PCNE Practice Question: Designing, planning, and prototyping a GCP network
This PCNE practice question tests your understanding of designing, planning, and prototyping a gcp network. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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.
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit.
gcloud compute networks subnets create subnet-a \
--network=my-vpc \
--region=us-central1 \
--range=10.0.1.0/24 \
--secondary-range=10.1.0.0/16 \
--enable-private-ip-google-access
Refer to the exhibit. What is the purpose of the --enable-private-ip-google-access flag?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Allows VMs to access Google APIs without requiring an external IP.
The `--enable-private-ip-google-access` flag, when set to `true` on a subnet, allows VM instances in that subnet to reach Google APIs and services (e.g., Cloud Storage, BigQuery) using their private IP addresses, without requiring an external (public) IP. This works by routing traffic through Google's internal network to the Google API frontend, bypassing the public internet.
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.
✗
Enables the subnet to be used for Cloud VPN tunnels.
Allows VMs to access Google APIs without requiring an external IP.
Why this is correct
Private Google Access enables this.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Google Cloud often tests the misconception that this flag enables Cloud NAT or provides general internet access, when in fact it only provides access to Google APIs and services, not arbitrary public IPs.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, `--enable-private-ip-google-access` adds a route with a destination prefix of `199.36.153.4/30` (the Google API VIP) and a next hop of `default-internet-gateway`, but only for private IP traffic. This allows VMs without external IPs to send traffic to Google APIs via the default gateway, which forwards it over Google's internal backbone. A real-world scenario is a data analytics pipeline where VMs in a private subnet need to write to BigQuery without exposing them to the internet.
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.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Designing, planning, and prototyping a GCP network — This question tests Designing, planning, and prototyping a GCP network — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Allows VMs to access Google APIs without requiring an external IP. — The `--enable-private-ip-google-access` flag, when set to `true` on a subnet, allows VM instances in that subnet to reach Google APIs and services (e.g., Cloud Storage, BigQuery) using their private IP addresses, without requiring an external (public) IP. This works by routing traffic through Google's internal network to the Google API frontend, bypassing the public internet.
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.
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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