KCNA Cloud Native Architecture Practice Question
Which of the following is a key difference between a service mesh and an API gateway?
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
✓
Service mesh manages east-west traffic between services, while API gateway manages north-south traffic from external clients
Service mesh focuses on internal service-to-service communication within the cluster, while API gateway handles external traffic entering the cluster (north-south traffic). Both can perform traffic management, but their scopes differ.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Service mesh is only used in multi-cloud environments, while API gateway is for single-cloud
Why it's wrong here
Both can be used in any environment.
- ✓
Service mesh manages east-west traffic between services, while API gateway manages north-south traffic from external clients
Why this is correct
This correctly describes the primary traffic direction each handles.
- ✗
Service mesh provides authentication and authorization, while API gateway does not
Why it's wrong here
Both can provide security features.
- ✗
Service mesh handles north-south traffic, while API gateway handles east-west traffic
Why it's wrong here
It's the opposite: service mesh handles east-west (internal) traffic, API gateway handles north-south (external) traffic.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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