Google ACE Deploying and Implementing a Cloud Solution Practice Question
An engineer is configuring a GKE cluster and wants to enable Horizontal Pod Autoscaling (HPA) for a deployment named 'web-frontend'. The deployment currently has 3 replicas. The engineer wants to automatically scale the number of pods based on CPU utilization, targeting 50% average CPU utilization. Which command should the engineer run?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap is confusing cluster autoscaling (node-level, gcloud) with Horizontal Pod Autoscaling (pod-level, kubectl), and mixing up the --cpu-percent flag with invalid alternatives like --cpu or --max-cpu.
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
✓
kubectl autoscale deployment web-frontend --cpu-percent=50 --min=3 --max=10
The correct command is 'kubectl autoscale deployment web-frontend --cpu-percent=50 --min=3 --max=10', which creates an HPA targeting 50% average CPU utilization with a minimum of 3 and maximum of 10 replicas. The 'kubectl autoscale' subcommand is the standard imperative way to create an HPA for a deployment. The flags --cpu-percent, --min, and --max are the correct parameters for this command.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
gcloud container clusters autoscale web-frontend --target-cpu-utilization=0.5 --min-nodes=3 --max-nodes=10
Why it's wrong here
This gcloud command configures cluster node autoscaling, adjusting the number of nodes in a node pool rather than the replica count of the web-frontend deployment. It is tempting because it also targets 50% CPU, but node autoscaling responds to unschedulable pods, not per-deployment pod scaling.
- ✗
kubectl autoscale deployment web-frontend --max-cpu=50 --min=3 --max=10
Why it's wrong here
kubectl autoscale has no --max-cpu flag; CPU targeting is expressed with --cpu-percent. It is tempting because the deployment, minimum and maximum values are all correct, and the intent to scale on CPU is right, but the flag name does not exist.
- ✓
kubectl autoscale deployment web-frontend --cpu-percent=50 --min=3 --max=10
Why this is correct
kubectl autoscale creates a HorizontalPodAutoscaler targeting the deployment, with --cpu-percent=50 setting the target utilisation and --min=3 --max=10 bounding replica count. This satisfies the requirement to scale web-frontend automatically on CPU, starting from its current 3 replicas.
- ✗
kubectl autoscale deployment web-frontend --cpu=50 --min=3 --max=10
Why it's wrong here
The --cpu flag is not a valid kubectl autoscale parameter; the command requires --cpu-percent to set the target utilisation. It is tempting because autoscale genuinely creates an HPA on a deployment, and --min/--max are correct, but the CPU target flag name is wrong.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
GKE Horizontal Pod Autoscaler
Key term
GKE
GKE is Google's managed Kubernetes service that automates deploying, scaling, and managing containerized applications in the cloud.
Key term
Pod
A pod is the smallest deployable unit in Kubernetes, containing one or more containers that share storage, network, and a specification for how to run.
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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.