Google PCA Manage and provision cloud infrastructure Practice Question
A company runs a batch processing job that runs daily and can handle interruptions. The job runs on a single Compute Engine instance. Which machine configuration is the most cost-effective?
⚠ Common exam trap
Google Cloud often tests the misconception that sustained use discounts are the most cost-effective option, but the trap here is that preemptible VMs provide a much deeper discount for fault-tolerant workloads, and candidates may overlook the 'can handle interruptions' requirement in the question.
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
✓
A preemptible n1-standard-4 VM
A preemptible VM costs significantly less than a standard VM (up to 80% discount) and is ideal for batch processing jobs that can handle interruptions. The job runs daily and can tolerate being stopped, so the lower cost of a preemptible instance provides the most cost-effective solution without sacrificing functionality.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
A n2-standard-4 VM with sustained use discount
Why it's wrong here
Sustained use discounts apply automatically to on-demand instances running much of the billing month, so they deliver no saving for a daily batch job. A preemptible or Spot VM is the mechanism that reduces cost for interruptible workloads. Sustained use suits continuously running on-demand instances.
- ✗
A standard n1-standard-4 VM
Why it's wrong here
A standard on-demand n1-standard-4 bills at full hourly rates for the entire runtime. Because the job tolerates interruption, a preemptible or Spot VM of the same shape would cut compute cost substantially. Standard VMs suit workloads that cannot be terminated mid-run.
- ✓
A preemptible n1-standard-4 VM
Why this is correct
Preemptible VMs cost up to 80% less than standard instances, and the batch job tolerates interruption, satisfying the stem's fault-tolerance constraint. A 24-hour maximum runtime suits a daily job. The n1-standard-4 provides four vCPUs and 15 GB memory, adequate for batch processing without over-provisioning.
- ✗
A n1-standard-4 VM with a GPU
Why it's wrong here
A GPU-equipped n1-standard-4 bills for graphics hardware a batch job cannot use, and n1 is not the discounted interruptible family. GPUs suit ML training or rendering; for interruption-tolerant daily batch, Spot VMs on a general-purpose family cut cost without idle accelerators.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Billing, Budgets, and Cost Management
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.
Key term
Batch processing
Batch processing is a method of running high-volume, repetitive data jobs where a group of transactions is collected, processed together automatically, and then results are produced without real-time user interaction.
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JA
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.