- A
Configure an external TCP/UDP load balancer with a static IP address
Load balancer provides a static IP and health checks for high availability.
- B
Assign each VM a static external IP address
Why wrong: Assigning static IPs to individual VMs does not provide a single endpoint and is not recommended for HA.
- C
Use a managed instance group with multiple zones enabled
Multi-zone MIG distributes instances across zones to survive zone failures.
- D
Use Cloud DNS with geo-routing
Why wrong: Geo-routing is for global load balancing, not necessary for zonal HA.
- E
Use a single-zone managed instance group with a snapshot schedule
Why wrong: Single-zone does not provide cross-zone HA.
Question 979 of 1,000
Google ACE Planning and Configuring a Cloud Solution Practice Question
This ACE practice question tests your understanding of planning and configuring a cloud solution. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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.
A company runs a critical application on Compute Engine that requires static IP addresses and must be highly available across zones. The application uses a stateful backend. Which TWO steps should the engineer take to meet these requirements? (Choose 2)
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
✓
Configure an external TCP/UDP load balancer with a static IP address
To achieve high availability across zones with static IPs, a managed instance group with a multi-zone configuration (A) can distribute instances across zones. A load balancer (B) provides a static IP and routes traffic to healthy instances. Stateful workloads can use persistent disks or other state preservation strategies.
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.
- ✓
Configure an external TCP/UDP load balancer with a static IP address
Why this is correct
Load balancer provides a static IP and health checks for high availability.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Assign each VM a static external IP address
Why it's wrong here
Assigning static IPs to individual VMs does not provide a single endpoint and is not recommended for HA.
- ✓
Use a managed instance group with multiple zones enabled
Why this is correct
Multi-zone MIG distributes instances across zones to survive zone failures.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use Cloud DNS with geo-routing
Why it's wrong here
Geo-routing is for global load balancing, not necessary for zonal HA.
- ✗
Use a single-zone managed instance group with a snapshot schedule
Why it's wrong here
Single-zone does not provide cross-zone HA.
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
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which ACE 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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Planning and Configuring a Cloud Solution — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this ACE question test?
Planning and Configuring a Cloud Solution — This question tests Planning and Configuring a Cloud Solution — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Configure an external TCP/UDP load balancer with a static IP address — To achieve high availability across zones with static IPs, a managed instance group with a multi-zone configuration (A) can distribute instances across zones. A load balancer (B) provides a static IP and routes traffic to healthy instances. Stateful workloads can use persistent disks or other state preservation strategies.
What should I do if I get this ACE question wrong?
Identify which ACE 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.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
This ACE 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 ACE exam.
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