hardMultiple Select
Cloud Digital Leader Practice Question: A large enterprise is evaluating moving its data…
A large enterprise is evaluating moving its data analytics workloads to Google Cloud. Which TWO factors should they consider when comparing on-premises costs to cloud costs? (Choose two.)
⚠ Common exam trap
Google Cloud often tests the distinction between direct cost factors (like hardware maintenance and power/cooling) and indirect considerations (like latency, licensing compatibility, and application redesign) to see if candidates can separate TCO line items from migration risks or performance trade-offs.
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
✓
Elimination of hardware maintenance labor costs
Option A is correct because moving analytics workloads to Google Cloud eliminates the need to maintain physical servers, including tasks like hardware repairs, firmware updates, and replacement cycles, which removes associated labor costs from the on-premises total cost of ownership. Option C is correct because shutting down or downsizing on-premises data centers directly reduces power consumption and cooling expenses, which are significant operational costs in on-premises environments. Option B is not a cost factor but a performance consideration, and network latency does not directly represent a cost comparison item. Option D is a potential migration or compatibility concern rather than a direct on-premises versus cloud cost factor. Option E is an application design consideration, not a cost factor for comparing on-premises and cloud expenses.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Elimination of hardware maintenance labor costs
Why this is correct
Moving analytics workloads to the cloud eliminates the need for on-premises hardware maintenance, because the cloud provider owns and operates the physical servers, storage, and networking equipment. The enterprise no longer pays salaries, benefits, or third-party contracts for staff whose primary role is break/fix, firmware upgrades, or hardware lifecycle management. This direct reduction in operational labor overhead is a recognized cost-saving factor in a cloud migration TCO analysis.
- ✗
Increased latency due to network distance
Why it's wrong here
Increased network latency is a performance trade-off that can occur when data must traverse a WAN connection between an on-premises source and the cloud analytics environment. However, latency is not a direct cost line item in a financial comparison; it may affect user experience or processing time, but it does not inherently reduce or increase the price paid for cloud services. Moreover, if the data already resides in the cloud or a hybrid architecture is used, the latency impact may be negligible or mitigated entirely.
- ✓
Reduction in data center power and cooling expenses
Why this is correct
In a traditional on-premises data center, the enterprise must pay for electricity to power the servers, cooling systems to remove heat, and often additional capacity for redundancy. Cloud providers run hyperscale facilities with advanced cooling technologies, economization, and higher power usage effectiveness (PUE), so they deliver those physical utilities at lower marginal cost. When using the cloud, the provider's facility costs are shared across many tenants, meaning the enterprise no longer carries the direct utility expense for powering and cooling its own data center.
- ✗
Licensing costs for software that may not be compatible with cloud
Why it's wrong here
Existing software licenses, especially for specialized analytics tools, may have terms that are incompatible with a cloud deployment, requiring new licenses, vendor renegotiation, or even a forced upgrade to a more expensive cloud edition. This is a potential hidden or incremental cost associated with migration, not a benefit; it can actually increase total cost of ownership. Therefore, while it is a legitimate financial consideration, it is not a cost-saving factor and should be treated as a risk in the business case.
- ✗
Requirement to redesign applications for cloud-native services
Why it's wrong here
Redesigning applications to use cloud-native services such as managed data warehouses, serverless functions, or container orchestration requires significant engineering effort and a one-time migration investment. This is an architectural transformation that enables cloud benefits like auto-scaling and pay-per-use, but it is not a direct cost comparison factor like hardware avoidance or utility elimination. It adds cost and project timeline, so it should be evaluated as an investment decision rather than an ongoing expense reduction.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
BigQuery: Serverless Analytics Overview
Key term
Total cost of ownership
Total cost of ownership (TCO) is the complete cost of owning and operating an IT asset over its entire lifecycle, including purchase price, maintenance, support, energy, and disposal fees.
Key term
Data
Data is raw, unprocessed information, like numbers, words, or measurements, that can be stored, processed, and analyzed by computers.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This GCDL 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 GCDL exam.