodes for peer discovery", func() {
+				instance.Spec.Replicas = pointer.Int32Ptr(3)
+
+				Expect(configMapBuilder.Update(configMap)).To(Succeed())
+				n := instance.Name
+				ns := instance.Namespace
+				Expect(configMap.Data).To(HaveKeyWithValue("operatorDefaults.conf", ContainSubstring(
+					`cluster_formation.classic_config.nodes.1             = rabbit@%s-server-0.%s-nodes.%s
+cluster_formation.classic_config.nodes.2             = rabbit@%s-server-1.%s-nodes.%s
+cluster_formation.classic_config.nodes.3             = rabbit@%s-server-2.%s-nodes.%s`,
+					n, n, ns, n, n, ns, n, n, ns,
+				)))
+			})
+		})
+		Context("no replicas", func() {
+			It("does not add nodes for peer discovery", func() {
+				instance.Spec.Replicas = pointer.Int32Ptr(0)
+
+				Expect(configMapBuilder.Update(configMap)).To(Succeed())
+				Expect(configMap.Data).To(HaveKeyWithValue("operatorDefaults.conf",
+					Not(ContainSubstring("cluster_formation.classic_config.nodes")),
+				))
+			})
+		})
+
+		Describe("UpdateRequiresStsRestart", func() {
+			BeforeEach(func() {
+				Expect(configMapBuilder.Update(configMap)).To(Succeed())
+				Expect(configMapBuilder.UpdateRequiresStsRestart).To(BeTrue())
+			})
+			When("the config does not change", func() {
+				It("does not restart StatefulSet", func() {
+					Expect(configMapBuilder.Update(configMap)).To(Succeed())
+					Expect(configMapBuilder.UpdateRequiresStsRestart).To(BeFalse())
+				})
+			})
+			When("the only config change is cluster formation nodes", func() {
+				It("does not require the StatefulSet to be restarted", func() {
+					instance.Spec.Replicas = pointer.Int32Ptr(3)
+					Expect(configMapBuilder.Update(configMap)).To(Succeed())
+					Expect(configMapBuilder.UpdateRequiresStsRestart).To(BeFalse())
+				})
+			})
+			When("config change includes more than cluster formation nodes", func() {
+				It("requires the StatefulSet to be restarted", func() {
+					instance.Spec.Replicas = pointer.Int32Ptr(3)
+					instance.Spec.Rabbitmq.AdditionalConfig = "foo = bar"
+					Expect(configMapBuilder.Update(configMap)).To(Succeed())
+					Expect(configMapBuilder.UpdateRequiresStsRestart).To(BeTrue())
+				})
+			})
+		})
 	})
 
 	Context("UpdateMayRequireStsRecreate", func() {
diff --git a/internal/resource/headless_service.go b/internal/resource/headless_service.go
index 1cbdc1abc..9e8832808 100644
--- a/internal/resource/headless_service.go
+++ b/internal/resource/headless_service.go
@@ -21,9 +21,7 @@ import (
 	"sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/controller/controllerutil"
 )
 
-const (
-	headlessServiceSuffix = "nodes"
-)
+const headlessServiceSuffix = "nodes"
 
 type HeadlessServiceBuilder struct {
 	*RabbitmqResourceBuilder
diff --git a/internal/resource/rabbitmq_plugins.go b/internal/resource/rabbitmq_plugins.go
index 2201f9cdb..4e3028ccf 100644
--- a/internal/resource/rabbitmq_plugins.go
+++ b/internal/resource/rabbitmq_plugins.go
@@ -15,8 +15,7 @@ import (
 )
 
 var requiredPlugins = []string{
-	"rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s", // required for clustering
-	"rabbitmq_prometheus",         // enforce prometheus metrics
+	"rabbitmq_prometheus", // enforce prometheus metrics
 	"rabbitmq_management",
 }
 
diff --git a/internal/resource/rabbitmq_plugins_test.go b/internal/resource/rabbitmq_plugins_test.go
index 5277b9bf5..5f4fb88cd 100644
--- a/internal/resource/rabbitmq_plugins_test.go
+++ b/internal/resource/rabbitmq_plugins_test.go
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ var _ = Describe("RabbitMQPlugins", func() {
 		When("AdditionalPlugins is empty", func() {
 			It("returns list of required plugins", func() {
 				plugins := NewRabbitmqPlugins(nil)
-				Expect(plugins.DesiredPlugins()).To(ConsistOf([]string{"rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s", "rabbitmq_prometheus", "rabbitmq_management"}))
+				Expect(plugins.DesiredPlugins()).To(ConsistOf([]string{"rabbitmq_prometheus", "rabbitmq_management"}))
 			})
 		})
 
@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@ var _ = Describe("RabbitMQPlugins", func() {
 				morePlugins := []rabbitmqv1beta1.Plugin{"rabbitmq_shovel", "my_great_plugin"}
 				plugins := NewRabbitmqPlugins(morePlugins)
 
-				Expect(plugins.DesiredPlugins()).To(ConsistOf([]string{"rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s",
+				Expect(plugins.DesiredPlugins()).To(ConsistOf([]string{
 					"rabbitmq_prometheus",
 					"rabbitmq_management",
 					"my_great_plugin",
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ var _ = Describe("RabbitMQPlugins", func() {
 				morePlugins := []rabbitmqv1beta1.Plugin{"rabbitmq_management", "rabbitmq_shovel", "my_great_plugin", "rabbitmq_shovel"}
 				plugins := NewRabbitmqPlugins(morePlugins)
 
-				Expect(plugins.DesiredPlugins()).To(ConsistOf([]string{"rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s",
+				Expect(plugins.DesiredPlugins()).To(ConsistOf([]string{
 					"rabbitmq_prometheus",
 					"rabbitmq_management",
 					"my_great_plugin",
@@ -117,10 +117,7 @@ var _ = Describe("RabbitMQPlugins", func() {
 			})
 
 			It("adds list of default plugins", func() {
-				expectedEnabledPlugins := "[" +
-					"rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s," +
-					"rabbitmq_prometheus," +
-					"rabbitmq_management]."
+				expectedEnabledPlugins := "[rabbitmq_prometheus,rabbitmq_management]."
 
 				obj, err := configMapBuilder.Build()
 				Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred())
@@ -184,7 +181,6 @@ var _ = Describe("RabbitMQPlugins", func() {
 						builder.Instance.Spec.Rabbitmq.AdditionalPlugins = []rabbitmqv1beta1.Plugin{"rabbitmq_management", "rabbitmq_management", "rabbitmq_shovel", "my_great_plugin"}
 
 						expectedEnabledPlugins := "[" +
-							"rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s," +
 							"rabbitmq_prometheus," +
 							"rabbitmq_management," +
 							"rabbitmq_shovel," +
@@ -199,7 +195,7 @@ var _ = Describe("RabbitMQPlugins", func() {
 				When("previous data is present", func() {
 					BeforeEach(func() {
 						configMap.Data = map[string]string{
-							"enabled_plugins": "[rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s,rabbitmq_shovel]",
+							"enabled_plugins": "[rabbitmq_prometheus,rabbitmq_shovel]",
 						}
 					})
 
@@ -207,7 +203,6 @@ var _ = Describe("RabbitMQPlugins", func() {
 						builder.Instance.Spec.Rabbitmq.AdditionalPlugins = []rabbitmqv1beta1.Plugin{"rabbitmq_management", "rabbitmq_management", "rabbitmq_shovel", "my_great_plugin"}
 
 						expectedEnabledPlugins := "[" +
-							"rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s," +
 							"rabbitmq_prometheus," +
 							"rabbitmq_management," +
 							"rabbitmq_shovel," +
diff --git a/internal/resource/statefulset.go b/internal/resource/statefulset.go
index 5b348cfd7..3f2495e9c 100644
--- a/internal/resource/statefulset.go
+++ b/internal/resource/statefulset.go
@@ -31,6 +31,7 @@ import (
 )
 
 const (
+	stsSuffix           string = "server"
 	initContainerCPU    string = "100m"
 	initContainerMemory string = "500Mi"
 	defaultPVCName      string = "persistence"
@@ -54,7 +55,7 @@ func (builder *StatefulSetBuilder) Build() (client.Object, error) {
 
 	sts := &appsv1.StatefulSet{
 		ObjectMeta: metav1.ObjectMeta{
-			Name:      builder.Instance.ChildResourceName("server"),
+			Name:      builder.Instance.ChildResourceName(stsSuffix),
 			Namespace: builder.Instance.Namespace,
 		},
 		Spec: appsv1.StatefulSetSpec{
diff --git a/system_tests/system_test.go b/system_tests/system_test.go
index 89f7cb64c..14c3b630a 100644
--- a/system_tests/system_test.go
+++ b/system_tests/system_test.go
@@ -78,7 +78,6 @@ var _ = Describe("Operator", func() {
 					"rabbitmq-plugins",
 					"is_enabled",
 					"rabbitmq_management",
-					"rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s",
 					"rabbitmq_prometheus",
 				)
 				Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred())
@@ -174,7 +173,6 @@ var _ = Describe("Operator", func() {
 					"rabbitmq-plugins",
 					"is_enabled",
 					"rabbitmq_management",
-					"rabbitmq_peer_discovery_k8s",
 					"rabbitmq_prometheus",
 					"rabbitmq_top",
 				)