PCDE Practice Question: Manage a solution that can span multiple database technologies
An organisation wants to back up their Cloud Spanner database and store the backup in a different region for disaster recovery. They require the backup to be in a format that can be restored into Spanner with minimal effort. Which THREE actions should they take? (Choose three.)
⚠ Common exam trap
A common trap in Google Cloud exams is thinking that exporting to CSV or using Dataflow is required for cross-region backup, but Spanner's native backup and restore features handle location specification and restoration directly.
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
✓
Specify a different location for the backup at creation time for cross-region storage
Cloud Spanner allows you to specify a different location for the backup at creation time, enabling cross-region storage for disaster recovery without additional export or import steps. Option D is correct because restoring a backup to a new database using `gcloud spanner databases restore` directly utilizes the backup format, requiring minimal effort. Option E is correct because creating a database-level backup using `gcloud spanner databases backup` is the native method to back up Spanner databases, and such backups can be stored in different regions for geographic redundancy.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Export the database using gcloud spanner databases export to CSV format
Why it's wrong here
Export to CSV is not the native format; Avro is used for export/import.
- ✓
Specify a different location for the backup at creation time for cross-region storage
Why this is correct
Backups can be stored in a different region by specifying the --location flag.
- ✗
Use Dataflow to import the backup into a new instance
Why it's wrong here
Dataflow is not needed; restore command handles it directly.
- ✓
Restore the backup to a new database using gcloud spanner databases restore
Why this is correct
Restoring a backup creates a new database with the same data and schema.
- ✓
Create a database-level backup using gcloud spanner databases backup
Why this is correct
Database-level backups capture the full database with schema and data, stored in Spanner's native format.
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Same concept, more angles
1 more way this is tested on PCDE
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Variation 1. Your organisation uses Cloud Spanner for a globally distributed application. You need to set up a backup strategy that allows restoring the database to a specific point in time within the last 7 days, with minimal impact on performance. Which THREE actions should you take? (Choose THREE.)
medium- A.Export the database daily using Dataflow to Cloud Storage.
- B.Use gcloud spanner databases import to restore from previous exports.
- ✓ C.Create full database backups using gcloud spanner backups create and set retention to 7 days.
- ✓ D.Enable point-in-time recovery (PITR) with a 7-day retention period.
- ✓ E.Use Cloud Scheduler to trigger regular full backups via gcloud commands.
Why C: For point-in-time recovery within 7 days, Cloud Spanner offers built-in PITR (Option D) which enables restoring to any point within the retention period with minimal performance impact. Additionally, creating full backups (Option C) with a 7-day retention ensures you have backup files for restore if needed. Automating these backups with Cloud Scheduler (Option E) ensures regular backups without manual intervention. Options A and B are incorrect: A uses Dataflow export which is intended for long-term retention and can impact performance, and B restores from backups rather than enabling PITR. Option B is not needed when PITR is enabled.
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This PCDE 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 PCDE exam.