- A
PSC creates a VPC peering connection between your VPC and Google's service VPC.
Why wrong: PSC is not VPC peering. PSC creates a forwarding rule and endpoint that maps to a Google service — it uses Google's internal service networking, not traditional VPC peering.
- B
PSC provides a private, internal IP endpoint in your VPC that routes to the managed service without traversing the public internet.
PSC creates a forwarding rule in your VPC with an internal IP. Connections to this IP are routed privately to the managed service (Cloud SQL in this case) entirely within Google's network.
- C
PSC enables bidirectional private communication between your VPC and the service's VPC, similar to peering.
Why wrong: PSC is unidirectional (consumer → service). The managed service cannot initiate connections back to your VPC through PSC.
- D
PSC replaces the need for a Serverless VPC Access connector when calling managed services from Cloud Run.
Why wrong: Serverless VPC Access connectors are for giving serverless compute (Cloud Run, Cloud Functions) access to VPC resources. PSC is for VPC-to-managed-service private connectivity — a different use case.
Quick Answer
The answer is Private Service Connect (PSC) provides a private, internal IP endpoint in your VPC that routes to the managed service without traversing the public internet. This works because PSC creates a direct, internal connection using an IP address from your own VPC subnet, forwarding traffic to the managed Cloud SQL instance entirely within Google’s network, bypassing any public exposure. On the Google Associate Cloud Engineer exam, this question tests your understanding of how to securely access managed services without the complexity of VPC peering, which requires managing peering relationships and risks overlapping IP ranges. A common trap is confusing PSC with VPC peering, but remember that PSC gives you a simple endpoint in your VPC, while peering connects entire networks. Memory tip: think of PSC as a “private door” inside your VPC that leads directly to the service, no public street required.
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.
You are planning a Private Service Connect (PSC) configuration to allow your VPC to access a managed Cloud SQL instance over a private endpoint without exposing traffic to the public internet. What does Private Service Connect provide in this context?
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
PSC provides a private, internal IP endpoint in your VPC that routes to the managed service without traversing the public internet.
Private Service Connect (PSC) allows you to access Google-managed services (like Cloud SQL) by creating a private, internal IP endpoint within your VPC. This endpoint uses an internal IP address from your VPC's subnet and forwards traffic to the service without ever leaving Google's network, thus avoiding the public internet. Unlike VPC peering, PSC does not require you to manage peering relationships or worry about overlapping IP ranges.
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.
- ✗
PSC creates a VPC peering connection between your VPC and Google's service VPC.
Why it's wrong here
PSC is not VPC peering. PSC creates a forwarding rule and endpoint that maps to a Google service — it uses Google's internal service networking, not traditional VPC peering.
- ✓
PSC provides a private, internal IP endpoint in your VPC that routes to the managed service without traversing the public internet.
Why this is correct
PSC creates a forwarding rule in your VPC with an internal IP. Connections to this IP are routed privately to the managed service (Cloud SQL in this case) entirely within Google's network.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
PSC enables bidirectional private communication between your VPC and the service's VPC, similar to peering.
Why it's wrong here
PSC is unidirectional (consumer → service). The managed service cannot initiate connections back to your VPC through PSC.
- ✗
PSC replaces the need for a Serverless VPC Access connector when calling managed services from Cloud Run.
Why it's wrong here
Serverless VPC Access connectors are for giving serverless compute (Cloud Run, Cloud Functions) access to VPC resources. PSC is for VPC-to-managed-service private connectivity — a different use case.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse Private Service Connect with VPC peering or assume it provides bidirectional connectivity, when in fact PSC is a unidirectional, endpoint-based model that does not require peering or address space coordination.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, PSC leverages a combination of a forwarding rule (with an internal IP from the consumer's VPC) and a service attachment (exposed by the producer). Traffic is routed via Google's internal network using a custom next-hop that bypasses the public internet, and the connection is established without requiring RFC 1918 address space coordination. In a real-world scenario, if your VPC uses overlapping IP ranges with the producer's VPC, PSC avoids the conflict because it does not rely on peering; instead, the endpoint IP is allocated from your own subnet.
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.
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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: PSC provides a private, internal IP endpoint in your VPC that routes to the managed service without traversing the public internet. — Private Service Connect (PSC) allows you to access Google-managed services (like Cloud SQL) by creating a private, internal IP endpoint within your VPC. This endpoint uses an internal IP address from your VPC's subnet and forwards traffic to the service without ever leaving Google's network, thus avoiding the public internet. Unlike VPC peering, PSC does not require you to manage peering relationships or worry about overlapping IP ranges.
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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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 →
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 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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