Cloud Digital Leader How Google Cloud Resources Are Managed Practice Question
An engineer needs to increase the default limit of 24 CPUs per region for Compute Engine instances in their project. They have already consumed 20 CPUs and need to launch a new instance with 8 CPUs. What should they do?
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
✓
Request a quota increase in the Cloud Console Quotas page.
Service quotas are per-project and per-region limits. The engineer must request a quota increase via the Quotas page in the Cloud Console before exceeding the limit.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Launch the instance anyway; Google Cloud will automatically increase the quota.
Why it's wrong here
Attempting to launch the instance while exceeding the current CPU quota will fail with a resource quota error, such as QUOTA_EXCEEDED. Google Cloud does not automatically adjust quotas; they are hard limits enforced at the API level. You must explicitly request and have an increase approved before the launch can succeed.
- ✓
Request a quota increase in the Cloud Console Quotas page.
Why this is correct
In the Cloud Console, navigate to IAM & Admin → Quotas, select the specific CPU quota (e.g., CPUs per region), click Edit, and submit a quota increase request. The request goes through a review and approval process; once approved, the new limit becomes effective in minutes to hours. This is the correct way to raise the default 24 CPU limit so you can launch your instance in the desired project and region.
- ✗
Create a new project and launch the instance there.
Why it's wrong here
While quotas are per project, creating a new project to get a fresh quota is a workaround, not a solution. It splits your resources across projects, which means separate billing, IAM policies, and VPC networks, adding significant management overhead. It does not increase the original project's quota and may not be viable if all resources must live in one project.
- ✗
Use a different region with available quota.
Why it's wrong here
Switching to a region with available CPU quota avoids the limit but changes the instance's physical location, potentially affecting latency, data residency, and compliance requirements. This is a workaround that does not solve the underlying need for more quota in the preferred region. The proper action is to request a quota increase for that region, not to relocate the workload without considering architectural impact.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Cloud Digital Transformation
Key term
Service
A service is a software component or system that performs a specific function and is available to be used by other programs or users over a network.
Key term
Compute Engine
Compute Engine is Google Cloud's Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) offering that lets you create and run virtual machines on Google's infrastructure.
About these practice questions
One of 829 original GCDL practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
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.