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.
Your organization is implementing a Disaster Recovery plan for a critical database. Which THREE components are essential for a robust DR strategy? (Choose 3)
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Automated failover process to switch traffic to the DR region.
Option B is correct because an automated failover process is essential for minimizing Recovery Time Objective (RTO) in a Disaster Recovery strategy. Without automation, manual intervention introduces delays and risks of human error, which can extend downtime significantly. In cloud or on-premises environments, automated failover typically relies on health checks, DNS updates, or traffic manager rules to seamlessly redirect traffic to the DR region when the primary fails.
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.
✗
A single global load balancer for both regions.
Why it's wrong here
A single load balancer is a single point of failure; each region should have its own load balancer or use a multi-region LB.
✓
Automated failover process to switch traffic to the DR region.
Why this is correct
Automation minimizes manual errors and reduces RTO.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✓
Data replication strategy (synchronous or asynchronous) to a secondary region.
Why this is correct
Replication ensures data is copied to the DR site; sync/choice affects RPO.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✓
Regular DR drills (testing failover at least once per quarter).
Why this is correct
Testing ensures the plan works and staff are familiar with processes.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Using a single zone for the primary region.
Why it's wrong here
Relying on a single zone increases risk; even within a region, use multiple zones.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Google Cloud often tests the misconception that a single global load balancer provides high availability, when in fact it becomes a single point of failure unless it is itself deployed in a redundant, multi-region architecture.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Automated failover often leverages health probes (e.g., HTTP/HTTPS GET requests) to monitor application endpoints; when consecutive failures exceed a threshold, the traffic manager updates DNS records or shifts traffic to the DR region. Synchronous replication ensures zero data loss (RPO=0) but introduces latency, while asynchronous replication is more performant over long distances but risks minor data loss. Regular DR drills validate that the automation scripts, network paths, and data consistency checks work as expected under real failure conditions.
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 media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this PCA question in full detail.
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: Automated failover process to switch traffic to the DR region. — Option B is correct because an automated failover process is essential for minimizing Recovery Time Objective (RTO) in a Disaster Recovery strategy. Without automation, manual intervention introduces delays and risks of human error, which can extend downtime significantly. In cloud or on-premises environments, automated failover typically relies on health checks, DNS updates, or traffic manager rules to seamlessly redirect traffic to the DR region when the primary fails.
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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