220-1101 Virtualization and Cloud Computing Practice Question
A small business wants to migrate its internal applications to the cloud to reduce hardware maintenance costs. They wish to retain control over the application code and configuration but do not want to manage the underlying operating system or runtime environment. Which cloud service model BEST meets their needs?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse PaaS with IaaS, thinking IaaS also abstracts OS management, but IaaS requires the customer to maintain the OS and runtime, while PaaS fully manages them.
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
✓
Platform as a Service (PaaS)
Platform as a Service (PaaS) provides a managed platform where the customer controls the application code and configuration, while the cloud provider handles the underlying OS and runtime environment. This aligns with the requirement to reduce hardware maintenance costs without managing the OS or runtime.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Software as a Service (SaaS)
Why it's wrong here
SaaS is incorrect because it delivers fully functional, ready-to-use applications (such as email or CRM) that are managed entirely by the provider. Customers have no control over the underlying code, runtime, or configuration, so they cannot upload and run their own internal applications. This model abstracts management completely, but it also removes the customization and development control that the scenario explicitly requires.
- ✓
Platform as a Service (PaaS)
Why this is correct
PaaS is correct because it supplies a managed hosting environment that includes the underlying infrastructure, operating system, and middleware, while leaving the customer in control of deploying and managing their application code and data. This directly satisfies the requirement to reduce OS management without sacrificing the ability to run custom internal applications. The provider handles patches, updates, and scaling of the platform, while the customer focuses solely on application development.
- ✗
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
Why it's wrong here
IaaS is incorrect because it provides raw virtualized compute, storage, and networking resources, but the customer must install, configure, and maintain the operating system, runtime, and applications on each virtual machine. That means the customer still bears the burden of OS patch management, security hardening, and version upgrades, which is exactly the operational overhead the company wants to eliminate. While it offers flexibility, it does not reduce OS management.
- ✗
Desktop as a Service (DaaS)
Why it's wrong here
DaaS is incorrect because it is designed to deliver virtual desktop environments to end users, not to host server-side applications. It abstracts the desktop OS and user session management, but it does not provide a platform for deploying custom business applications. The requirement is about internal applications, not user desktops, so DaaS does not address the stated need for reduced OS management in an application hosting context.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
SSD TRIM, Wear Leveling, and Over-Provisioning
Key term
Platform as a Service
Platform as a Service (PaaS) is a cloud computing model that provides a complete platform for developing, running, and managing applications without the complexity of building and maintaining the underlying infrastructure.
Key term
Operating system
An operating system (OS) is the core software that manages a computer's hardware and software resources, providing common services for computer programs.
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every 220-1101 question from scratch — 896 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 220-1101 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA 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 220-1101 exam.