- A
Use Compute Engine for the web frontend, Cloud Functions for the backend API, and Cloud Spanner for the database.
Why wrong: Cloud Functions are for event-driven functions, not a full backend API. Cloud Spanner is overkill and expensive for a MySQL workload; Cloud SQL is more appropriate.
- B
Lift and shift all components to Compute Engine with an autoscaling managed instance group, and migrate the database to Cloud SQL.
Why wrong: While lift-and-shift is quick, it does not take full advantage of scalability and may incur higher costs due to VMs.
- C
Containerize all components using GKE, use Cloud SQL for the database, and deploy using a CI/CD pipeline.
Why wrong: The team wants to avoid managing Kubernetes, making GKE unsuitable.
- D
Migrate the frontend to App Engine Standard, the backend to Cloud Run, and the database to Cloud SQL with read replicas.
App Engine and Cloud Run are serverless, reducing operational overhead. Cloud SQL provides a managed MySQL database with read replicas. This minimizes changes and downtime, fits container experience, and avoids Kubernetes.
Cloud Digital Leader Practice Question: Google Cloud products, services, and solutions
This GCDL practice question tests your understanding of google cloud products, services, and solutions. 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 multinational retail company has an on-premises infrastructure with a mix of Windows and Linux servers. They are planning to migrate their e-commerce platform to Google Cloud to take advantage of scalability and reduce latency. The platform consists of a web frontend (Apache), a backend API (Node.js), and a MySQL database. They want to minimize downtime during the migration. They have a limited budget and need a solution that is cost-effective and quick to implement. The IT team has experience with containers but prefers to avoid managing Kubernetes. Which approach should they take?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue:
"minimum / minimize"Why it matters: Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.
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
Migrate the frontend to App Engine Standard, the backend to Cloud Run, and the database to Cloud SQL with read replicas.
Option D is correct because it combines fully managed, serverless services (App Engine Standard for the web frontend and Cloud Run for the backend API) with Cloud SQL for the database, which meets the requirements of minimizing downtime, being cost-effective, and avoiding Kubernetes management. App Engine Standard and Cloud Run automatically scale to zero when not in use, reducing costs, and Cloud SQL with read replicas provides high availability and low-latency reads without complex orchestration. This approach also allows for a gradual migration with minimal disruption, as the existing code can be adapted with minimal changes.
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.
- ✗
Use Compute Engine for the web frontend, Cloud Functions for the backend API, and Cloud Spanner for the database.
Why it's wrong here
Cloud Functions are for event-driven functions, not a full backend API. Cloud Spanner is overkill and expensive for a MySQL workload; Cloud SQL is more appropriate.
- ✗
Lift and shift all components to Compute Engine with an autoscaling managed instance group, and migrate the database to Cloud SQL.
Why it's wrong here
While lift-and-shift is quick, it does not take full advantage of scalability and may incur higher costs due to VMs.
- ✗
Containerize all components using GKE, use Cloud SQL for the database, and deploy using a CI/CD pipeline.
Why it's wrong here
The team wants to avoid managing Kubernetes, making GKE unsuitable.
- ✓
Migrate the frontend to App Engine Standard, the backend to Cloud Run, and the database to Cloud SQL with read replicas.
Why this is correct
App Engine and Cloud Run are serverless, reducing operational overhead. Cloud SQL provides a managed MySQL database with read replicas. This minimizes changes and downtime, fits container experience, and avoids Kubernetes.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "minimum / minimize" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume containerization (GKE) is always the best path for modernizing applications, but the question explicitly states the team prefers to avoid managing Kubernetes, making serverless options like App Engine and Cloud Run the correct choice despite their perceived limitations.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
App Engine Standard runs in a sandboxed environment with automatic scaling and can handle HTTP traffic via its built-in load balancing, while Cloud Run executes stateless containers on a fully managed infrastructure, scaling to zero when idle and charging only for request processing time. Cloud SQL with read replicas uses synchronous replication to the primary instance and asynchronous replication to read replicas, allowing the backend API to offload read-heavy queries (e.g., product catalog lookups) to replicas, reducing latency and improving throughput. The migration can be performed using a blue/green deployment strategy, where the new serverless services are tested in parallel with the old infrastructure, and traffic is gradually switched over using HTTP load balancer routing rules, achieving near-zero downtime.
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 startup's cloud architect reviews their monthly bill and notices costs are higher than expected for a long-running batch job. Switching from on-demand instances to Reserved Instances — or using Spot/Preemptible VMs — can reduce compute costs by up to 72 %. Questions like this test whether you understand the tradeoffs between commitment, flexibility, and cost across cloud pricing models.
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.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this GCDL question test?
Google Cloud products, services, and solutions — This question tests Google Cloud products, services, and solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Migrate the frontend to App Engine Standard, the backend to Cloud Run, and the database to Cloud SQL with read replicas. — Option D is correct because it combines fully managed, serverless services (App Engine Standard for the web frontend and Cloud Run for the backend API) with Cloud SQL for the database, which meets the requirements of minimizing downtime, being cost-effective, and avoiding Kubernetes management. App Engine Standard and Cloud Run automatically scale to zero when not in use, reducing costs, and Cloud SQL with read replicas provides high availability and low-latency reads without complex orchestration. This approach also allows for a gradual migration with minimal disruption, as the existing code can be adapted with minimal changes.
What should I do if I get this GCDL 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: "minimum / minimize". Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
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Last reviewed: Jun 25, 2026
This GCDL 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 GCDL exam.
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