CKAD Application Deployment Practice Question
You want to update a Deployment's image to a new version, ensuring that at most 2 pods are unavailable during the rollout. Which field in the Deployment spec should you set?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse `maxUnavailable` with `maxSurge`, as both are rolling update parameters, but `maxSurge` controls extra Pods above the desired count, not the number of Pods that can be down.
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
✓
spec.strategy.rollingUpdate.maxUnavailable
The `maxUnavailable` field in the `spec.strategy.rollingUpdate` section controls the maximum number of Pods that can be unavailable during a rolling update. Setting `maxUnavailable: 2` ensures that at most 2 Pods are taken down at any time, maintaining the required availability threshold. This field is part of the Deployment's update strategy and directly governs the disruption budget during the rollout.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
spec.replicas
Why it's wrong here
spec.replicas defines the desired number of pod replicas, not how updates are rolled out. Changing this field scales the deployment up or down but does not influence the availability guarantees during a rolling update. Unavailability during an update is controlled by the strategy's rollingUpdate parameters, specifically maxUnavailable, not by the replica count.
- ✓
spec.strategy.rollingUpdate.maxUnavailable
Why this is correct
spec.strategy.rollingUpdate.maxUnavailable is correct because it sets the maximum number of pods that can be unavailable during a rolling update, relative to the desired replica count. It ensures a specified number of pods remain available to serve traffic while new pods come up. Tuning this value directly controls the trade-off between update speed and service availability, which is exactly what the question asks about.
- ✗
spec.strategy.rollingUpdate.maxSurge
Why it's wrong here
maxSurge governs the number of extra pods that may be created above the desired replica count during an update, allowing new pods to come up before old ones are removed. It does not limit how many pods can be down; that is the job of maxUnavailable. Confusing the two is common, but maxSurge affects scaling headroom, not the pool of available pods during version replacement.
- ✗
spec.minReadySeconds
Why it's wrong here
minReadySeconds delays when a pod is considered ready after its containers start, giving time for health checks to stabilize. This affects the readiness gate of individual pods, but it does not cap the number of pods that can be unavailable during an update. It influences the pace of a rolling update only indirectly, by delaying readiness, but it is not a mechanism for limiting concurrent unavailability.
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