- A
Enable Private Google Access on the subnet
Why wrong: Private Google Access allows VMs to reach Google APIs (like Cloud Storage, BigQuery) using internal routing — it doesn't provide general internet access for external package repositories.
- B
Configure Cloud NAT on the VPC's Cloud Router for the subnet
Cloud NAT provides outbound internet connectivity for VMs with private IPs. It translates their private source IP to a shared NAT IP for external connections — enabling apt-get, pip, etc.
- C
Add an external IP address to the VM temporarily for the update, then remove it
Why wrong: Temporarily adding an external IP is a workaround that increases attack surface — Cloud NAT is the correct long-term solution without exposing individual VMs.
- D
Create a VPC firewall rule allowing egress to 0.0.0.0/0 on port 80 and 443
Why wrong: Firewall egress rules allow traffic direction — but without Cloud NAT, the packets have no external IP to route through. Both firewall rules and Cloud NAT are needed.
Quick Answer
The answer is to configure Cloud NAT on the VPC’s Cloud Router for the subnet. Cloud NAT provides outbound internet access for private VMs by translating their private IP addresses into a range of public IPs, allowing them to initiate connections like apt-get update to external repositories without needing an external IP address. This is correct because Cloud NAT is a managed, scalable service that handles source network address translation (SNAT) for outbound-only traffic, ensuring private instances can reach the internet while remaining inaccessible from it. On the Google Associate Cloud Engineer exam, this scenario tests your understanding of VPC networking and the distinction between Cloud NAT, which supports outbound-only access, and a proxy or bastion host, which are common traps. Remember the key difference: Cloud NAT is for outbound-only, not inbound—think of it as a one-way door for private VMs to reach the internet. A useful memory tip is “NAT for out, IAP for in,” reinforcing that Cloud NAT handles outbound traffic while Identity-Aware Proxy (IAP) manages secure inbound access.
Google ACE Configuring access and security Practice Question
This ACE practice question tests your understanding of configuring access and security. 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 Compute Engine VM with only a private IP address needs to download software updates from the internet (apt-get update). What must be configured in the VPC to enable outbound internet access for private VMs?
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 Cloud NAT on the VPC's Cloud Router for the subnet
Cloud NAT (Network Address Translation) allows private VMs without external IP addresses to initiate outbound connections to the internet. It translates the VM's private IP to a public IP managed by Cloud NAT, enabling apt-get update to reach external repositories. This is the correct and scalable solution for outbound-only internet access from private instances.
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.
- ✗
Enable Private Google Access on the subnet
Why it's wrong here
Private Google Access allows VMs to reach Google APIs (like Cloud Storage, BigQuery) using internal routing — it doesn't provide general internet access for external package repositories.
- ✓
Configure Cloud NAT on the VPC's Cloud Router for the subnet
- ✗
Add an external IP address to the VM temporarily for the update, then remove it
Why it's wrong here
Temporarily adding an external IP is a workaround that increases attack surface — Cloud NAT is the correct long-term solution without exposing individual VMs.
- ✗
Create a VPC firewall rule allowing egress to 0.0.0.0/0 on port 80 and 443
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Google Cloud often tests the distinction between Private Google Access (for Google APIs only) and Cloud NAT (for general internet access), leading candidates to mistakenly choose Private Google Access when the requirement is for outbound internet access to non-Google endpoints.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Cloud NAT uses Cloud Router to dynamically allocate public IP addresses from a pool and perform source NAT (SNAT) for outbound packets. It supports both static and dynamic port allocation, and can be configured with manual or automatic NAT IPs. In real-world scenarios, Cloud NAT is essential for private clusters (e.g., GKE nodes) that need to pull container images from Docker Hub or update packages without exposing individual instances.
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.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
- →
Configuring access and security — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this ACE question test?
Configuring access and security — This question tests Configuring access and security — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Configure Cloud NAT on the VPC's Cloud Router for the subnet — Cloud NAT (Network Address Translation) allows private VMs without external IP addresses to initiate outbound connections to the internet. It translates the VM's private IP to a public IP managed by Cloud NAT, enabling apt-get update to reach external repositories. This is the correct and scalable solution for outbound-only internet access from private instances.
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.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 30, 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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