CKAD Application Deployment Practice Question
You are deploying a stateful application as a StatefulSet named 'db' with three replicas and a headless Service named 'db-headless'. The application requires each pod to have a stable network identity and its own persistent storage that survives pod rescheduling. Which combination of StatefulSet fields ensures this behavior?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming any Service reference works for serviceName, when StatefulSet specifically requires a headless Service to produce per-pod DNS records.
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
✓
Set serviceName to 'db-headless' and define volumeClaimTemplates so each pod gets a uniquely named PVC.
Stable identity and per-pod storage in a StatefulSet come from two fields working together. serviceName must point to a headless Service so each pod gets a predictable DNS name, and volumeClaimTemplates generates a distinct PVC per replica that is retained across rescheduling. Parallel pod management or a shared PVC do not satisfy both requirements simultaneously.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Set serviceName to 'db-headless' and define volumeClaimTemplates so each pod gets a uniquely named PVC.
Why this is correct
The serviceName field binds the StatefulSet to a headless Service, giving each pod a stable DNS name like db-0.db-headless. volumeClaimTemplates creates a PersistentVolumeClaim per replica, named by combining the template name with the pod name, so storage is dedicated and persists across rescheduling. Together these provide the stable identity and per-pod storage the application needs.
- ✗
Set podManagementPolicy to Parallel and define volumeClaimTemplates so all pods start simultaneously with their own PVCs.
Why it's wrong here
podManagementPolicy controls ordering, not network identity. Without serviceName referencing a headless Service, pods do not receive stable DNS names, so the stable identity requirement is unmet. The volumeClaimTemplates portion is correct for storage, but the overall combination fails to deliver the required stable network identity for each replica.
- ✗
Set serviceName to a ClusterIP Service named 'db-svc' and define volumeClaimTemplates for per-pod storage.
Why it's wrong here
StatefulSet requires serviceName to reference a headless Service, not a regular ClusterIP Service. A ClusterIP Service load-balances across pods and does not publish per-pod DNS records, so stable identities like db-0.db-svc are not created. While volumeClaimTemplates handles storage correctly, the network identity requirement is not satisfied.
- ✗
Set serviceName to 'db-headless' and use a single shared PersistentVolumeClaim mounted by all three pods.
Why it's wrong here
Binding to the headless Service provides stable DNS names, but a single shared PVC mounted read-write by multiple pods causes data corruption for stateful databases and does not give each replica its own storage. The requirement explicitly asks for per-pod persistent storage, which a shared claim cannot satisfy even though it does survive rescheduling.
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Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CNCF exam blueprint
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