Google ACE Configuring Access and Security Practice Question
An engineer wants to view the current IAM policy for a project in JSON format. Which command should they use?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap is confusing project metadata retrieval (describe) with IAM policy retrieval (get-iam-policy), or assuming a generic 'iam policies get' command exists — ACE tests precise command syntax and resource scope.
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
✓
gcloud projects get-iam-policy my-project --format json
The command 'gcloud projects get-iam-policy my-project --format json' retrieves the IAM policy bound to a project and outputs it in JSON. This is the correct gcloud command for viewing a project's IAM policy, which lists bindings between members and roles. The --format json flag ensures machine-readable JSON output.
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 resource-manager folders get-iam-policy my-project --format json
Why it's wrong here
This command is for folders, not projects. The gcloud resource-manager folders get-iam-policy subcommand expects a folder ID like '123456789012', not a project ID; passing 'my-project' would fail because folders and projects have separate namespaces. Therefore, although it uses the correct --format json flag, it targets the wrong IAM resource type and cannot return the project's policy.
- ✗
gcloud projects describe my-project --format json
Why it's wrong here
The gcloud projects describe command returns project metadata, including display name, labels, lifecycle state, and parent resource, but it does not include IAM policy bindings. IAM policies are retrieved using the dedicated get-iam-policy subcommand, which is absent here. Thus this command fails to answer the engineer's need to view the current IAM policy.
- ✓
gcloud projects get-iam-policy my-project --format json
Why this is correct
This is the exact, valid CLI command for retrieving a project's IAM policy. The subcommand get-iam-policy reads the IAM policy bound to the specified project resource, and --format json renders it as a JSON array of bindings, including roles, members, and conditions. It is the correct tool for this task.
- ✗
gcloud iam policies get my-project --format json
Why it's wrong here
The gcloud CLI does not have a top-level 'gcloud iam policies get' command; the available gcloud iam groups include roles, service-accounts, keys, and other resources but not a generic 'policies' group. To retrieve IAM policies, you must use the resource-specific command, such as gcloud projects get-iam-policy or gcloud folders get-iam-policy. Therefore this command is nonexistent and would return an error.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
GCP Projects, Folders, and Organizations
Key term
IAM
Identity and Access Management (IAM) is a framework of policies and technologies that ensures the right individuals have the appropriate access to technology resources.
Key term
IAM policy
An IAM policy is a set of rules that determines who can access specific cloud resources and what actions they are allowed to perform.
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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.