Google ACE Deploying and Implementing a Cloud Solution Practice Question
A company is deploying a stateful application on Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) that requires each pod to have a stable network identity and its own persistent volume. The application uses a clustered database that relies on consistent DNS names for peer discovery. The operations team wants to use GKE-native features to meet these requirements with minimal custom configuration. What should they do?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that a regular ClusterIP Service can provide stable per-pod DNS names, when in fact only a headless Service (with clusterIP: None) creates individual DNS records for each pod in a StatefulSet.
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
✓
Create a StatefulSet with a headless Service and a PersistentVolumeClaim template.
StatefulSets are designed for stateful applications that require stable identities and dedicated storage. A headless Service gives each pod a unique DNS name, which is essential for peer discovery in clustered databases. Volume claim templates dynamically create a PersistentVolumeClaim for each pod, ensuring each replica has its own persistent volume. This combination is the recommended GKE-native solution for stateful workloads.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Create a DaemonSet with hostNetwork enabled and use local SSDs for storage.
Why it's wrong here
A DaemonSet runs a pod on every node, which is not suitable for a clustered database that requires a fixed number of replicas with stable identities. Enabling hostNetwork exposes pods to the node's network namespace, but does not provide stable DNS names for peer discovery. Local SSDs are ephemeral and tied to the node, so data is lost if the node is recreated. This approach fails for stateful clustered applications.
- ✓
Create a StatefulSet with a headless Service and a PersistentVolumeClaim template.
Why this is correct
A StatefulSet provides stable pod names, stable network identities via a headless Service, and ordered deployment and scaling. The headless Service (clusterIP: None) creates DNS records for each pod, enabling peer discovery. The volumeClaimTemplates automatically provisions a PersistentVolumeClaim for each pod, ensuring dedicated storage. This is the standard GKE-native approach for stateful clustered applications.
- ✗
Create a StatefulSet with a regular ClusterIP Service and a single PersistentVolume manually created for each replica.
Why it's wrong here
A StatefulSet is appropriate, but a regular ClusterIP Service does not provide per-pod DNS records; it load-balances across pods, which breaks peer discovery for clustered databases. Manually creating PersistentVolumes for each replica is error-prone and does not automatically bind to pods. The volumeClaimTemplates feature is designed to dynamically provision storage per pod, so manual creation is unnecessary and less reliable.
- ✗
Create a Deployment with a ClusterIP Service and a single PersistentVolume shared by all pods.
Why it's wrong here
A Deployment does not guarantee stable pod names or network identities; pods are ephemeral and can be recreated with new names. A ClusterIP Service provides a single virtual IP for load balancing, not per-pod DNS records, so peer discovery would fail. Sharing a single PersistentVolume across multiple pods is not supported for most volume types and can cause data corruption. This does not meet the requirements.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Network Intelligence Center
Key term
Anthos
Anthos is a Google Cloud platform that lets you run applications consistently across different computing environments, like on-premises data centers and multiple public clouds.
Key term
DNS
DNS is the system that translates human-friendly domain names like example.com into machine-readable IP addresses so computers can find each other on a network.
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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 Google Cloud exam blueprint
This ACE practice question is part of Courseiva's free Google Cloud 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 ACE exam.