Which storage class provides the lowest cost for data accessed less than once a year?
Correct. Archive is for data accessed less than once a year, at lowest cost.
Why this answer
Archive storage class is the correct answer because it is specifically designed for long-term data retention where access is extremely infrequent, such as less than once a year. It offers the lowest storage cost among Google Cloud Storage classes, but with higher retrieval costs and a minimum storage duration of 365 days, making it ideal for data that is rarely accessed.
Exam trap
Google Cloud often tests the distinction between Coldline and Archive by making candidates confuse the minimum storage duration (90 days for Coldline vs. 365 days for Archive) and the access frequency thresholds (once a quarter vs. once a year), leading them to pick Coldline when Archive is the correct lowest-cost option for data accessed less than once a year.
How to eliminate wrong answers
Option A (Nearline) is wrong because it is optimized for data accessed less than once a month, not less than once a year, and has a higher storage cost than Archive. Option C (Standard) is wrong because it is designed for frequently accessed data (hot data) and has the highest storage cost among the options. Option D (Coldline) is wrong because it is intended for data accessed less than once a quarter (90 days), still more frequent than once a year, and its storage cost is higher than Archive.