KCNA Kubernetes Fundamentals Practice Question
A cluster administrator needs to run a log-forwarding agent on every node, including nodes added later, without manually scheduling a Pod per node. Which workload object should be used?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is reaching for a Deployment with many replicas, which spreads Pods unevenly and never guarantees coverage of every node.
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
✓
A DaemonSet
Node-wide agents need exactly one instance per node with automatic coverage of newly joined nodes. A DaemonSet is purpose-built for that pattern, scheduling a Pod onto each eligible node as the cluster changes. Deployments, Jobs, and StatefulSets all lack the one-per-node guarantee, so they cannot satisfy the requirement reliably.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
A Deployment with a high replica count
Why it's wrong here
A Deployment spreads replicas according to the scheduler's scoring and does not guarantee one Pod per node. With a replica count near the node count some nodes may host several copies while others host none, and new nodes are not automatically covered. It cannot provide the per-node guarantee a node-level agent requires.
- ✗
A Job with parallelism set to the node count
Why it's wrong here
A Job runs Pods to completion and then stops; it is designed for finite batch work, not for a long-running agent. Parallelism controls concurrent Pod count, not placement per node, and completed Pods are not restarted. Using a Job would leave nodes unmonitored once the work finishes.
- ✓
A DaemonSet
Why this is correct
A DaemonSet ensures one copy of a Pod runs on each eligible node and automatically schedules a copy onto nodes added to the cluster later. That matches node-level agents such as log shippers, metrics collectors, and CNI helpers. It removes the need to hand-place Pods or maintain per-node manifests as the cluster grows or nodes are replaced.
- ✗
A StatefulSet with podManagementPolicy set to Parallel
Why it's wrong here
A StatefulSet provides stable identities and ordered management for stateful workloads, but it does not place one Pod per node. Its replicas are scheduled like any other workload and can be co-located. The Parallel policy only affects creation ordering, so it cannot deliver the uniform node coverage an agent needs.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
One of 930 original KCNA practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
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
This KCNA 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 KCNA exam.