- A
Rewrite the application to be stateless by moving all state to the frontend using JWT tokens, eliminating the need for server-side sessions.
Why wrong: This requires significant application rewrite and does not minimize changes as required.
- B
Deploy Cloud Memorystore for Redis as a session store, and configure Tomcat to use Redis-backed session persistence using the Redisson or Spring Session framework.
Redis provides fast, in-memory session storage accessible by all instances, ensuring persistence and performance with minimal code changes.
- C
Configure the load balancer to use session affinity (sticky sessions) and increase the instance size to handle more sessions per instance.
Why wrong: Session affinity ties a user to a specific instance; if that instance is terminated, session is lost. Also increasing size does not prevent data loss.
- D
Store session data in Cloud SQL using Spring Session JDBC, and configure the application to retrieve sessions from the database.
Why wrong: Cloud SQL adds network latency and is not optimized for high-throughput session storage; it may degrade performance further.
Quick Answer
The correct answer is to deploy Cloud Memorystore for Redis as a session store and configure Tomcat to use Redis-backed session persistence via Redisson or Spring Session. This solution directly addresses the core challenge of session persistence in a stateful application with autoscaling: by decoupling session state from individual Compute Engine instances, it ensures that user sessions survive scaling events without data loss, while the in-memory speed of Redis eliminates the performance bottleneck of frequent database queries for session data. On the Google Professional Cloud Architect exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how to handle stateful workloads in autoscaling environments—a common trap is to assume that sticky sessions or database replication alone suffice, but those either break under scaling or add latency. The key insight is that Cloud Memorystore provides a managed, highly available external cache that integrates seamlessly with Java/Tomcat via established frameworks, minimizing application changes. Memory tip: think of Redis as a “session safety net” that catches sessions when instances scale out or in, keeping users logged in and fast.
Google PCA Manage and provision cloud infrastructure Practice Question
This PCA practice question tests your understanding of manage and provision cloud infrastructure. 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.
Your company runs a stateful web application on Compute Engine instances in a managed instance group (MIG) with autoscaling based on CPU utilization. The application maintains session state in memory on each instance. Recently, users have been experiencing session timeouts and data loss during scaling events. Additionally, the application's performance degrades under load due to frequent database queries for session data. You need to design a solution that ensures session persistence, improves performance, and minimizes application changes. The application is written in Java and uses Tomcat. Which of the following should you do?
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
Deploy Cloud Memorystore for Redis as a session store, and configure Tomcat to use Redis-backed session persistence using the Redisson or Spring Session framework.
Option B is correct because it introduces an external, highly available, in-memory session store (Cloud Memorystore for Redis) that decouples session state from individual Compute Engine instances. This eliminates session loss during autoscaling events and reduces database load by serving session data from fast Redis memory, all while requiring minimal application changes via Tomcat's built-in session persistence or Spring Session integration.
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.
- ✗
Rewrite the application to be stateless by moving all state to the frontend using JWT tokens, eliminating the need for server-side sessions.
Why it's wrong here
This requires significant application rewrite and does not minimize changes as required.
- ✓
Deploy Cloud Memorystore for Redis as a session store, and configure Tomcat to use Redis-backed session persistence using the Redisson or Spring Session framework.
Why this is correct
Redis provides fast, in-memory session storage accessible by all instances, ensuring persistence and performance with minimal code changes.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Configure the load balancer to use session affinity (sticky sessions) and increase the instance size to handle more sessions per instance.
Why it's wrong here
Session affinity ties a user to a specific instance; if that instance is terminated, session is lost. Also increasing size does not prevent data loss.
- ✗
Store session data in Cloud SQL using Spring Session JDBC, and configure the application to retrieve sessions from the database.
Why it's wrong here
Cloud SQL adds network latency and is not optimized for high-throughput session storage; it may degrade performance further.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often choose session affinity (sticky sessions) thinking it solves session persistence, but it only routes traffic to the same instance and does not protect against session loss when that instance is terminated during autoscaling or maintenance.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, Tomcat's PersistentManager can be configured with a Store interface that writes sessions to an external backend; using Redis via Redisson or Spring Session implements this with fast SET/GET operations and TTL-based expiration, ensuring sessions survive instance termination. In real-world scenarios, this pattern is critical for MIGs with autoscaling because instances are ephemeral, and without a shared session store, any instance shutdown (e.g., scale-in, rolling update) immediately drops all in-memory sessions, causing user data loss.
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 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.
What to study next
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this PCA question test?
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: Deploy Cloud Memorystore for Redis as a session store, and configure Tomcat to use Redis-backed session persistence using the Redisson or Spring Session framework. — Option B is correct because it introduces an external, highly available, in-memory session store (Cloud Memorystore for Redis) that decouples session state from individual Compute Engine instances. This eliminates session loss during autoscaling events and reduces database load by serving session data from fast Redis memory, all while requiring minimal application changes via Tomcat's built-in session persistence or Spring Session integration.
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.
About these practice questions
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This PCA 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 PCA exam.
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