CKAD Services and Networking Practice Question
Which command forwards local port 8080 to port 80 of a pod named 'web-pod'?
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to confuse the port order (local:pod) or incorrectly assume that `kubectl port-forward` works with any resource type like Deployments, when in fact it only supports pods and services (and some other specific types).
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
✓
kubectl port-forward pod/web-pod 8080:80
`kubectl port-forward` requires the resource type and name, and for a pod, the syntax is `pod/<pod-name>`. The command `kubectl port-forward pod/web-pod 8080:80` forwards local port 8080 to port 80 of the pod, matching the question's requirement exactly.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
kubectl port-forward service/web-service 8080:80
Why it's wrong here
The service/web-service form of kubectl port-forward targets a Service object, not a specific Pod. Since the question asks to forward to a pod named web-pod, using a Service would route to whichever Pods are currently backing that Service's selector, not necessarily web-pod. This command has valid syntax, but it fails the requirement of a direct, pod-specific tunnel to web-pod.
- ✓
kubectl port-forward pod/web-pod 8080:80
Why this is correct
This is the correct command because kubectl port-forward is given the resource type pod, the exact pod name web-pod, and the port mapping 8080:80, where the format is LOCAL_PORT:REMOTE_PORT. It opens a direct TCP tunnel from localhost:8080 on your workstation to port 80 of web-pod's IP, bypassing Services and Deployments. This ensures traffic reaches that exact pod, which is what the question specifies.
- ✗
kubectl port-forward deployment/web-deployment 8080:80
Why it's wrong here
Targeting deployment/web-deployment with kubectl port-forward uses the Deployment's selector to choose an arbitrary healthy Pod among its replicas. The command does not resolve to the specific pod named web-pod; it may pick any Pod managed by that Deployment, making the target nondeterministic. Since the question explicitly requires forwarding to web-pod, relying on a Deployment's pod selection is incorrect, even though the port-forward syntax itself is otherwise valid.
- ✗
kubectl port-forward pod/web-pod 80:8080
Why it's wrong here
The order of the ports is reversed: kubectl port-forward expects LOCAL_PORT:REMOTE_PORT, so 80:8080 would listen on your local port 80 and forward to port 8080 on web-pod. This is the opposite of the requested mapping, which is local 8080 to pod port 80. Even though the resource specifier pod/web-pod is correct, the port pair does not match the question's requirement.
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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.