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ACE Practice Question: A Cloud Run service needs to access a database…
This ACE practice question tests your understanding of a cloud run service needs to access a database…. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 Cloud Run service needs to access a database password at runtime. Where should the password be stored according to GCP security best practices?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Good practice is not just finding the correct option. The wrong answers often show the exact trap the exam wants you to fall into.
A
Best answer
In Secret Manager, referenced as a mounted secret or accessed via the API at runtime
Secret Manager stores secrets encrypted, with IAM access control and full audit trails. Cloud Run can reference secrets as environment variables or volume mounts without exposing the value in configuration.
B
Distractor review
Baked into the container image at build time
Including secrets in container images is a critical anti-pattern — images are often stored in registries that are more widely accessible, permanently exposing the secret.
C
Distractor review
As a plain-text environment variable in the Cloud Run service configuration
Environment variables in Cloud Run configuration are visible in the Cloud Console and not encrypted — this exposes the password to anyone with Console access.
D
Distractor review
In a Cloud Storage bucket accessible to the service account
Cloud Storage stores objects but isn't designed for secrets — it lacks versioning for secrets, automatic rotation, and dedicated secrets-management IAM controls.
Common exam trap
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Technical deep dive
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
- PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
- Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
- NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
- Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
- Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
- Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Key takeaway
NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Related practice questions
Related ACE practice-question pages
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
More questions from this exam
Keep practising from the same exam bank, or move into a focused topic page if this question exposed a weak area.
Question 1
What is the correct order of the Google Cloud resource hierarchy from highest to lowest level?
Question 2
A compliance archive stores legal documents accessed at most once per quarter. Which Cloud Storage class minimizes storage cost while meeting that access pattern?
Question 3
Which gcloud command creates a Compute Engine VM named 'web-01' using the e2-medium machine type in zone us-central1-a?
Question 4
A team wants to receive an email alert when the average CPU utilization of VMs in a managed instance group exceeds 80% for more than 5 minutes. What should they create in Cloud Monitoring?
Question 5
A junior developer needs read-only access to all GCP resources in a project. Which IAM role grants the minimum permissions required?
Question 6
A startup creates its first Google Cloud project. Before deploying any paid resources, what must be linked to the project?
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this ACE question test?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: In Secret Manager, referenced as a mounted secret or accessed via the API at runtime — Secret Manager is GCP's purpose-built service for storing sensitive values like passwords, API keys, and certificates. It provides versioning, IAM-based access control, and full audit logging. Storing secrets in environment variables (visible in console), container images, or plain Cloud Storage buckets are all security anti-patterns.
What should I do if I get this ACE question wrong?
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related ACE NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
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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.