The answer is to deploy a VCSA with embedded PSC on a cluster with vSphere HA enabled. This topology is correct because vSphere HA monitors the ESXi host and, upon failure, automatically restarts the VCSA virtual machine on a surviving host in the cluster, ensuring continuous availability of all vCenter services without requiring external PSCs or complex multi-site configurations. On the VCP-DCV exam, this question tests your understanding that embedded PSC topologies are fully supported with vSphere HA, and the common trap is assuming you need an external PSC or a separate load balancer for high availability. Remember, for a single-site VCSA deployment, vSphere HA is the simplest and supported method to meet high availability policy requirements. Memory tip: HA for the VCSA means the cluster does the restarting, not the PSC.
VCP-DCV vSphere Architecture, Products and Solutions Practice Question
This VCP-DCV practice question tests your understanding of vsphere architecture, products and solutions. 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 vSphere administrator is planning to deploy a vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA) with an embedded Platform Services Controller (PSC). The company policy requires that all vCenter services be highly available. Which deployment topology should the administrator choose?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Deploy a VCSA with embedded PSC on a cluster with vSphere HA enabled.
Option C is correct because deploying a VCSA with an embedded PSC on a cluster with vSphere HA enabled ensures that if the ESXi host running the VCSA fails, the VCSA is automatically restarted on another host in the cluster, providing high availability for all vCenter services. The embedded PSC topology is fully supported with vSphere HA, and this approach meets the policy requirement without the complexity of external PSCs or multi-site configurations.
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 a single VCSA with embedded PSC on a standalone host.
Why it's wrong here
Single instance is a single point of failure.
✗
Deploy a VCSA with an external PSC, and install the PSC on a separate VM.
Why it's wrong here
External PSC does not make the VCSA highly available.
✓
Deploy a VCSA with embedded PSC on a cluster with vSphere HA enabled.
Why this is correct
vSphere HA restarts the VCSA if the host fails, providing high availability.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Deploy two VCSAs in separate vCenter Single Sign-On domains and configure multi-site.
Why it's wrong here
Multi-site provides DR, not HA for a single vCenter.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse high availability (HA) with fault tolerance or disaster recovery, leading them to choose multi-site or external PSC options, but vSphere HA on a cluster is the simplest and correct method to achieve high availability for a single VCSA with embedded PSC.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
vSphere HA works by monitoring the heartbeat of ESXi hosts and VMs; if a host fails, the VCSA VM is restarted on a healthy host in the cluster, preserving its state and services. The embedded PSC model simplifies the architecture by co-locating the PSC with vCenter, reducing network latency and dependency, and vSphere HA can restart the entire VM, including the PSC services, without requiring additional load balancers or clustering software. In a real-world scenario, this topology is often used in small-to-medium environments where cost and simplicity are priorities, but it does not protect against VM-level corruption or data loss, which would require backups or vCenter High Availability (vCHA).
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 VCP-DCV 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.
vSphere Architecture, Products and Solutions — This question tests vSphere Architecture, Products and Solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Deploy a VCSA with embedded PSC on a cluster with vSphere HA enabled. — Option C is correct because deploying a VCSA with an embedded PSC on a cluster with vSphere HA enabled ensures that if the ESXi host running the VCSA fails, the VCSA is automatically restarted on another host in the cluster, providing high availability for all vCenter services. The embedded PSC topology is fully supported with vSphere HA, and this approach meets the policy requirement without the complexity of external PSCs or multi-site configurations.
What should I do if I get this VCP-DCV 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.
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 →
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. An administrator deploys a new vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA) using the CLI installer. The administrator wants to ensure the appliance is highly available. Which deployment option should the administrator choose during the installation?
easy
A.Deploy the VCSA with an embedded Platform Services Controller
B.Enable Enhanced vMotion Compatibility (EVC) on the cluster
C.Configure vSphere HA on the cluster that hosts the VCSA
✓ D.Deploy the VCSA with an external Platform Services Controller and enable vCenter HA later
Why D: Option B is correct because the VCSA can be deployed with an embedded or external Platform Services Controller (PSC); for high availability, the recommended architecture is to deploy the VCSA with an external PSC and then use vCenter HA. Option A is incorrect because embedded PSC does not support vCenter HA. Option C is incorrect because vCenter HA is the correct feature, not Enhanced vMotion. Option D is incorrect because vSphere HA is for host-level, not vCenter HA.
Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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This VCP-DCV practice question is part of Courseiva's free VMware 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 VCP-DCV exam.
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