Google PCA Manage and provision cloud infrastructure Practice Question
This PCA practice question tests your understanding of manage and provision cloud infrastructure. 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 developer wants to deploy a stateless web application that automatically scales based on HTTP traffic. The application should be cost-effective and require minimal configuration. Which compute option is best?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Cloud Run
Cloud Run is the best choice because it automatically scales to zero when idle, scales up to handle HTTP traffic spikes, and requires minimal configuration—just deploy a container. It is cost-effective as you pay only for resources used during request processing, and it supports stateless web applications natively without managing servers or clusters.
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.
✗
App Engine Standard Environment
Why it's wrong here
App Engine Standard is good but may have more restrictions and higher cost.
✗
Cloud Functions
Why it's wrong here
Cloud Functions is for event-driven functions, not full web applications.
✗
Compute Engine managed instance group
Why it's wrong here
MIGs require more configuration and are not serverless.
✓
Cloud Run
Why this is correct
Correct. Cloud Run scales automatically and is simple to deploy.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Google Kubernetes Engine
Why it's wrong here
GKE requires cluster management, even if it can scale.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse Cloud Run with Cloud Functions, thinking both are equivalent for web applications, but Cloud Functions is limited to event-driven triggers and cannot serve a full web app with persistent HTTP connections.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Cloud Run abstracts the underlying infrastructure by automatically scaling containers based on incoming HTTP requests using Knative serving. It supports concurrent requests per container instance, with a default maximum of 80 concurrent requests, and can scale from 0 to thousands of instances in seconds. A real-world scenario is deploying a REST API that experiences unpredictable traffic patterns, where Cloud Run's pay-per-request model and instant scaling eliminate the need for over-provisioning.
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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this PCA question in full detail.
Manage and provision cloud infrastructure — This question tests Manage and provision cloud infrastructure — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Cloud Run — Cloud Run is the best choice because it automatically scales to zero when idle, scales up to handle HTTP traffic spikes, and requires minimal configuration—just deploy a container. It is cost-effective as you pay only for resources used during request processing, and it supports stateless web applications natively without managing servers or clusters.
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.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
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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