The correct configuration is to deploy two Cloud VPN gateways, each with two tunnels to two separate on-premises VPN devices. This setup achieves the 99.99% SLA because Google Cloud’s HA VPN requires at least two tunnels per gateway for gateway-level redundancy, and pairing each gateway with two distinct on-premises devices eliminates the single point of failure on the customer side. On the Google Professional Cloud Network Engineer exam, this tests your understanding of the HA VPN SLA requirements and the distinction between tunnel redundancy and device redundancy—a common trap is assuming a single on-premises device with multiple tunnels is sufficient. Remember that the 99.99% SLA mandates both Cloud-side and on-premises-side redundancy; think of it as “two gateways, two tunnels each, two on-prem devices” to avoid the trap of a single customer router. A useful memory tip: “Double two-two-two” — two gateways, two tunnels per gateway, two on-prem devices.
PCNE Implementing hybrid interconnectivity Practice Question
This PCNE practice question tests your understanding of implementing hybrid interconnectivity. 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.
A company wants to connect their on-premises network to Google Cloud using a VPN with high availability and 99.99% SLA. They have two Cloud VPN gateways, each with two external IP addresses. Which configuration best meets the high availability requirement?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Deploy two Cloud VPN gateways, each with two tunnels to two separate on-premises VPN devices
Option B is correct because it meets the 99.99% SLA requirement by deploying two Cloud VPN gateways, each with two tunnels to two separate on-premises VPN devices. This configuration provides both gateway-level redundancy and tunnel-level redundancy, ensuring that if one gateway, tunnel, or on-premises device fails, traffic can failover to another tunnel. Google Cloud's HA VPN requires at least two tunnels per gateway to achieve the 99.99% SLA, and using two separate on-premises devices eliminates the single point of failure on the customer side.
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.
✗
Deploy two Cloud VPN gateways, each with one tunnel to one on-premises VPN device
Why it's wrong here
Single tunnel per gateway provides no redundancy if the peer device fails.
✓
Deploy two Cloud VPN gateways, each with two tunnels to two separate on-premises VPN devices
Why this is correct
Provides redundancy at both ends; meets 99.99% SLA.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Deploy one Cloud VPN gateway with two tunnels to two separate on-premises VPN devices
Why it's wrong here
Single Cloud VPNgateway is a single point of failure, does not meet 99.99% SLA.
✗
Deploy one Cloud VPN gateway with one tunnel to one on-premises VPN device
Why it's wrong here
No redundancy at all.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume two gateways with one tunnel each is sufficient for high availability, but they overlook the requirement for two tunnels per gateway to meet the 99.99% SLA, as well as the need for two separate on-premises devices to avoid a single point of failure on the customer side.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Google Cloud's HA VPN uses active/active or active/passive failover with BGP (Border Gateway Protocol) to route traffic through multiple tunnels. Each Cloud VPN gateway supports up to four tunnels, and the 99.99% SLA is guaranteed only when at least two tunnels are configured per gateway, each using a unique external IP and connecting to a separate on-premises VPN device. Under the hood, BGP sessions are established over each tunnel, and route advertisements are used to control traffic flow; if a tunnel or gateway fails, BGP withdraws the routes, and traffic automatically shifts to the remaining tunnels. In a real-world scenario, this design protects against both cloud-side failures (e.g., a gateway outage) and on-premises failures (e.g., a router crash or ISP link failure), ensuring continuous connectivity for critical workloads.
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
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Implementing hybrid interconnectivity — This question tests Implementing hybrid interconnectivity — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Deploy two Cloud VPN gateways, each with two tunnels to two separate on-premises VPN devices — Option B is correct because it meets the 99.99% SLA requirement by deploying two Cloud VPN gateways, each with two tunnels to two separate on-premises VPN devices. This configuration provides both gateway-level redundancy and tunnel-level redundancy, ensuring that if one gateway, tunnel, or on-premises device fails, traffic can failover to another tunnel. Google Cloud's HA VPN requires at least two tunnels per gateway to achieve the 99.99% SLA, and using two separate on-premises devices eliminates the single point of failure on the customer side.
What should I do if I get this PCNE question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
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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