This ACE practice question tests your understanding of configuring access and security. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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 security auditor needs read-only access to Compute Engine instance metadata but should not be able to start or stop instances. Which predefined IAM role should be assigned?
roles/compute.instanceAdmin.v1
Why wrong: Allows full control including start/stop and delete.
roles/compute.admin
Why wrong: Provides full administrative access.
roles/compute.networkAdmin
Why wrong: Grants permissions for network resources, not instance metadata.
roles/compute.viewer
Provides read-only access to Compute Engine resources.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
roles/compute.viewer
The roles/compute.viewer role grants read-only access to Compute Engine resources, including instance metadata, without allowing write operations such as starting or stopping instances. This matches the requirement for read-only metadata access while preventing instance lifecycle changes.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
roles/compute.instanceAdmin.v1
Why it's wrong here
Allows full control including start/stop and delete.
roles/compute.admin
Why it's wrong here
Provides full administrative access.
roles/compute.networkAdmin
Why it's wrong here
Grants permissions for network resources, not instance metadata.
roles/compute.viewer
Why this is correct
Provides read-only access to Compute Engine resources.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates may confuse 'viewer' with broader roles like instanceAdmin.v1, assuming read-only access is sufficient, but fail to recognize that instanceAdmin.v1 includes write permissions for starting/stopping instances.
Detailed technical explanation
The roles/compute.viewer role includes the compute.instances.get permission, which allows reading instance metadata via the metadata server (e.g., http://metadata.google.internal/computeMetadata/v1/). However, it does not include compute.instances.start or compute.instances.stop, ensuring no lifecycle changes. In real-world scenarios, this role is often used for monitoring or auditing tools that need to inspect instance attributes without risking accidental modifications.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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.
What to study next
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FAQ
Configuring access and security — This question tests Configuring access and security — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: roles/compute.viewer — The roles/compute.viewer role grants read-only access to Compute Engine resources, including instance metadata, without allowing write operations such as starting or stopping instances. This matches the requirement for read-only metadata access while preventing instance lifecycle changes.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 25, 2026
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