diff --git a/common/djangoapps/django_comment_common/models.py b/common/djangoapps/django_comment_common/models.py
index b3c046f920..333df46451 100644
--- a/common/djangoapps/django_comment_common/models.py
+++ b/common/djangoapps/django_comment_common/models.py
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 import logging
 
+from django.conf import settings
 from django.db import models
 from django.contrib.auth.models import User
 
@@ -150,8 +151,15 @@ def all_permissions_for_user_in_course(user, course_id):  # pylint: disable=inva
 class ForumsConfig(ConfigurationModel):
     """Config for the connection to the cs_comments_service forums backend."""
 
-    # For now, just tweak the connection timeout settings. We can add more later.
-    connection_timeout = models.FloatField(default=5.0)
+    connection_timeout = models.FloatField(
+        default=5.0,
+        help_text="Seconds to wait when trying to connect to the comment service.",
+    )
+
+    @property
+    def api_key(self):
+        """The API key used to authenticate to the comments service."""
+        return getattr(settings, "COMMENTS_SERVICE_KEY", None)
 
     def __unicode__(self):
         """Simple representation so the admin screen looks less ugly."""
diff --git a/common/djangoapps/student/tests/test_create_account.py b/common/djangoapps/student/tests/test_create_account.py
index a802827899..1aa79fed35 100644
--- a/common/djangoapps/student/tests/test_create_account.py
+++ b/common/djangoapps/student/tests/test_create_account.py
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ from openedx.core.djangoapps.external_auth.models import ExternalAuthMap
 import student
 from student.models import UserAttribute
 from student.views import REGISTRATION_AFFILIATE_ID, REGISTRATION_UTM_PARAMETERS, REGISTRATION_UTM_CREATED_AT
+from django_comment_common.models import ForumsConfig
 
 TEST_CS_URL = 'https://comments.service.test:123/'
 
@@ -694,6 +695,10 @@ class TestCreateCommentsServiceUser(TransactionTestCase):
             "terms_of_service": "true",
         }
 
+        config = ForumsConfig.current()
+        config.enabled = True
+        config.save()
+
     def test_cs_user_created(self, request):
         "If user account creation succeeds, we should create a comments service user"
         response = self.client.post(self.url, self.params)
diff --git a/common/test/acceptance/fixtures/discussion.py b/common/test/acceptance/fixtures/discussion.py
index 3c91e2fce1..0607625fb0 100644
--- a/common/test/acceptance/fixtures/discussion.py
+++ b/common/test/acceptance/fixtures/discussion.py
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import factory
 import requests
 
 from common.test.acceptance.fixtures import COMMENTS_STUB_URL
+from common.test.acceptance.fixtures.config import ConfigModelFixture
 
 
 class ContentFactory(factory.Factory):
@@ -170,3 +171,12 @@ class SearchResultFixture(DiscussionContentFixture):
 
     def get_config_data(self):
         return {"search_result": json.dumps(self.result)}
+
+
+class ForumsConfigMixin(object):
+    """Mixin providing a method used to configure the forums integration."""
+    def enable_forums(self, is_enabled=True):
+        """Configures whether or not forums are enabled."""
+        ConfigModelFixture('/config/forums', {
+            'enabled': is_enabled,
+        }).install()
diff --git a/common/test/acceptance/tests/discussion/helpers.py b/common/test/acceptance/tests/discussion/helpers.py
index c29d1a032c..0da35d8b21 100644
--- a/common/test/acceptance/tests/discussion/helpers.py
+++ b/common/test/acceptance/tests/discussion/helpers.py
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ from common.test.acceptance.fixtures.discussion import (
     SingleThreadViewFixture,
     Thread,
     Response,
+    ForumsConfigMixin,
 )
 from common.test.acceptance.pages.lms.discussion import DiscussionTabSingleThreadPage
 from common.test.acceptance.tests.helpers import UniqueCourseTest
@@ -86,7 +87,8 @@ class CohortTestMixin(object):
         self.assertTrue(response.ok, "Failed to add user to cohort")
 
 
-class BaseDiscussionTestCase(UniqueCourseTest):
+class BaseDiscussionTestCase(UniqueCourseTest, ForumsConfigMixin):
+    """Base test case class for all discussions-related tests."""
     def setUp(self):
         super(BaseDiscussionTestCase, self).setUp()
 
@@ -97,6 +99,8 @@ class BaseDiscussionTestCase(UniqueCourseTest):
         )
         self.course_fixture.install()
 
+        self.enable_forums()
+
     def create_single_thread_page(self, thread_id):
         """
         Sets up a `DiscussionTabSingleThreadPage` for a given
diff --git a/common/test/acceptance/tests/discussion/test_discussion.py b/common/test/acceptance/tests/discussion/test_discussion.py
index ea57057cb4..897628eacf 100644
--- a/common/test/acceptance/tests/discussion/test_discussion.py
+++ b/common/test/acceptance/tests/discussion/test_discussion.py
@@ -180,7 +180,8 @@ class DiscussionResponsePaginationTestMixin(BaseDiscussionMixin):
         self.assertFalse(self.thread_page.has_add_response_button())
 
 
-class DiscussionHomePageTest(UniqueCourseTest):
+@attr(shard=2)
+class DiscussionHomePageTest(BaseDiscussionTestCase):
     """
     Tests for the discussion home page.
     """
@@ -189,7 +190,6 @@ class DiscussionHomePageTest(UniqueCourseTest):
 
     def setUp(self):
         super(DiscussionHomePageTest, self).setUp()
-        CourseFixture(**self.course_info).install()
         AutoAuthPage(self.browser, course_id=self.course_id).visit()
         self.page = DiscussionTabHomePage(self.browser, self.course_id)
         self.page.visit()
diff --git a/common/test/acceptance/tests/lms/test_teams.py b/common/test/acceptance/tests/lms/test_teams.py
index 181621b5dc..089da322c7 100644
--- a/common/test/acceptance/tests/lms/test_teams.py
+++ b/common/test/acceptance/tests/lms/test_teams.py
@@ -16,7 +16,8 @@ from common.test.acceptance.fixtures import LMS_BASE_URL
 from common.test.acceptance.fixtures.course import CourseFixture
 from common.test.acceptance.fixtures.discussion import (
     Thread,
-    MultipleThreadFixture
+    MultipleThreadFixture,
+    ForumsConfigMixin,
 )
 from common.test.acceptance.pages.lms.auto_auth import AutoAuthPage
 from common.test.acceptance.pages.lms.course_info import CourseInfoPage
@@ -37,7 +38,7 @@ from common.test.acceptance.pages.common.utils import confirm_prompt
 TOPICS_PER_PAGE = 12
 
 
-class TeamsTabBase(EventsTestMixin, UniqueCourseTest):
+class TeamsTabBase(EventsTestMixin, ForumsConfigMixin, UniqueCourseTest):
     """Base class for Teams Tab tests"""
     def setUp(self):
         super(TeamsTabBase, self).setUp()
@@ -47,6 +48,8 @@ class TeamsTabBase(EventsTestMixin, UniqueCourseTest):
         # TODO: Refactor so resetting events database is not necessary
         self.reset_event_tracking()
 
+        self.enable_forums()
+
     def create_topics(self, num_topics):
         """Create `num_topics` test topics."""
         return [{u"description": i, u"name": i, u"id": i} for i in map(str, xrange(num_topics))]
diff --git a/lms/djangoapps/discussion/tests/test_views.py b/lms/djangoapps/discussion/tests/test_views.py
index 6f8dfb7f4d..00dafece4a 100644
--- a/lms/djangoapps/discussion/tests/test_views.py
+++ b/lms/djangoapps/discussion/tests/test_views.py
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@ from django.utils import translation
 from lms.lib.comment_client.utils import CommentClientPaginatedResult
 
 from django_comment_common.utils import ThreadContext
+from django_comment_common.models import ForumsConfig
 from django_comment_client.permissions import get_team
 from django_comment_client.tests.group_id import (
     GroupIdAssertionMixin,
@@ -17,7 +18,7 @@ from django_comment_client.tests.group_id import (
     NonCohortedTopicGroupIdTestMixin,
 )
 from django_comment_client.tests.unicode import UnicodeTestMixin
-from django_comment_client.tests.utils import CohortedTestCase
+from django_comment_client.tests.utils import CohortedTestCase, ForumsEnableMixin
 from django_comment_client.utils import strip_none
 from lms.djangoapps.discussion import views
 from student.tests.factories import UserFactory, CourseEnrollmentFactory
@@ -76,6 +77,10 @@ class ViewsExceptionTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
             self.client = Client()
             assert_true(self.client.login(username=uname, password=password))
 
+        config = ForumsConfig.current()
+        config.enabled = True
+        config.save()
+
     @patch('student.models.cc.User.from_django_user')
     @patch('student.models.cc.User.active_threads')
     def test_user_profile_exception(self, mock_threads, mock_from_django_user):
@@ -220,7 +225,7 @@ class PartialDictMatcher(object):
 
 
 @patch('requests.request', autospec=True)
-class SingleThreadTestCase(ModuleStoreTestCase):
+class SingleThreadTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
 
     CREATE_USER = False
 
@@ -334,13 +339,16 @@ class SingleThreadTestCase(ModuleStoreTestCase):
 
 @ddt.ddt
 @patch('requests.request', autospec=True)
-class SingleThreadQueryCountTestCase(ModuleStoreTestCase):
+class SingleThreadQueryCountTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
     """
     Ensures the number of modulestore queries and number of sql queries are
     independent of the number of responses retrieved for a given discussion thread.
     """
     MODULESTORE = TEST_DATA_MONGO_MODULESTORE
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(SingleThreadQueryCountTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @ddt.data(
         # Old mongo with cache. There is an additional SQL query for old mongo
         # because the first time that disabled_xblocks is queried is in call_single_thread,
@@ -598,7 +606,7 @@ class SingleThreadGroupIdTestCase(CohortedTestCase, GroupIdAssertionMixin):
 
 
 @patch('requests.request', autospec=True)
-class SingleThreadContentGroupTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ContentGroupTestCase):
+class SingleThreadContentGroupTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, UrlResetMixin, ContentGroupTestCase):
 
     @patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
     def setUp(self):
@@ -708,7 +716,7 @@ class SingleThreadContentGroupTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ContentGroupTestCase):
 
 
 @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
-class InlineDiscussionContextTestCase(ModuleStoreTestCase):
+class InlineDiscussionContextTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
     def setUp(self):
         super(InlineDiscussionContextTestCase, self).setUp()
         self.course = CourseFactory.create()
@@ -1039,7 +1047,7 @@ class FollowedThreadsDiscussionGroupIdTestCase(CohortedTestCase, CohortedTopicGr
 
 
 @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
-class InlineDiscussionTestCase(ModuleStoreTestCase):
+class InlineDiscussionTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
     def setUp(self):
         super(InlineDiscussionTestCase, self).setUp()
 
@@ -1097,7 +1105,7 @@ class InlineDiscussionTestCase(ModuleStoreTestCase):
 
 
 @patch('requests.request', autospec=True)
-class UserProfileTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
+class UserProfileTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
 
     TEST_THREAD_TEXT = 'userprofile-test-text'
     TEST_THREAD_ID = 'userprofile-test-thread-id'
@@ -1216,7 +1224,7 @@ class UserProfileTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
 
 
 @patch('requests.request', autospec=True)
-class CommentsServiceRequestHeadersTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
+class CommentsServiceRequestHeadersTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
 
     CREATE_USER = False
 
@@ -1282,7 +1290,7 @@ class CommentsServiceRequestHeadersTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
         self.assert_all_calls_have_header(mock_request, "X-Edx-Api-Key", "test_api_key")
 
 
-class InlineDiscussionUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
+class InlineDiscussionUnicodeTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1297,6 +1305,9 @@ class InlineDiscussionUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixi
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(InlineDiscussionUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request):
         mock_request.side_effect = make_mock_request_impl(course=self.course, text=text)
@@ -1312,7 +1323,7 @@ class InlineDiscussionUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixi
         self.assertEqual(response_data["discussion_data"][0]["body"], text)
 
 
-class ForumFormDiscussionUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
+class ForumFormDiscussionUnicodeTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
         # pylint: disable=super-method-not-called
@@ -1326,6 +1337,9 @@ class ForumFormDiscussionUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestM
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(ForumFormDiscussionUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request):
         mock_request.side_effect = make_mock_request_impl(course=self.course, text=text)
@@ -1342,7 +1356,7 @@ class ForumFormDiscussionUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestM
 
 @ddt.ddt
 @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
-class ForumDiscussionXSSTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
+class ForumDiscussionXSSTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
     @patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
     def setUp(self):
         super(ForumDiscussionXSSTestCase, self).setUp()
@@ -1391,7 +1405,7 @@ class ForumDiscussionXSSTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
         self.assertNotIn(malicious_code, resp.content)
 
 
-class ForumDiscussionSearchUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
+class ForumDiscussionSearchUnicodeTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1406,6 +1420,9 @@ class ForumDiscussionSearchUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTes
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(ForumDiscussionSearchUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request):
         mock_request.side_effect = make_mock_request_impl(course=self.course, text=text)
@@ -1424,7 +1441,7 @@ class ForumDiscussionSearchUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTes
         self.assertEqual(response_data["discussion_data"][0]["body"], text)
 
 
-class SingleThreadUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
+class SingleThreadUnicodeTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1439,6 +1456,9 @@ class SingleThreadUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(SingleThreadUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request):
         thread_id = "test_thread_id"
@@ -1454,7 +1474,7 @@ class SingleThreadUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
         self.assertEqual(response_data["content"]["body"], text)
 
 
-class UserProfileUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
+class UserProfileUnicodeTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1469,6 +1489,9 @@ class UserProfileUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(UserProfileUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request):
         mock_request.side_effect = make_mock_request_impl(course=self.course, text=text)
@@ -1483,7 +1506,7 @@ class UserProfileUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
         self.assertEqual(response_data["discussion_data"][0]["body"], text)
 
 
-class FollowedThreadsUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
+class FollowedThreadsUnicodeTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1498,6 +1521,9 @@ class FollowedThreadsUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(FollowedThreadsUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request):
         mock_request.side_effect = make_mock_request_impl(course=self.course, text=text)
@@ -1512,7 +1538,7 @@ class FollowedThreadsUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin
         self.assertEqual(response_data["discussion_data"][0]["body"], text)
 
 
-class EnrollmentTestCase(ModuleStoreTestCase):
+class EnrollmentTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
     """
     Tests for the behavior of views depending on if the student is enrolled
     in the course
diff --git a/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_api.py b/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_api.py
index 57a8fb4085..f90bbee25b 100644
--- a/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_api.py
+++ b/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_api.py
@@ -49,6 +49,7 @@ from django_comment_common.models import (
     FORUM_ROLE_STUDENT,
     Role,
 )
+from django_comment_client.tests.utils import ForumsEnableMixin
 from openedx.core.djangoapps.course_groups.models import CourseUserGroupPartitionGroup
 from openedx.core.djangoapps.course_groups.tests.helpers import CohortFactory
 from openedx.core.lib.exceptions import CourseNotFoundError, PageNotFoundError
@@ -85,7 +86,7 @@ def _discussion_disabled_course_for(user):
 
 @attr(shard=2)
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
-class GetCourseTest(UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
+class GetCourseTest(ForumsEnableMixin, UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
     """Test for get_course"""
 
     @classmethod
@@ -133,7 +134,7 @@ class GetCourseTest(UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
 @attr(shard=2)
 @ddt.ddt
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
-class GetCourseTestBlackouts(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
+class GetCourseTestBlackouts(ForumsEnableMixin, UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
     """
     Tests of get_course for courses that have blackout dates.
     """
@@ -177,7 +178,7 @@ class GetCourseTestBlackouts(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
 @attr(shard=2)
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"DISABLE_START_DATES": False})
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
-class GetCourseTopicsTest(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
+class GetCourseTopicsTest(ForumsEnableMixin, UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
     """Test for get_course_topics"""
     @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
     def setUp(self):
@@ -551,7 +552,7 @@ class GetCourseTopicsTest(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase):
 @attr(shard=2)
 @ddt.ddt
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
-class GetThreadListTest(CommentsServiceMockMixin, UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
+class GetThreadListTest(ForumsEnableMixin, CommentsServiceMockMixin, UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
     """Test for get_thread_list"""
 
     @classmethod
@@ -1006,7 +1007,7 @@ class GetThreadListTest(CommentsServiceMockMixin, UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleSto
 @attr(shard=2)
 @ddt.ddt
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
-class GetCommentListTest(CommentsServiceMockMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
+class GetCommentListTest(ForumsEnableMixin, CommentsServiceMockMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
     """Test for get_comment_list"""
 
     @classmethod
@@ -1442,6 +1443,7 @@ class GetCommentListTest(CommentsServiceMockMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
 @disable_signal(api, 'thread_voted')
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
 class CreateThreadTest(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
         CommentsServiceMockMixin,
         UrlResetMixin,
         SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
@@ -1694,6 +1696,7 @@ class CreateThreadTest(
 @disable_signal(api, 'comment_voted')
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
 class CreateCommentTest(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
         CommentsServiceMockMixin,
         UrlResetMixin,
         SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
@@ -1962,6 +1965,7 @@ class CreateCommentTest(
 @disable_signal(api, 'thread_voted')
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
 class UpdateThreadTest(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
         CommentsServiceMockMixin,
         UrlResetMixin,
         SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
@@ -2370,6 +2374,7 @@ class UpdateThreadTest(
 @disable_signal(api, 'comment_voted')
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
 class UpdateCommentTest(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
         CommentsServiceMockMixin,
         UrlResetMixin,
         SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
@@ -2774,6 +2779,7 @@ class UpdateCommentTest(
 @disable_signal(api, 'thread_deleted')
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
 class DeleteThreadTest(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
         CommentsServiceMockMixin,
         UrlResetMixin,
         SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
@@ -2914,6 +2920,7 @@ class DeleteThreadTest(
 @disable_signal(api, 'comment_deleted')
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
 class DeleteCommentTest(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
         CommentsServiceMockMixin,
         UrlResetMixin,
         SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
@@ -3072,6 +3079,7 @@ class DeleteCommentTest(
 @ddt.ddt
 @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
 class RetrieveThreadTest(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
         CommentsServiceMockMixin,
         UrlResetMixin,
         SharedModuleStoreTestCase
diff --git a/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_serializers.py b/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_serializers.py
index a979037e97..0b78746897 100644
--- a/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_serializers.py
+++ b/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_serializers.py
@@ -31,10 +31,11 @@ from util.testing import UrlResetMixin
 from xmodule.modulestore.tests.django_utils import SharedModuleStoreTestCase
 from xmodule.modulestore.tests.factories import CourseFactory
 from openedx.core.djangoapps.course_groups.tests.helpers import CohortFactory
+from django_comment_client.tests.utils import ForumsEnableMixin
 
 
 @ddt.ddt
-class SerializerTestMixin(CommentsServiceMockMixin, UrlResetMixin):
+class SerializerTestMixin(ForumsEnableMixin, CommentsServiceMockMixin, UrlResetMixin):
     @classmethod
     @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -426,7 +427,12 @@ class CommentSerializerTest(SerializerTestMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
 
 
 @ddt.ddt
-class ThreadSerializerDeserializationTest(CommentsServiceMockMixin, UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
+class ThreadSerializerDeserializationTest(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
+        CommentsServiceMockMixin,
+        UrlResetMixin,
+        SharedModuleStoreTestCase
+):
     """Tests for ThreadSerializer deserialization."""
     @classmethod
     @mock.patch.dict("django.conf.settings.FEATURES", {"ENABLE_DISCUSSION_SERVICE": True})
@@ -629,7 +635,7 @@ class ThreadSerializerDeserializationTest(CommentsServiceMockMixin, UrlResetMixi
 
 
 @ddt.ddt
-class CommentSerializerDeserializationTest(CommentsServiceMockMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
+class CommentSerializerDeserializationTest(ForumsEnableMixin, CommentsServiceMockMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
     """Tests for ThreadSerializer deserialization."""
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
diff --git a/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_views.py b/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_views.py
index ea6444b81f..ab9eeaccef 100644
--- a/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_views.py
+++ b/lms/djangoapps/discussion_api/tests/test_views.py
@@ -27,13 +27,14 @@ from discussion_api.tests.utils import (
     make_minimal_cs_thread,
     make_paginated_api_response,
     ProfileImageTestMixin)
+from django_comment_client.tests.utils import ForumsEnableMixin
 from student.tests.factories import CourseEnrollmentFactory, UserFactory
 from util.testing import UrlResetMixin, PatchMediaTypeMixin
 from xmodule.modulestore.tests.django_utils import ModuleStoreTestCase
 from xmodule.modulestore.tests.factories import CourseFactory, check_mongo_calls, ItemFactory
 
 
-class DiscussionAPIViewTestMixin(CommentsServiceMockMixin, UrlResetMixin):
+class DiscussionAPIViewTestMixin(ForumsEnableMixin, CommentsServiceMockMixin, UrlResetMixin):
     """
     Mixin for common code in tests of Discussion API views. This includes
     creation of common structures (e.g. a course, user, and enrollment), logging
diff --git a/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/base/tests.py b/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/base/tests.py
index b2edcd84b8..236c2e3b8d 100644
--- a/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/base/tests.py
+++ b/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/base/tests.py
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ from lms.lib.comment_client import Thread
 from common.test.utils import MockSignalHandlerMixin, disable_signal
 from django_comment_client.base import views
 from django_comment_client.tests.group_id import CohortedTopicGroupIdTestMixin, NonCohortedTopicGroupIdTestMixin, GroupIdAssertionMixin
-from django_comment_client.tests.utils import CohortedTestCase
+from django_comment_client.tests.utils import CohortedTestCase, ForumsEnableMixin
 from django_comment_client.tests.unicode import UnicodeTestMixin
 from django_comment_common.models import Role
 from django_comment_common.utils import seed_permissions_roles, ThreadContext
@@ -346,7 +346,13 @@ class ViewsTestCaseMixin(object):
 @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
 @disable_signal(views, 'thread_created')
 @disable_signal(views, 'thread_edited')
-class ViewsQueryCountTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin, ViewsTestCaseMixin):
+class ViewsQueryCountTestCase(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
+        UrlResetMixin,
+        ModuleStoreTestCase,
+        MockRequestSetupMixin,
+        ViewsTestCaseMixin
+):
 
     CREATE_USER = False
     ENABLED_CACHES = ['default', 'mongo_metadata_inheritance', 'loc_cache']
@@ -392,6 +398,7 @@ class ViewsQueryCountTestCase(UrlResetMixin, ModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSet
 @ddt.ddt
 @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
 class ViewsTestCase(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
         UrlResetMixin,
         SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
         MockRequestSetupMixin,
@@ -1019,7 +1026,7 @@ class ViewsTestCase(
 @attr(shard=2)
 @patch("lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request", autospec=True)
 @disable_signal(views, 'comment_endorsed')
-class ViewPermissionsTestCase(UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
+class ViewPermissionsTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1127,7 +1134,11 @@ class ViewPermissionsTestCase(UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequ
 
 
 @attr(shard=2)
-class CreateThreadUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin, MockRequestSetupMixin):
+class CreateThreadUnicodeTestCase(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
+        SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
+        UnicodeTestMixin,
+        MockRequestSetupMixin):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1143,6 +1154,9 @@ class CreateThreadUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin, M
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(CreateThreadUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request,):
         """
@@ -1164,7 +1178,12 @@ class CreateThreadUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin, M
 
 @attr(shard=2)
 @disable_signal(views, 'thread_edited')
-class UpdateThreadUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin, MockRequestSetupMixin):
+class UpdateThreadUnicodeTestCase(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
+        SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
+        UnicodeTestMixin,
+        MockRequestSetupMixin
+):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1180,6 +1199,9 @@ class UpdateThreadUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin, M
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(UpdateThreadUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('django_comment_client.utils.get_discussion_categories_ids', return_value=["test_commentable"])
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request, mock_get_discussion_id_map):
@@ -1202,7 +1224,12 @@ class UpdateThreadUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin, M
 
 @attr(shard=2)
 @disable_signal(views, 'comment_created')
-class CreateCommentUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin, MockRequestSetupMixin):
+class CreateCommentUnicodeTestCase(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
+        SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
+        UnicodeTestMixin,
+        MockRequestSetupMixin
+):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1218,6 +1245,9 @@ class CreateCommentUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin,
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(CreateCommentUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request):
         commentable_id = "non_team_dummy_id"
@@ -1245,7 +1275,12 @@ class CreateCommentUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin,
 
 @attr(shard=2)
 @disable_signal(views, 'comment_edited')
-class UpdateCommentUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin, MockRequestSetupMixin):
+class UpdateCommentUnicodeTestCase(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
+        SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
+        UnicodeTestMixin,
+        MockRequestSetupMixin
+):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1261,6 +1296,9 @@ class UpdateCommentUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin,
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(UpdateCommentUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request):
         self._set_mock_request_data(mock_request, {
@@ -1279,7 +1317,12 @@ class UpdateCommentUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin,
 
 @attr(shard=2)
 @disable_signal(views, 'comment_created')
-class CreateSubCommentUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixin, MockRequestSetupMixin):
+class CreateSubCommentUnicodeTestCase(
+        ForumsEnableMixin,
+        SharedModuleStoreTestCase,
+        UnicodeTestMixin,
+        MockRequestSetupMixin
+):
     """
     Make sure comments under a response can handle unicode.
     """
@@ -1297,6 +1340,9 @@ class CreateSubCommentUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixi
         cls.student = UserFactory.create()
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.student, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(CreateSubCommentUnicodeTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def _test_unicode_data(self, text, mock_request):
         """
@@ -1332,7 +1378,7 @@ class CreateSubCommentUnicodeTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, UnicodeTestMixi
 @disable_signal(views, 'comment_created')
 @disable_signal(views, 'comment_voted')
 @disable_signal(views, 'comment_deleted')
-class TeamsPermissionsTestCase(UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
+class TeamsPermissionsTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
     # Most of the test points use the same ddt data.
     # args: user, commentable_id, status_code
     ddt_permissions_args = [
@@ -1599,7 +1645,7 @@ TEAM_COMMENTABLE_ID = 'test-team-discussion'
 @attr(shard=2)
 @disable_signal(views, 'comment_created')
 @ddt.ddt
-class ForumEventTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
+class ForumEventTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
     """
     Forum actions are expected to launch analytics events. Test these here.
     """
@@ -1620,6 +1666,9 @@ class ForumEventTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
         cls.student.roles.add(Role.objects.get(name="Student", course_id=cls.course.id))
         CourseAccessRoleFactory(course_id=cls.course.id, user=cls.student, role='Wizard')
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(ForumEventTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     @patch('eventtracking.tracker.emit')
     @patch('lms.lib.comment_client.utils.requests.request', autospec=True)
     def test_thread_event(self, __, mock_emit):
@@ -1783,7 +1832,7 @@ class ForumEventTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
 
 
 @attr(shard=2)
-class UsersEndpointTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
+class UsersEndpointTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
 
     @classmethod
     def setUpClass(cls):
@@ -1802,6 +1851,9 @@ class UsersEndpointTestCase(SharedModuleStoreTestCase, MockRequestSetupMixin):
         cls.other_user = UserFactory.create(username="other")
         CourseEnrollmentFactory(user=cls.other_user, course_id=cls.course.id)
 
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(UsersEndpointTestCase, self).setUp()
+
     def set_post_counts(self, mock_request, threads_count=1, comments_count=1):
         """
         sets up a mock response from the comments service for getting post counts for our other_user
diff --git a/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/tests/test_utils.py b/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/tests/test_utils.py
index 690b0972f1..290daafb22 100644
--- a/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/tests/test_utils.py
+++ b/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/tests/test_utils.py
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ import datetime
 import json
 import ddt
 import mock
+from mock import patch, Mock
 from nose.plugins.attrib import attr
 from pytz import UTC
 from django.utils.timezone import UTC as django_utc
@@ -14,6 +15,8 @@ from edxmako import add_lookup
 from django_comment_client.tests.factories import RoleFactory
 from django_comment_client.tests.unicode import UnicodeTestMixin
 import django_comment_client.utils as utils
+from lms.lib.comment_client.utils import perform_request, CommentClientMaintenanceError
+from django_comment_common.models import ForumsConfig
 
 from courseware.tests.factories import InstructorFactory
 from courseware.tabs import get_course_tab_list
@@ -1417,3 +1420,32 @@ class PermissionsTestCase(ModuleStoreTestCase):
         # content has no known author
         del content['user_id']
         self.assertFalse(utils.is_content_authored_by(content, user))
+
+
+class ClientConfigurationTestCase(TestCase):
+    """Simple test cases to ensure enabling/disabling the use of the comment service works as intended."""
+
+    def test_disabled(self):
+        """Ensures that an exception is raised when forums are disabled."""
+        config = ForumsConfig.current()
+        config.enabled = False
+        config.save()
+
+        with self.assertRaises(CommentClientMaintenanceError):
+            perform_request('GET', 'http://www.google.com')
+
+    @patch('requests.request')
+    def test_enabled(self, mock_request):
+        """Ensures that requests proceed normally when forums are enabled."""
+        config = ForumsConfig.current()
+        config.enabled = True
+        config.save()
+
+        response = Mock()
+        response.status_code = 200
+        response.json = lambda: {}
+
+        mock_request.return_value = response
+
+        result = perform_request('GET', 'http://www.google.com')
+        self.assertEqual(result, {})
diff --git a/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/tests/utils.py b/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/tests/utils.py
index eda735dd14..301189b5a0 100644
--- a/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/tests/utils.py
+++ b/lms/djangoapps/django_comment_client/tests/utils.py
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ Utilities for tests within the django_comment_client module.
 from mock import patch
 
 from openedx.core.djangoapps.course_groups.tests.helpers import CohortFactory
-from django_comment_common.models import Role
+from django_comment_common.models import Role, ForumsConfig
 from django_comment_common.utils import seed_permissions_roles
 from student.tests.factories import CourseEnrollmentFactory, UserFactory
 from util.testing import UrlResetMixin
@@ -12,7 +12,19 @@ from xmodule.modulestore.tests.factories import CourseFactory
 from xmodule.modulestore.tests.django_utils import SharedModuleStoreTestCase
 
 
-class CohortedTestCase(UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
+class ForumsEnableMixin(object):
+    """
+    Ensures that the forums are enabled for a given test class.
+    """
+    def setUp(self):
+        super(ForumsEnableMixin, self).setUp()
+
+        config = ForumsConfig.current()
+        config.enabled = True
+        config.save()
+
+
+class CohortedTestCase(ForumsEnableMixin, UrlResetMixin, SharedModuleStoreTestCase):
     """
     Sets up a course with a student, a moderator and their cohorts.
     """
diff --git a/lms/lib/comment_client/utils.py b/lms/lib/comment_client/utils.py
index 25eaaf3ef6..0531574b40 100644
--- a/lms/lib/comment_client/utils.py
+++ b/lms/lib/comment_client/utils.py
@@ -55,6 +55,10 @@ def perform_request(method, url, data_or_params=None, raw=False,
                     metric_action=None, metric_tags=None, paged_results=False):
     # To avoid dependency conflict
     from django_comment_common.models import ForumsConfig
+    config = ForumsConfig.current()
+
+    if not config.enabled:
+        raise CommentClientMaintenanceError('service disabled')
 
     if metric_tags is None:
         metric_tags = []
@@ -66,7 +70,7 @@ def perform_request(method, url, data_or_params=None, raw=False,
     if data_or_params is None:
         data_or_params = {}
     headers = {
-        'X-Edx-Api-Key': getattr(settings, "COMMENTS_SERVICE_KEY", None),
+        'X-Edx-Api-Key': config.api_key,
         'Accept-Language': get_language(),
     }
     request_id = uuid4()
@@ -79,7 +83,6 @@ def perform_request(method, url, data_or_params=None, raw=False,
         data = None
         params = merge_dict(data_or_params, request_id_dict)
     with request_timer(request_id, method, url, metric_tags):
-        config = ForumsConfig.current()
         response = requests.request(
             method,
             url,
@@ -112,7 +115,7 @@ def perform_request(method, url, data_or_params=None, raw=False,
                 data = response.json()
             except ValueError:
                 raise CommentClientError(
-                    u"Comments service returned invalid JSON for request {request_id}; first 100 characters: '{content}'".format(
+                    u"Invalid JSON response for request {request_id}; first 100 characters: '{content}'".format(
                         request_id=request_id,
                         content=response.text[:100]
                     )
diff --git a/lms/urls.py b/lms/urls.py
index 3b10c680e6..fcd6b3282f 100644
--- a/lms/urls.py
+++ b/lms/urls.py
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ from openedx.core.djangoapps.auth_exchange.views import LoginWithAccessTokenView
 from openedx.core.djangoapps.catalog.models import CatalogIntegration
 from openedx.core.djangoapps.programs.models import ProgramsApiConfig
 from openedx.core.djangoapps.self_paced.models import SelfPacedConfiguration
+from django_comment_common.models import ForumsConfig
 from openedx.core.djangoapps.site_configuration import helpers as configuration_helpers
 
 # Uncomment the next two lines to enable the admin:
@@ -905,6 +906,7 @@ urlpatterns += (
     url(r'config/self_paced', ConfigurationModelCurrentAPIView.as_view(model=SelfPacedConfiguration)),
     url(r'config/programs', ConfigurationModelCurrentAPIView.as_view(model=ProgramsApiConfig)),
     url(r'config/catalog', ConfigurationModelCurrentAPIView.as_view(model=CatalogIntegration)),
+    url(r'config/forums', ConfigurationModelCurrentAPIView.as_view(model=ForumsConfig)),
 )
 
 urlpatterns = patterns(*urlpatterns)