Google PCA Ensure solution and operations reliability Practice Question
This PCA practice question tests your understanding of ensure solution and operations reliability. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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.
Exhibit
Deployment Manager manifest:
resources:
- name: my-cluster
type: container.v1.cluster
properties:
zone: us-central1-a
initialNodeCount: 3
nodeConfig:
machineType: n1-standard-1
oauthScopes:
- https://www.googleapis.com/auth/pubsub
- name: my-job
type: container.v1.job
properties:
cluster: $(ref.my-cluster.name)
template:
spec:
containers:
- image: gcr.io/my-project/publisher
env:
- name: TOPIC
value: my-topic
restartPolicy: Never
dependsOn: [my-cluster]
After deployment, the job fails with "Permission denied" when publishing to Pub/Sub topic my-topic.
Refer to the exhibit. A Deployment Manager template deploys a GKE cluster and a job that publishes to Pub/Sub. The job fails with a permission error. Which change would fix the issue?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Add a serviceAccount field to nodeConfig with a custom service account that has roles/pubsub.publisher.
The node pool's service account needs the Pub/Sub Publisher role. The exhibit shows the nodes are using the default compute engine service account with only pubsub scope (no roles). The fix is to assign a service account with the necessary IAM role.
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.
✗
Set the job's serviceAccountName to the default compute service account.
Why it's wrong here
The default compute service account may not have the publisher role.
✗
Change the oauthScopes to include https://www.googleapis.com/auth/cloud-platform.
Why it's wrong here
Scope allows access but does not grant IAM roles; the service account still needs the role.
✗
Add dependsOn: [my-job] to the cluster resource to ensure the cluster is ready.
Why it's wrong here
Dependency direction is wrong and does not address permissions.
✓
Add a serviceAccount field to nodeConfig with a custom service account that has roles/pubsub.publisher.
Why this is correct
This ensures the nodes (and thus the job) have the required Pub/Sub publish permission.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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
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.
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.
Ensure solution and operations reliability — This question tests Ensure solution and operations reliability — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Add a serviceAccount field to nodeConfig with a custom service account that has roles/pubsub.publisher. — The node pool's service account needs the Pub/Sub Publisher role. The exhibit shows the nodes are using the default compute engine service account with only pubsub scope (no roles). The fix is to assign a service account with the necessary IAM role.
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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