Google PCA Practice Question: Designing and Planning a Cloud Solution Architecture
This PCA practice question tests your understanding of designing and planning a cloud solution architecture. 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 company is building a web application on GKE. They want to automatically scale the number of pods based on HTTP request rate. Which TWO resources should they configure?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Custom Metrics API (e.g., Stackdriver Adapter)
Horizontal Pod Autoscaler (HPA) scales pods based on CPU/memory or custom metrics. To scale based on HTTP request rate, they need to expose custom metrics (e.g., from Stackdriver/Cloud Monitoring) via the Custom Metrics API. The Vertical Pod Autoscaler (VPA) adjusts resource requests, not pod count. Node autoscaler scales nodes, not pods. Ingress is for traffic routing.
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.
✗
Cluster Autoscaler (Node Auto-scaling)
Why it's wrong here
Cluster autoscaler adds/removes nodes, not pods. It works with HPA but does not directly scale pods.
✓
Custom Metrics API (e.g., Stackdriver Adapter)
Why this is correct
To scale on HTTP request rate, you need to expose that metric via the Custom Metrics API so HPA can use it.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
GKE Ingress
Why it's wrong here
Ingress routes traffic but does not autoscale pods.
✓
Horizontal Pod Autoscaler (HPA)
Why this is correct
HPA scales the number of pods based on metrics, including custom metrics like request rate.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Vertical Pod Autoscaler (VPA)
Why it's wrong here
VPA adjusts CPU/memory requests, not pod count; it does not scale based on request rate.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
→Underline the problem statement mentally.
→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
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this PCA question in full detail.
Identify which PCA exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Designing and Planning a Cloud Solution Architecture — This question tests Designing and Planning a Cloud Solution Architecture — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Custom Metrics API (e.g., Stackdriver Adapter) — Horizontal Pod Autoscaler (HPA) scales pods based on CPU/memory or custom metrics. To scale based on HTTP request rate, they need to expose custom metrics (e.g., from Stackdriver/Cloud Monitoring) via the Custom Metrics API. The Vertical Pod Autoscaler (VPA) adjusts resource requests, not pod count. Node autoscaler scales nodes, not pods. Ingress is for traffic routing.
What should I do if I get this PCA question wrong?
Identify which PCA exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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