CV0-004 Troubleshooting Practice Question
A cloud administrator is troubleshooting a database performance issue in a cloud environment. The database is hosted on a virtual machine with a high-performance SSD. Users report slow query responses. Monitoring shows high disk I/O wait and low CPU utilization. Which action should the administrator take to improve performance?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that more CPU or memory will fix slow queries, when the metrics clearly indicate a disk I/O bottleneck.
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
✓
Check the VM's disk queue depth and consider increasing provisioned IOPS.
High disk I/O wait with low CPU utilization points to storage as the bottleneck. Cloud disks have IOPS limits; if the workload exceeds provisioned IOPS, performance degrades. Checking queue depth confirms saturation, and increasing provisioned IOPS or upgrading the disk type resolves the issue. CPU and memory changes do not address the storage bottleneck, and read caching may not help if the workload is write-intensive.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Check the VM's disk queue depth and consider increasing provisioned IOPS.
Why this is correct
High disk I/O wait with low CPU indicates the storage subsystem is the bottleneck. Cloud VMs have limits on IOPS and throughput. If the disk queue is saturated, increasing provisioned IOPS (if using a cloud disk like AWS EBS or Azure Disk) can improve performance. Checking queue depth helps confirm the bottleneck before making changes.
- ✗
Migrate the database to a VM with a larger memory allocation.
Why it's wrong here
While more memory can improve caching and reduce disk I/O, the scenario already shows high disk I/O wait. If the working set exceeds memory, adding RAM could help, but the primary symptom points to disk saturation. Without evidence of memory pressure, this is not the first action. The administrator should investigate disk performance first.
- ✗
Enable read caching on the database to reduce disk reads.
Why it's wrong here
Read caching can help, but if the workload is write-heavy or cache is already effective, it may not resolve I/O wait. The scenario does not specify read vs. write. Moreover, caching is often already enabled by default. The root cause is likely insufficient IOPS, so increasing provisioned IOPS is more direct.
- ✗
Increase the VM's CPU count to handle more concurrent queries.
Why it's wrong here
Low CPU utilization indicates that CPU is not the bottleneck. Adding more CPUs would not alleviate disk I/O wait and could increase costs unnecessarily. The issue is disk-related, so CPU scaling is not the appropriate fix. The administrator should focus on storage performance.
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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 CompTIA exam blueprint
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.