Google PCA Practice Question: Analysing and Optimising Technical and Business Processes
A team wants to automatically move data from Cloud Storage Standard class to Nearline class after 30 days, and to Archive class after 365 days. Which GCP feature should be used?
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
✓
Cloud Storage lifecycle management policies
Cloud Storage lifecycle management policies allow you to define rules for automatic transitions between storage classes based on object age. Option A refers to the specific `gsutil lifecycle set` command used to apply these policies, but the feature itself is called lifecycle management policies (option D). Cloud Storage Transfer Service is for moving data between buckets or from external sources, not for lifecycle transitions. Google Cloud Armor is a security service, unrelated to storage class transitions.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Cloud Storage Object Lifecycle Management (via gsutil lifecycle set)
Why it's wrong here
This references the `gsutil lifecycle set` command used to apply lifecycle policies, but the feature itself is called lifecycle management policies (option D). While functionally similar, option D is the more precise name of the feature, and option A is not the correct answer as it describes a command rather than the feature.
- ✗
Cloud Storage Transfer Service
Why it's wrong here
Cloud Storage Transfer Service is for transferring data between buckets or from external sources, not for lifecycle transitions between storage classes.
- ✗
Google Cloud Armor
Why it's wrong here
Google Cloud Armor is a security service for network security and DDoS protection, unrelated to storage class transitions.
- ✓
Cloud Storage lifecycle management policies
Why this is correct
Correct. Cloud Storage lifecycle management policies allow you to define rules for automatic transitions between storage classes based on object age, such as moving to Nearline after 30 days and to Archive after 365 days.
Quick reference
AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison
| Storage Class | Min Duration | Retrieval | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3 Standard | None | Immediate | Frequently accessed data |
| S3 Standard-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Infrequent access, rapid retrieval |
| S3 One Zone-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Non-critical infrequent data |
| S3 Intelligent-Tiering | None | Immediate–hours | Unknown or changing access patterns |
| S3 Glacier Instant | 90 days | Milliseconds | Archive with instant retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Flexible | 90 days | Minutes–hours | Archive, flexible retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Deep Archive | 180 days | Hours | Long-term compliance archive |
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Introduction to Google Cloud Platform
Key term
Data
Data is raw, unprocessed information, like numbers, words, or measurements, that can be stored, processed, and analyzed by computers.
Key term
Storage class
A storage class is a category of data storage that defines how data is stored, accessed, retrieved, and billed in a cloud environment.
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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.