diff --git a/pkg/config/duration.go b/pkg/config/duration.go
index 13b4e263b0..d5f52646d1 100644
--- a/pkg/config/duration.go
+++ b/pkg/config/duration.go
@@ -27,12 +27,36 @@ func MustNewDuration(d time.Duration) *Duration {
 	return &rv
 }
 
+func ParseDuration(s string) (Duration, error) {
+	d, err := time.ParseDuration(s)
+	if err != nil {
+		return Duration{}, err
+	}
+
+	return NewDuration(d)
+}
+
 func (d Duration) Duration() time.Duration {
 	return d.d
 }
 
+// Before returns the time d units before time t
+func (d Duration) Before(t time.Time) time.Time {
+	return t.Add(-d.Duration())
+}
+
+// Shorter returns true if and only if d is shorter than od.
+func (d Duration) Shorter(od Duration) bool { return d.d < od.d }
+
+// IsInstant is true if and only if d is of duration 0
+func (d Duration) IsInstant() bool { return d.d == 0 }
+
+// String returns a string representing the duration in the form "72h3m0.5s".
+// Leading zero units are omitted. As a special case, durations less than one
+// second format use a smaller unit (milli-, micro-, or nanoseconds) to ensure
+// that the leading digit is non-zero. The zero duration formats as 0s.
 func (d Duration) String() string {
-	return d.d.String()
+	return d.Duration().String()
 }
 
 // MarshalJSON implements the json.Marshaler interface.
@@ -58,6 +82,21 @@ func (d *Duration) UnmarshalJSON(input []byte) error {
 	return nil
 }
 
+func (d *Duration) Scan(v interface{}) (err error) {
+	switch tv := v.(type) {
+	case int64:
+		*d, err = NewDuration(time.Duration(tv))
+		return err
+	default:
+		return errors.Errorf(`don't know how to parse "%s" of type %T as a `+
+			`models.Duration`, tv, tv)
+	}
+}
+
+func (d Duration) Value() (driver.Value, error) {
+	return int64(d.d), nil
+}
+
 // MarshalText implements the text.Marshaler interface.
 func (d Duration) MarshalText() ([]byte, error) {
 	return []byte(d.d.String()), nil
@@ -76,18 +115,3 @@ func (d *Duration) UnmarshalText(input []byte) error {
 	*d = pd
 	return nil
 }
-
-func (d *Duration) Scan(v interface{}) (err error) {
-	switch tv := v.(type) {
-	case int64:
-		*d, err = NewDuration(time.Duration(tv))
-		return err
-	default:
-		return errors.Errorf(`don't know how to parse "%s" of type %T as a `+
-			`models.Duration`, tv, tv)
-	}
-}
-
-func (d Duration) Value() (driver.Value, error) {
-	return int64(d.d), nil
-}
diff --git a/pkg/config/duration_test.go b/pkg/config/duration_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..05ac8ac31a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pkg/config/duration_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+package config
+
+import (
+	"encoding/json"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
+)
+
+func TestDuration_MarshalJSON(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name  string
+		input Duration
+		want  string
+	}{
+		{"zero", *MustNewDuration(0), `"0s"`},
+		{"one second", *MustNewDuration(time.Second), `"1s"`},
+		{"one minute", *MustNewDuration(time.Minute), `"1m0s"`},
+		{"one hour", *MustNewDuration(time.Hour), `"1h0m0s"`},
+		{"one hour thirty minutes", *MustNewDuration(time.Hour + 30*time.Minute), `"1h30m0s"`},
+	}
+	for _, test := range tests {
+		t.Run(test.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			b, err := json.Marshal(test.input)
+			assert.NoError(t, err)
+			assert.Equal(t, test.want, string(b))
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func TestDuration_Scan_Value(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	d := MustNewDuration(100)
+	require.NotNil(t, d)
+
+	val, err := d.Value()
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+
+	dNew := MustNewDuration(0)
+	err = dNew.Scan(val)
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+
+	require.Equal(t, d, dNew)
+}
+
+func TestDuration_MarshalJSON_UnmarshalJSON(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	d := MustNewDuration(100)
+	require.NotNil(t, d)
+
+	json, err := d.MarshalJSON()
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+
+	dNew := MustNewDuration(0)
+	err = dNew.UnmarshalJSON(json)
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+
+	require.Equal(t, d, dNew)
+}
+
+func TestDuration_MakeDurationFromString(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+
+	d, err := ParseDuration("1s")
+	require.NoError(t, err)
+	require.Equal(t, 1*time.Second, d.Duration())
+
+	_, err = ParseDuration("xyz")
+	require.Error(t, err)
+}
diff --git a/pkg/config/url.go b/pkg/config/url.go
index 9d694ea9ed..e4a1711685 100644
--- a/pkg/config/url.go
+++ b/pkg/config/url.go
@@ -21,8 +21,30 @@ func MustParseURL(s string) *URL {
 	return u
 }
 
+func (u *URL) String() string {
+	return (*url.URL)(u).String()
+}
+
+// URL returns a copy of u as a *url.URL
+func (u *URL) URL() *url.URL {
+	if u == nil {
+		return nil
+	}
+	// defensive copy
+	r := url.URL(*u)
+	if u.User != nil {
+		r.User = new(url.Userinfo)
+		*r.User = *u.User
+	}
+	return &r
+}
+
+func (u *URL) IsZero() bool {
+	return (url.URL)(*u) == url.URL{}
+}
+
 func (u *URL) MarshalText() ([]byte, error) {
-	return []byte((*url.URL)(u).String()), nil
+	return []byte(u.String()), nil
 }
 
 func (u *URL) UnmarshalText(input []byte) error {