This CKA practice question tests your understanding of workloads and scheduling. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A Deployment named 'web-app' is configured with rolling update strategy. You run 'kubectl describe deployment web-app' and see 'RollingUpdateStrategy: 25% max unavailable, 25% max surge'. You have 4 replicas. You update the image. How many pods will be unavailable during the rollout at most?
0
Why wrong: At least one pod must be taken down to be replaced.
4
Why wrong: That would be 100% unavailable, not 25%.
2
Why wrong: 25% max unavailable means 1, not 2.
1
25% of 4 is 1, so at most 1 pod can be unavailable.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
1
With a rolling update strategy of 25% max unavailable and 25% max surge on a Deployment with 4 replicas, the maximum number of pods that can be unavailable during the rollout is 1. This is because 25% of 4 replicas equals 1, and Kubernetes rounds down for max unavailable, ensuring at least 3 pods remain available throughout the update.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
0
Why it's wrong here
At least one pod must be taken down to be replaced.
4
Why it's wrong here
That would be 100% unavailable, not 25%.
2
Why it's wrong here
25% max unavailable means 1, not 2.
1
Why this is correct
25% of 4 is 1, so at most 1 pod can be unavailable.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often mistakenly round up the max unavailable value (e.g., 25% of 4 = 1, but some think it could be 2 due to misinterpreting rounding rules), or they confuse max unavailable with max surge, leading to incorrect counts of unavailable pods.
Detailed technical explanation
Kubernetes calculates max unavailable and max surge as percentages of the desired replicas, rounding down for max unavailable and rounding up for max surge to ensure availability and capacity constraints. During a rolling update, the ReplicaSet controller creates new pods up to the surge limit (1 pod in this case) while terminating old pods within the unavailable limit, maintaining a steady state where the total number of available pods never drops below 3. This behavior is defined in the Deployment controller logic and is crucial for maintaining application uptime during updates in production environments.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A practitioner preparing for the CKA exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
What to study next
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FAQ
Workloads and Scheduling — This question tests Workloads and Scheduling — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: 1 — With a rolling update strategy of 25% max unavailable and 25% max surge on a Deployment with 4 replicas, the maximum number of pods that can be unavailable during the rollout is 1. This is because 25% of 4 replicas equals 1, and Kubernetes rounds down for max unavailable, ensuring at least 3 pods remain available throughout the update.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
This CKA practice question is part of Courseiva's free CNCF certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the CKA exam.
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