EX294 Coordinate rolling updates Practice Question
This EX294 practice question tests your understanding of coordinate rolling updates. 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.
An administrator uses a rolling update strategy with serial: 3 and max_fail_percentage: 20. They have 10 hosts in the inventory. The first batch of 3 hosts: 2 succeed, 1 fails. What happens next?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "first"
Why it matters: Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The playbook aborts and no further hosts are updated.
Option D is correct because when `max_fail_percentage` is set to 20% and the inventory has 10 hosts, the maximum allowed failures across the entire play is 2 hosts (20% of 10 = 2). In the first batch of 3 hosts, 1 failure already occurred. If the playbook continued and another failure happened in a subsequent batch, the total failures would exceed 2, violating the `max_fail_percentage` constraint. Ansible's rolling update logic aborts the entire play immediately when a failure occurs in a batch if the cumulative failures would exceed the allowed percentage, preventing further updates.
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.
✗
The playbook continues with the next batch of 3 hosts.
Why it's wrong here
Failure exceeds threshold, so it aborts.
✗
The playbook retries the failed host, then continues.
Why it's wrong here
No automatic retry; it aborts.
✗
The playbook marks the failed host as unreachable and continues.
Why it's wrong here
max_fail_percentage triggers abort, not skip.
✓
The playbook aborts and no further hosts are updated.
Why this is correct
Correct. The failure percentage in the batch exceeded max_fail_percentage.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "first" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates mistakenly think `max_fail_percentage` applies per batch rather than to the total inventory, leading them to believe the playbook can continue with the next batch since only 1 of 3 hosts failed in the first batch.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
The `max_fail_percentage` parameter in Ansible's rolling update (used with `serial`) is calculated against the total number of hosts in the inventory, not the current batch. In this scenario, 20% of 10 hosts equals 2 failures allowed. After the first batch, 1 failure has occurred, leaving only 1 more failure allowed across all remaining batches. Ansible's internal logic checks cumulative failures after each batch and aborts the play if continuing could exceed the threshold, even if the next batch itself might not cause an immediate overflow. This behavior is critical in large-scale deployments where a single failed batch can cascade into widespread failures if not halted.
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 practitioner preparing for the EX294 exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
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.
Coordinate rolling updates — This question tests Coordinate rolling updates — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The playbook aborts and no further hosts are updated. — Option D is correct because when `max_fail_percentage` is set to 20% and the inventory has 10 hosts, the maximum allowed failures across the entire play is 2 hosts (20% of 10 = 2). In the first batch of 3 hosts, 1 failure already occurred. If the playbook continued and another failure happened in a subsequent batch, the total failures would exceed 2, violating the `max_fail_percentage` constraint. Ansible's rolling update logic aborts the entire play immediately when a failure occurs in a batch if the cumulative failures would exceed the allowed percentage, preventing further updates.
What should I do if I get this EX294 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: "first". Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
This EX294 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Red Hat 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 EX294 exam.
Question Discussion
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.