CKAD Application Design and Build Practice Question
A CronJob is configured with concurrencyPolicy: Forbid and schedule: '*/5 * * * *'. The first job takes 7 minutes. What happens when the next scheduled time arrives?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers confuse `Forbid` with `Replace` (which terminates the running job) or assume the new job will queue, but Kubernetes explicitly skips the run without any retry or delay.
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
✓
The new job is skipped
C is correct because when `concurrencyPolicy: Forbid` is set, the CronJob controller skips creating a new job if the previous job is still running at the next scheduled time. Since the first job takes 7 minutes and the schedule is every 5 minutes, the new job is skipped to prevent overlapping executions.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The previous job is terminated
Why it's wrong here
Forbid never terminates a running job; that behaviour belongs to concurrencyPolicy: Replace, which kills the active job before starting the new one. It is tempting because Replace does terminate, but the stem specifies Forbid, so the previous seven-minute job continues untouched.
- ✗
The new job waits until the previous job completes
Why it's wrong here
CronJob does not queue; it either allows, forbids, or replaces.
- ✓
The new job is skipped
Why this is correct
With concurrencyPolicy set to Forbid, Kubernetes refuses to start a new job while the previous one is still running, so the 5-minute trigger is skipped. This satisfies the stem's constraint that the 7-minute job still occupies the schedule.
- ✗
A new job is created immediately
Why it's wrong here
With concurrencyPolicy: Forbid, Kubernetes skips the new run while the previous job is still active rather than starting it. It is tempting because the schedule fires every five minutes, but the seven-minute runtime means the previous job is still running, so the trigger is discarded, not executed immediately.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This CKAD 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 CKAD exam.