CKA Services and Networking Practice Question
Which of the following service types exposes a service on a static port on each node's IP address?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse NodePort with LoadBalancer, thinking that LoadBalancer also exposes a static port on each node, but LoadBalancer actually relies on a cloud provider's external load balancer and does not automatically open a port on every node's IP.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
NodePort
NodePort is the correct answer because it exposes a service on a static port (in the range 30000-32767) on every node's IP address. When you create a NodePort service, Kubernetes allocates a port from that range and opens that port on all nodes, forwarding traffic to the service's ClusterIP and then to the pods.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
ExternalName
Why it's wrong here
ExternalName maps a Service to a DNS CNAME record and allocates no ClusterIP, node port, or proxy rules, so nothing listens on node IPs. It is tempting because it does expose an external name to clients, and would be correct for aliasing an in-cluster Service to an external DNS hostname.
- ✓
NodePort
Why this is correct
NodePort allocates a static port from the default range 30000–32767 and opens it on every node's IP, forwarding traffic to the service. This satisfies the stem's requirement for exposure on a fixed port per node, unlike ClusterIP (internal only) or LoadBalancer (cloud-provisioned external IP).
- ✗
LoadBalancer
Why it's wrong here
LoadBalancer builds on NodePort but its defining behaviour is provisioning a cloud provider's external load balancer with its own address; the static node port is incidental. It is tempting because it does open a node port, and would be correct when an externally reachable, provider-managed load-balanced address is required.
- ✗
ClusterIP
Why it's wrong here
ClusterIP allocates only a virtual IP reachable inside the cluster; no port is opened on any node's IP address. It is tempting because it is the default Service type and provides stable internal access, and would be correct for pod-to-pod or intra-cluster communication.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Troubleshooting Cluster and Node Issues
Key term
Network Policies
A Kubernetes resource that controls how pods communicate with each other and with other network endpoints, acting as a firewall for pod-to-pod traffic.
Key term
ClusterIP NodePort LoadBalancer
ClusterIP, NodePort, and LoadBalancer are three types of Kubernetes Services that control how traffic reaches your application pods inside the cluster or from outside.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.