Google ACE Deploying and implementing a cloud solution Practice Question
This ACE practice question tests your understanding of deploying and implementing a cloud solution. 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.
A company uses Cloud Build to deploy a containerized application to a GKE cluster. The build process runs kubectl commands to apply Kubernetes manifests. The build fails with a 'Permission denied' error when executing kubectl. The Cloud Build service account has been granted roles/container.clusterAdmin and roles/cloudbuild.builds.builder. What is the most likely missing configuration?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Add the Cloud Build service account to the GKE cluster's RBAC
The Cloud Build service account has cluster-admin permissions via roles/container.clusterAdmin, but GKE uses Kubernetes RBAC for authorization within the cluster. The service account must be bound to a Kubernetes RBAC role (e.g., cluster-admin) via a ClusterRoleBinding to execute kubectl commands. Without this RBAC binding, the service account is authenticated but not authorized to perform actions, causing the 'Permission denied' error.
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.
✗
Grant the Cloud Build service account roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator
Why it's wrong here
This role is for generating tokens, not for Kubernetes RBAC.
✓
Add the Cloud Build service account to the GKE cluster's RBAC
Why this is correct
The service account needs RBAC permissions to run kubectl commands.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Use a different Cloud Build trigger
Why it's wrong here
Changing the trigger does not fix the permission issue.
✗
Enable the Kubernetes Engine API
Why it's wrong here
The API must have been enabled already for the cluster to exist.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Google Cloud often tests the distinction between IAM roles (which control access to GCP APIs) and Kubernetes RBAC (which controls access within the cluster), causing candidates to mistakenly think that granting container.clusterAdmin alone is sufficient for kubectl operations.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, Cloud Build uses the service account's identity to authenticate to the GKE cluster via the Kubernetes API server. The roles/container.clusterAdmin IAM role grants permission to list clusters and get credentials, but the actual kubectl commands (e.g., apply, create) are authorized by Kubernetes RBAC. A ClusterRoleBinding binding the service account (as a subject) to the cluster-admin ClusterRole is required. In real-world scenarios, this is often missed when using Cloud Build with private clusters or when the service account is not explicitly added to the cluster's RBAC configuration.
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.
TExam Day Tips
→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 company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this ACE question in full detail.
Deploying and implementing a cloud solution — This question tests Deploying and implementing a cloud solution — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Add the Cloud Build service account to the GKE cluster's RBAC — The Cloud Build service account has cluster-admin permissions via roles/container.clusterAdmin, but GKE uses Kubernetes RBAC for authorization within the cluster. The service account must be bound to a Kubernetes RBAC role (e.g., cluster-admin) via a ClusterRoleBinding to execute kubectl commands. Without this RBAC binding, the service account is authenticated but not authorized to perform actions, causing the 'Permission denied' error.
What should I do if I get this ACE question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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