This CKA practice question tests your understanding of services & networking. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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.
An administrator notices that traffic to a Service is not being forwarded to any pod. The Service has selector 'app: web' and there are pods with that label. However, 'kubectl get endpoints' shows no endpoints. What is the most likely cause?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
The Service port name does not match the container port name.
Why wrong: Port names are optional; if not used, matching is by port number.
The Service type is ClusterIP.
Why wrong: ClusterIP Services can have endpoints.
The Service targetPort is not specified.
Why wrong: If targetPort is omitted, it defaults to the same as port.
The pods are not in Ready state (e.g., failing readiness probes).
Only Ready pods are included as endpoints.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
The pods are not in Ready state (e.g., failing readiness probes).
The most likely cause is that the pods are not in Ready state, often due to failing readiness probes. Kubernetes endpoints are only populated for pods that pass their readiness checks; if a pod is not Ready, it is removed from the Service's endpoint list, even if it is running and has the correct labels.
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.
The Service port name does not match the container port name.
Why it's wrong here
Port names are optional; if not used, matching is by port number.
The Service type is ClusterIP.
Why it's wrong here
ClusterIP Services can have endpoints.
The Service targetPort is not specified.
Why it's wrong here
If targetPort is omitted, it defaults to the same as port.
The pods are not in Ready state (e.g., failing readiness probes).
Why this is correct
Only Ready pods are included as endpoints.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often assume label matching alone guarantees endpoint creation, but Kubernetes requires pods to be in the Ready state (determined by readiness probes) before they are added to the Service's endpoints.
Detailed technical explanation
Kubernetes endpoints are managed by the endpoint controller, which watches pods matching the Service's label selector and checks their readiness via the pod's readinessGates and readiness probes (HTTP, TCP, or exec). If a pod fails its readiness probe, its IP is removed from the endpoint slice, causing traffic to be blackholed. This is a common issue in production when applications take time to initialize or have misconfigured health checks.
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
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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FAQ
Services & Networking — This question tests Services & Networking — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: The pods are not in Ready state (e.g., failing readiness probes). — The most likely cause is that the pods are not in Ready state, often due to failing readiness probes. Kubernetes endpoints are only populated for pods that pass their readiness checks; if a pod is not Ready, it is removed from the Service's endpoint list, even if it is running and has the correct labels.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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