SSCP Systems and Application Security Practice Question
A company is concerned about VM sprawl in its data center. Which of the following is the most effective mitigation strategy?
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
✓
Implement a CMDB with lifecycle management policies
VM sprawl refers to unmanaged VMs accumulating. A Configuration Management Database (CMDB) with lifecycle management tracks VMs from creation to decommission. Hypervisor patching prevents escapes. Snapshots are for recovery. Host-based firewalls protect individual VMs but do not manage sprawl.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Enable host-based firewalls on each VM
Why it's wrong here
Host-based firewalls filter traffic per VM but do not detect, track or retire unused instances, so sprawl persists. They suit lateral-movement containment and per-host segmentation, not the asset lifecycle visibility and reclamation that sprawl reduction demands.
- ✓
Implement a CMDB with lifecycle management policies
Why this is correct
A CMDB records every VM, owner and lifecycle state, and lifecycle policies enforce decommissioning of unused instances. This directly addresses sprawl by giving visibility and control over VM provisioning and retirement, satisfying the stem's mitigation requirement more effectively than periodic manual audits.
- ✗
Apply patches to the hypervisor regularly
Why it's wrong here
Hypervisor patching addresses vulnerabilities in the virtualisation layer, not the accumulation of unmanaged guest VMs. Regular hypervisor updates suit hardening against escape exploits and platform flaws, leaving the inventory, ownership and decommissioning gaps that define sprawl untouched.
- ✗
Use a centralized snapshot management system
Why it's wrong here
Snapshots preserve VM state for recovery; they neither inventory nor decommission running instances, so unmanaged VMs continue consuming resources undetected. Centralised snapshot management suits backup consistency and restore governance, not identifying and reclaiming orphaned virtual machines.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This SSCP practice question is part of Courseiva's free ISC2 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 SSCP exam.