Google PCA Practice Question: Managing and Provisioning a Solution Infrastructure
A company has a legacy application that runs on a single Compute Engine VM and expects to use a fixed IP address. They want to migrate the VM to a different region with minimal downtime. Which TWO actions should they take?
⚠ Common exam trap
PCA often tests the regional scope of external IP addresses — candidates assume an IP can be moved across regions like a global resource, but static external IPs are region-bound and must be re-reserved.
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
✓
Reserve a static external IP address in the target region
Option D is correct because a static external IP address is region-scoped in Google Cloud, so to keep the legacy application's fixed IP behavior in the new region, a static external IP must be reserved in the target region and attached to the new VM. Option E is correct because creating a snapshot of the boot disk and then creating a new VM from that snapshot in the target region is the standard way to relocate a single Compute Engine VM's disk and data with minimal downtime. Option A is incorrect because gcloud compute instances move only moves an instance between zones within the same region, not to a different region. Option B is incorrect because deleting the original VM before creating the new one increases downtime and risks losing the working instance. Option C is incorrect because converting to a managed instance group changes the architecture and does not by itself provide a fixed IP or a cross-region migration path.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Use gcloud compute instances move command
Why it's wrong here
The move command only works within the same region, not across regions.
- ✗
Delete the original VM before creating the new one
Why it's wrong here
Deleting first would cause downtime; the new VM should be created first.
- ✗
Convert the VM to a managed instance group
Why it's wrong here
Managed instance groups are for scaling multiple VMs, not for migrating a single VM.
- ✓
Reserve a static external IP address in the target region
Why this is correct
A static external IP is regional, so the address must be reserved in the destination region before the new VM exists. This satisfies the fixed-IP constraint, letting the migrated instance retain a predictable address after cutover.
- ✓
Create a snapshot of the boot disk and create a new VM from the snapshot in the target region
Why this is correct
Snapshots are global and can create a disk in any region, so restoring the boot disk in the target region reproduces the VM's exact state. This satisfies the minimal-downtime constraint by pre-staging the instance before cutover.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE)
Key term
IP address
An IP address is a unique numerical label assigned to each device connected to a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication.
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 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 PCA 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 PCA exam.