Question 430 of 1,446
Design innovative, scalable, and highly available cloud database solutions →easyMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
PCDE Practice Question: Design innovative, scalable, and highly available cloud database solutions
An application uses Cloud SQL (MySQL) and experiences an increasing number of 'too many connections' errors. The current instance has 4 vCPUs and 15GB of RAM. The application's connection pool is configured for 500 connections. What should the engineer do to resolve this error?
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
✓
Increase the max_connections flag in the Cloud SQL database flags settings
The max_connections in MySQL is typically set based on memory: max_connections = RAM_MB/16. With 15GB RAM = 15360 MB, max_connections = 15360/16 = 960. The application pool of 500 should be fine, but if the error occurs, it might be due to other factors. However, the most common fix is to increase the max_connections parameter via a flag. The correct step is to increase the 'max_connections' flag in Cloud SQL. Reducing connections or using a connection pool won't help if the limit is reached. Increasing vCPUs does not directly change max_connections.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Configure a Cloud SQL connection pool with a maximum of 100 connections
Why it's wrong here
Reducing pool size may cause application queuing; the limit itself needs to be raised.
- ✗
Create a read replica to distribute read connections
Why it's wrong here
Read replicas handle read traffic, but writes still go to the primary; the error is about total connections.
- ✗
Upgrade the instance to have 8 vCPUs to increase connection capacity
Why it's wrong here
vCPU count does not directly affect max_connections; memory does, but upgrading with same memory won't help.
- ✓
Increase the max_connections flag in the Cloud SQL database flags settings
Why this is correct
Raising the max_connections flag allows more concurrent connections, resolving the error.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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