Google PCA Manage implementation of cloud architecture Practice Question
This PCA practice question tests your understanding of manage implementation of cloud architecture. 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 company is migrating a legacy application to Google Cloud. The application has a stateful TCP-based protocol that requires client IP persistence. They plan to use a load balancer. Which load balancer type should they choose?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
External Network Load Balancer (passthrough)
The External Network Load Balancer (passthrough) is the correct choice because it preserves the original client IP address via direct server return (DSR) and does not terminate the TCP connection. This is essential for stateful TCP-based protocols that require client IP persistence, as the backend instances see the actual client IP and can maintain session state.
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.
✗
External HTTP(S) Load Balancer
Why it's wrong here
This is for HTTP/HTTPS, not stateful TCP; also terminates connections and does not preserve client IP.
✗
Internal TCP/UDP Load Balancer
Why it's wrong here
Internal LB is for traffic within the VPC, not external client traffic.
✗
External TCP Proxy Load Balancer
Why it's wrong here
TCP Proxy terminates the connection, so the backend sees the proxy's IP, not the client IP.
✓
External Network Load Balancer (passthrough)
Why this is correct
This is a passthrough load balancer that preserves the client IP for TCP/UDP traffic.
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 confuse 'TCP proxy' with 'TCP passthrough,' assuming any TCP-capable load balancer preserves client IP, but only the passthrough (Network Load Balancer) avoids terminating the TCP connection and maintains the original source IP.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
The External Network Load Balancer operates at Layer 4 using IP encapsulation (e.g., IPIP or GRE) to forward packets without modifying the source IP, enabling backend instances to see the original client address. This passthrough behavior is critical for protocols like FTP or SIP that embed client IP information in the payload or require session affinity based on the source IP. In real-world scenarios, this load balancer is often used for gaming servers or legacy ERP systems that cannot tolerate proxy-based IP rewriting.
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 healthcare organisation deploys an application with a public-facing web tier and a private database tier. The database subnet has no public IP and only accepts connections from the web tier's security group. Questions like this test whether you can design cloud network isolation using VNets/VPCs, subnets, and security group rules.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this PCA question in full detail.
Manage implementation of cloud architecture — This question tests Manage implementation of cloud architecture — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: External Network Load Balancer (passthrough) — The External Network Load Balancer (passthrough) is the correct choice because it preserves the original client IP address via direct server return (DSR) and does not terminate the TCP connection. This is essential for stateful TCP-based protocols that require client IP persistence, as the backend instances see the actual client IP and can maintain session state.
What should I do if I get this PCA 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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Question Discussion
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