CV0-004 Troubleshooting Practice Question
A cloud administrator is investigating why a virtual machine is running slowly. The administrator checks the hypervisor performance metrics. Which TWO of the following metrics indicate CPU contention? (Choose TWO.)
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
✓
High CPU ready time
CPU ready time (option A) and co-stop time (option C) are both indicators of CPU contention. Ready time is time a VM is ready to run but waiting for CPU; co-stop time is time a VM is stopped because another vCPU in the same VM is contending. Option E (High CPU usage percentage) is normal utilization, not contention. Option B (High disk queue depth) is storage-related. Option D (High memory ballooning) is memory-related.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
High CPU ready time
Why this is correct
High CPU ready time measures the percentage of time a virtual machine was ready to run but waited for a physical core. Sustained high values directly indicate CPU contention on the host, satisfying the stem's requirement for a metric evidencing contention.
- ✗
High disk queue depth
Why it's wrong here
Disk queue depth measures storage latency and outstanding I/O requests, indicating disk contention rather than CPU contention. It tempts administrators because slow storage also degrades VM responsiveness, but CPU contention is shown by ready time or co-stop, where virtual CPUs wait for physical cores.
- ✓
High CPU co-stop time
Why this is correct
High CPU co-stop time measures the delay a vCPU suffers waiting for its sibling vCPUs to be scheduled together on a physical core. Elevated co-stop values therefore directly evidence CPU contention at the hypervisor scheduling layer, satisfying the stem's requirement to identify contention rather than mere utilisation.
- ✗
High memory ballooning
Why it's wrong here
Memory ballooning is a host memory-reclamation mechanism, not a CPU-contention signal; it indicates memory pressure, so it cannot evidence CPU contention. It is tempting because ballooning degrades guest performance, and it would be relevant when diagnosing memory overcommitment rather than CPU contention.
- ✗
High CPU usage percentage
Why it's wrong here
High CPU usage percentage reflects a virtual machine consuming processor cycles, which may simply be legitimate demand rather than contention. It tempts administrators because the metric correlates with slowness, but contention is evidenced by CPU ready time or co-stop, which show the VM waiting for physical cores.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This CV0-004 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 CV0-004 exam.