The answer is a load balancer and redundant power supplies. A load balancer distributes incoming traffic across multiple servers, ensuring no single server is overwhelmed, which directly supports scalability by enabling horizontal scaling and high availability by rerouting traffic if a server fails. Redundant power supplies prevent a single point of failure in the electrical system, keeping infrastructure operational during a power supply outage. On the CompTIA Project+ PK0-005 exam, this question tests your understanding of essential high availability and scalability components in a data center migration scenario. A common trap is to confuse a load balancer with a firewall or to overlook redundant power as a hardware-level requirement. Remember the memory tip: “Balance the load, power the road” — load balancers handle traffic distribution, while redundant power keeps the road open.
PK0-005 Practice Question: Basics of IT Infrastructure and IT Project Management
This PK0-005 practice question tests your understanding of basics of it infrastructure and it project management. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A project manager is overseeing a data center migration. The new infrastructure must support high availability and scalability. Which TWO components are essential for achieving these goals?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Load balancer
A load balancer distributes incoming traffic across multiple servers, ensuring no single server is overwhelmed. This directly supports scalability by allowing horizontal scaling, and high availability by rerouting traffic if a server fails. Without a load balancer, traffic spikes or server failures would degrade performance or cause downtime.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
RAID 0
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: RAID 0 stripes data without redundancy, offering no fault tolerance.
✓
Load balancer
Why this is correct
Correct: Load balancers distribute traffic to multiple servers, improving scalability and providing failover for high availability.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
IP addressing scheme
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: IP addressing is necessary for network communication but does not directly provide high availability or scalability.
✓
Redundant power supplies
Why this is correct
Correct: Redundant power supplies prevent downtime from power supply failures, critical for high availability.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Single point of failure
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: Single points of failure reduce availability, contradicting the goal of high availability.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse RAID 0 with RAID 1 or RAID 5, mistakenly thinking striping provides redundancy, when in fact RAID 0 sacrifices fault tolerance for performance.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Load balancers operate at Layer 4 (TCP/UDP) or Layer 7 (HTTP/HTTPS) of the OSI model, using algorithms like round-robin, least connections, or IP hash to distribute traffic. Health checks (e.g., ICMP ping, TCP port check, HTTP 200 OK) are performed periodically to detect failed servers and automatically remove them from the pool. In real-world data center migrations, load balancers enable seamless cutover by gradually shifting traffic to the new infrastructure while monitoring for errors.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A practitioner preparing for the PK0-005 exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Basics of IT Infrastructure and IT Project Management — This question tests Basics of IT Infrastructure and IT Project Management — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Load balancer — A load balancer distributes incoming traffic across multiple servers, ensuring no single server is overwhelmed. This directly supports scalability by allowing horizontal scaling, and high availability by rerouting traffic if a server fails. Without a load balancer, traffic spikes or server failures would degrade performance or cause downtime.
What should I do if I get this PK0-005 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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