Google PCA Manage implementation of cloud architecture Practice Question
A company is designing a disaster recovery plan for a critical application running on Compute Engine. The application uses a PostgreSQL database and stores files on persistent disks. The recovery time objective (RTO) is 4 hours, and the recovery point objective (RPO) is 1 hour. Which two actions should the company take?
⚠ Common exam trap
Google Cloud often tests the distinction between snapshot replication (which provides crash-consistent, point-in-time copies) and database-native replication (which provides transaction-consistent, near-real-time copies), leading candidates to choose snapshot replication for RPOs under 1 hour when database replication is actually required.
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
✓
Configure PostgreSQL replication to a standby instance in another region.
PostgreSQL replication to a standby instance in another region meets both the RPO of 1 hour (near-real-time replication keeps data loss minimal) and the RTO of 4 hours (a standby can be promoted quickly). This is a standard disaster recovery pattern for cross-region resilience, ensuring that database changes are continuously replicated with minimal lag.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Create an instance template for the application and store it in Cloud Storage.
Why it's wrong here
Instance templates provide configuration but not the data; they are part of a recovery plan but not sufficient for data.
- ✗
Take hourly persistent disk snapshots and store them in the same region.
Why it's wrong here
Snapshots in the same region are vulnerable to regional failures and do not provide DR.
- ✓
Configure PostgreSQL replication to a standby instance in another region.
Why this is correct
Database replication ensures minimal data loss and fast failover, meeting RPO and RTO.
- ✗
Use Cloud Storage to store database backups and transfer them to a different region daily.
Why it's wrong here
Daily transfers exceed the 1-hour RPO.
- ✓
Use snapshot replication to copy persistent disk snapshots to another region.
Why this is correct
Snapshot replication provides cross-region backup with adjustable frequency to meet RPO.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Google Cloud Compute Options Overview
Key term
CAN
A CAN (Controller Area Network) is a robust vehicle bus standard designed to allow microcontrollers and devices to communicate with each other without a host computer.
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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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.