- A
Partition the table by region to limit scans.
Why wrong: Spanner does not support user-defined partitioning.
- B
Use the STORING clause in the index to include frequently accessed columns.
Reduces additional reads.
- C
Interleave an 'OrderItems' table under 'Shipments' for join performance.
Interleaving improves read locality.
- D
Create a secondary index on (origin, status) for efficient filtering.
Index speeds up queries.
- E
Use a monotonically increasing integer primary key for high write throughput.
Why wrong: Causes hotspots.
Question 303 of 1,000
PCDOE Design and Plan Database Solutions Practice Question
This PCDOE practice question tests your understanding of design and plan database solutions. 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 designing a Cloud Spanner database for a global supply chain application. The schema includes a table 'Shipments' with columns: shipment_id (INT64), created_at (TIMESTAMP), origin (STRING), destination (STRING), status (STRING). The application frequently queries for shipments by origin and status. Which three design choices optimize query performance? (Choose THREE.)
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
✓
Use the STORING clause in the index to include frequently accessed columns.
Option B is correct because the STORING clause in a Cloud Spanner secondary index allows you to include additional columns (such as 'destination' or 'status') in the index storage, enabling index-only scans that avoid fetching rows from the base table. This reduces read latency and resource consumption for queries that frequently access those columns along with the indexed keys.
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.
- ✗
Partition the table by region to limit scans.
Why it's wrong here
Spanner does not support user-defined partitioning.
- ✓
Use the STORING clause in the index to include frequently accessed columns.
Why this is correct
Reduces additional reads.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✓
Interleave an 'OrderItems' table under 'Shipments' for join performance.
Why this is correct
Interleaving improves read locality.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✓
Create a secondary index on (origin, status) for efficient filtering.
Why this is correct
Index speeds up queries.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use a monotonically increasing integer primary key for high write throughput.
Why it's wrong here
Causes hotspots.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Cisco often tests the misconception that Cloud Spanner supports traditional partitioning or that monotonically increasing keys are safe for distributed databases, leading candidates to select options that would actually degrade performance.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Cloud Spanner's secondary indexes are global and strongly consistent, meaning they are updated synchronously with the base table. The STORING clause materializes the specified columns into the index's data blocks, which allows the query to be satisfied entirely from the index without a back-join to the base table — this is similar to a covering index in other databases but with Spanner's distributed architecture. In a global supply chain application, this can dramatically reduce cross-region reads when the index is co-located with the querying region.
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.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this PCDOE question test?
Design and Plan Database Solutions — This question tests Design and Plan Database Solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use the STORING clause in the index to include frequently accessed columns. — Option B is correct because the STORING clause in a Cloud Spanner secondary index allows you to include additional columns (such as 'destination' or 'status') in the index storage, enabling index-only scans that avoid fetching rows from the base table. This reduces read latency and resource consumption for queries that frequently access those columns along with the indexed keys.
What should I do if I get this PCDOE 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: Jul 4, 2026
This PCDOE 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 PCDOE exam.
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