220-1101 Virtualization and Cloud Computing Practice Question
A small business is migrating its on-premises file server to a cloud service. The company wants full control over the operating system, file-sharing permissions, and security settings, but does not want to manage the physical server hardware, storage arrays, or network infrastructure. Which of the following cloud service models BEST meets these requirements?
⚠ Common exam trap
Watch out — candidates often confuse PaaS with IaaS: candidates often think PaaS offers OS control because it supports custom runtimes, but PaaS does not grant direct OS-level access or full file-sharing permission management.
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
✓
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
Corresponds to Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), which provides virtualized computing resources over the internet. With IaaS, the customer manages the operating system, applications, and security settings, while the cloud provider handles the underlying physical hardware, storage, and network infrastructure. This matches the requirement for full control over the OS and permissions without managing physical hardware.
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 provides ready-to-use software applications; the user does not manage the OS or underlying infrastructure, so it does not meet the requirement for full OS control.
When this WOULD be correct
Option A would be correct if the question stated that the company needs full control over the OS and applications, and is willing to manage virtual servers, storage, and networking, but does not want to manage physical hardware. For example: 'A company wants to run custom software on a virtual server with full OS access, but does not want to purchase or maintain physical servers.'
- ✓
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
Why this is correct
IaaS provides virtualized computing resources; the user manages the OS, applications, and security settings, while the provider handles the physical hardware. This matches the requirement for full control without managing physical hardware.
- ✗
Platform as a Service (PaaS)
Why it's wrong here
PaaS provides a platform for developing and deploying applications; the user typically does not manage the OS or underlying infrastructure, so it does not grant full OS-level access or file-sharing permission management.
When this WOULD be correct
A scenario where a company needs to deploy a custom application on a virtual machine with full administrative control over the OS and middleware, but wants to avoid purchasing and maintaining physical servers, storage, and networking hardware. For example, a business migrating a legacy database to the cloud while retaining OS-level configuration and security patches.
- ✗
Private Cloud
Why it's wrong here
Private Cloud is a deployment model, not a service model. While it may offer more control, it still requires the organization to manage the underlying service model (often IaaS) and does not automatically exempt the organization from managing physical hardware unless specifically outsourced.
When this WOULD be correct
Option D would be correct if the question asked for a cloud service model where the provider manages the OS and middleware, and the customer only needs to deploy and manage applications, such as in a PaaS scenario for web app hosting.
Option-by-option analysis
Why each answer is right or wrong
Understanding why wrong answers are wrong — and when they would be correct — is what separates a 750 score from a 900. The 220-1101 exam frequently reuses these exact scenarios with slightly different constraints.
✓Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)Correct answer▾
Why this is correct
IaaS provides virtualized computing resources; the user manages the OS, applications, and security settings, while the provider handles the physical hardware. This matches the requirement for full control without managing physical hardware.
✗Software as a Service (SaaS)Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Option A (likely IaaS) is wrong because the question specifies full control over the OS, file-sharing permissions, and security settings, which IaaS provides, but the company does not want to manage physical hardware, storage arrays, or network infrastructure. IaaS still requires the customer to manage virtual machines, storage, and networking, which contradicts the desire to avoid managing storage arrays and network infrastructure.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
Option A would be correct if the question stated that the company needs full control over the OS and applications, and is willing to manage virtual servers, storage, and networking, but does not want to manage physical hardware. For example: 'A company wants to run custom software on a virtual server with full OS access, but does not want to purchase or maintain physical servers.'
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse IaaS with PaaS or SaaS, thinking that IaaS provides full control without any management responsibility, but IaaS still requires the customer to manage the OS, middleware, and runtime, and often storage and networking configurations.
✗Platform as a Service (PaaS)Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Option C (IaaS) provides virtualized computing resources over the internet, but the question specifies the company wants full control over the OS, file-sharing permissions, and security settings without managing physical hardware. IaaS does require the customer to manage the OS and applications, which matches the control requirement, but the question's correct answer is likely PaaS or SaaS depending on the actual options. Since the correct answer is B, option C is wrong because it does not meet the specific balance of control and management abstraction described.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
A scenario where a company needs to deploy a custom application on a virtual machine with full administrative control over the OS and middleware, but wants to avoid purchasing and maintaining physical servers, storage, and networking hardware. For example, a business migrating a legacy database to the cloud while retaining OS-level configuration and security patches.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse IaaS with providing full control over the OS and applications, which it does, but they overlook that the question's correct answer (B) likely offers a higher level of abstraction (e.g., PaaS) that still meets the control requirements while reducing management overhead further.
✗Private CloudWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Option D is likely a different cloud service model (e.g., SaaS or PaaS) that does not provide full control over the operating system and file-sharing permissions, which are required for the migration of an on-premises file server.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
Option D would be correct if the question asked for a cloud service model where the provider manages the OS and middleware, and the customer only needs to deploy and manage applications, such as in a PaaS scenario for web app hosting.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse the level of control offered by different cloud models, mistakenly thinking that a higher-level service still provides OS control, or they may not fully understand the distinctions between IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS.
Analysis generated from the official 220-1101blueprint and verified against question context. The “when correct” sections are what AI assistants cite when candidates ask “what’s the difference between these options?”
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Network Configuration: IP, DNS, DHCP
Key term
Anything As A Service
A model where you rent any IT resource or service over the internet instead of owning it.
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.
About these practice questions
This 220-1101 question is part of Courseiva's 896-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam 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.