- A
Implement a custom health check on TCP port 8080 in Cloud Run to ensure only healthy instances receive traffic.
Why wrong: Cloud Run health checks are HTTP-based, not TCP.
- B
Increase the container concurrency setting to 1 to force each container to handle one request at a time.
Why wrong: Concurrency does not affect request routing stickiness.
- C
Use Cloud Run with an HTTP(S) External Load Balancer and enable session affinity on the backend service.
External load balancer provides session affinity; Cloud Run itself does not.
- D
Deploy the application on Cloud Run and configure an Internal TCP/UDP Load Balancer in front of it with session affinity.
Why wrong: Cloud Run does not support internal TCP load balancing with session affinity; it requires an external HTTP(S) LB.
Cloud Run Session Affinity: Using External HTTP(S) Load Balancer
This PCD practice question tests your understanding of integrating google cloud services. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
You are a developer at a company that runs a critical pricing engine on Compute Engine instances in a managed instance group (MIG) behind an internal TCP load balancer. The pricing engine is a stateful application that stores state in memory and also writes to a Cloud Bigtable instance for persistence. The application uses a custom port 8080. You need to migrate this application to Cloud Run for better scalability and reduced operational overhead. The application must maintain session affinity so that requests from the same client are routed to the same instance (since the in-memory state is not yet fully externalized). The application currently uses a health check on /healthz that returns 200 OK. You have containerized the application. When you deploy to Cloud Run, you notice that traffic is not sticky; every request might go to a different revision. You also need to ensure that Bigtable writes are performed asynchronously to avoid slowing down the pricing calculations. What should you do?
Quick Answer
The answer is to use Cloud Run with an external HTTP(S) load balancer and enable session affinity on the backend service. This is correct because Cloud Run does not natively support session affinity; to achieve stickiness for stateful applications that still hold in-memory state, you must front Cloud Run with an external load balancer that provides this feature at the backend service level. On the Google Professional Cloud Developer exam, this scenario tests your understanding that Cloud Run’s stateless architecture requires an external load balancer for session affinity, and that internal load balancers or concurrency settings cannot provide this stickiness. A common trap is assuming Cloud Run can handle stickiness internally or that an internal load balancer suffices, but the exam emphasizes that only an external HTTP(S) load balancer with session affinity enabled will route requests from the same client to the same revision. Memory tip: “External for stickiness, internal for statelessness.”
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 Cloud Run with an HTTP(S) External Load Balancer and enable session affinity on the backend service.
Option C is correct. Cloud Run does not natively support session affinity, but you can achieve it by placing Cloud Run behind an external HTTP(S) load balancer and enabling session affinity on the backend service. This ensures that requests from the same client are routed to the same Cloud Run revision, maintaining session stickiness for the in-memory state. Option A is incorrect because Cloud Run does not support custom TCP health checks; it only supports HTTP health checks, and Cloud Run automatically handles health checks via the /healthz endpoint. Option B is incorrect because setting concurrency to 1 does not provide session affinity; it only limits the number of concurrent requests per container, but subsequent requests from the same client may still go to different containers without a load balancer with session affinity. Option D is incorrect because Cloud Run cannot be placed behind an internal TCP/UDP load balancer; it only supports HTTP(S) traffic and must use an external load balancer for session affinity.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Implement a custom health check on TCP port 8080 in Cloud Run to ensure only healthy instances receive traffic.
- ✗
Increase the container concurrency setting to 1 to force each container to handle one request at a time.
Why it's wrong here
Concurrency does not affect request routing stickiness.
- ✓
Use Cloud Run with an HTTP(S) External Load Balancer and enable session affinity on the backend service.
Why this is correct
External load balancer provides session affinity; Cloud Run itself does not.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Deploy the application on Cloud Run and configure an Internal TCP/UDP Load Balancer in front of it with session affinity.
Why it's wrong here
Cloud Run does not support internal TCP load balancing with session affinity; it requires an external HTTP(S) LB.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
- Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
- Underline the problem statement mentally.
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A startup's cloud architect reviews their monthly bill and notices costs are higher than expected for a long-running batch job. Switching from on-demand instances to Reserved Instances — or using Spot/Preemptible VMs — can reduce compute costs by up to 72 %. Questions like this test whether you understand the tradeoffs between commitment, flexibility, and cost across cloud pricing models.
Visual reference
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which PCD exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this PCD question test?
Integrating Google Cloud services — This question tests Integrating Google Cloud services — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use Cloud Run with an HTTP(S) External Load Balancer and enable session affinity on the backend service. — Option C is correct. Cloud Run does not natively support session affinity, but you can achieve it by placing Cloud Run behind an external HTTP(S) load balancer and enabling session affinity on the backend service. This ensures that requests from the same client are routed to the same Cloud Run revision, maintaining session stickiness for the in-memory state. Option A is incorrect because Cloud Run does not support custom TCP health checks; it only supports HTTP health checks, and Cloud Run automatically handles health checks via the /healthz endpoint. Option B is incorrect because setting concurrency to 1 does not provide session affinity; it only limits the number of concurrent requests per container, but subsequent requests from the same client may still go to different containers without a load balancer with session affinity. Option D is incorrect because Cloud Run cannot be placed behind an internal TCP/UDP load balancer; it only supports HTTP(S) traffic and must use an external load balancer for session affinity.
What should I do if I get this PCD question wrong?
Identify which PCD exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
This PCD 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 PCD exam.
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