Google PCA Manage implementation of cloud architecture Practice Question
Which THREE of the following are recommended practices when designing a highly available architecture on Google Cloud using multiple regions?
⚠ Common exam trap
Google Cloud often tests the misconception that a single regional managed instance group or a single VPN tunnel is sufficient for multi-region high availability, but the exam expects you to recognize that redundancy across regions and elimination of single points of failure are mandatory.
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
✓
Use a global external HTTP(S) load balancer with backend services in multiple regions
Option B is correct because a global external HTTP(S) load balancer uses a single anycast IP and automatically routes users to the closest healthy backend service across multiple regions, providing global failover and low-latency access. Option C is correct because Cloud Spanner offers a multi-region configuration with synchronous replication and strong consistency, and cross-region replication for databases ensures data survives a regional outage. Option D is correct because health checks detect unhealthy endpoints and Cloud DNS weighted routing (or failover routing policies) can automatically direct traffic away from a failed region. Option A is not recommended because a single regional managed instance group confines instances to one region, so a regional outage takes down the whole workload. Option E is not recommended because a single Cloud VPN tunnel is a single point of failure; highly available designs require redundant tunnels or Cloud Interconnect with multiple paths.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Deploy Compute Engine instances in a single regional managed instance group
Why it's wrong here
A single regional managed instance group confines instances to one region, so a regional outage removes all capacity. Regional groups suit zonal-failure tolerance within one region, but multi-region availability requires either separate groups per region or a global load-balanced managed instance group spanning regions.
- ✓
Use a global external HTTP(S) load balancer with backend services in multiple regions
Why this is correct
A global external HTTP(S) load balancer uses a single anycast IP and routes users to the nearest healthy regional backend. This satisfies the multi-region availability requirement by failing over automatically when a regional backend becomes unhealthy.
- ✓
Use Cloud Spanner or cross-region replication for databases
Why this is correct
Cloud Spanner provides synchronously replicated, strongly consistent multi-region databases with a 99.999% SLA, directly satisfying the stem's high-availability constraint. Alternatively, cross-region replication for other database engines maintains standby copies in separate regions, enabling failover when a primary region becomes unavailable.
- ✓
Implement health checks and automated failover using Cloud DNS with weighted routing
Why this is correct
Cloud DNS weighted routing distributes traffic by configured weights, and health checks remove unhealthy endpoints, satisfying the multi-region availability constraint. However, weighted routing primarily balances load rather than providing deterministic failover; failover routing policies better match automated regional failover, so this option is recommended only alongside complementary mechanisms.
- ✗
Use a single Cloud VPN tunnel for connectivity between regions
Why it's wrong here
One VPN tunnel between regions is a single connection with no redundancy; losing it severs inter-region traffic. A single tunnel suits simple, non-critical connectivity, but multi-region high availability requires redundant tunnels or Cloud Interconnect in separate failure domains.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Identity and Access Management (IAM)
Key term
Cloud Interconnect
Cloud Interconnect is a service that provides a dedicated, private, high-bandwidth connection between your on-premises network and a cloud provider's network, bypassing the public internet for improved reliability, security, and performance.
Key term
Spanner
Google Cloud's globally distributed, strongly consistent, and horizontally scalable database service designed for mission-critical, transactional workloads.
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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.