easyMultiple Choice
Cloud Digital Leader Practice Question: A startup needs to run a web application with…
A startup needs to run a web application with unpredictable traffic. They want to avoid over-provisioning and only pay for resources used. Which cloud benefit best addresses this need?
⚠ Common exam trap
Google Cloud often tests the misconception that 'managed services' automatically include pay-as-you-go pricing, but managed services (e.g., Cloud SQL) still require selecting a pricing model (on-demand vs. reserved) and do not guarantee avoidance of over-provisioning.
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
✓
Pay-as-you-go pricing
Pay-as-you-go pricing (Option B) directly matches the startup's need to avoid over-provisioning and pay only for resources consumed. This cloud pricing model allows resources to scale up and down automatically based on traffic, with billing tied to actual usage (e.g., compute hours, data transfer). It eliminates the capital expense of idle capacity, which is critical for unpredictable 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.
- ✗
Built-in security
Why it's wrong here
Built-in security addresses protection of data and workloads, not matching spend to fluctuating demand. It tempts because security is a genuine cloud advantage, yet the requirement is elasticity with consumption-based billing; that is delivered by on-demand scaling, not by security controls.
- ✓
Pay-as-you-go pricing
Why this is correct
Pay-as-you-go pricing directly satisfies the unpredictable-traffic constraint by metering actual consumption, so the startup pays only for resources used rather than pre-provisioning for peak load. This consumption-based model removes the over-provisioning cost penalty, matching the stem's requirement to avoid paying for idle capacity during low-traffic periods.
- ✗
Global reach and low latency
Why it's wrong here
Global reach concerns content delivery from edge locations near users, reducing latency; it does not meter compute consumption. Elastic auto-scaling with pay-as-you-go billing addresses unpredictable traffic by provisioning instances on demand, so the startup pays only for resources consumed.
- ✗
Managed services
Why it's wrong here
Managed services shift operational responsibility to the provider, but they do not themselves scale capacity with traffic or bill purely per use. They tempt because they reduce overhead, yet the need is elastic, pay-as-you-go provisioning, which autoscaling compute delivers rather than service management.
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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.