C1000-172 IBM Cloud Professional Architect v6 Questions and Answers

An IBM Cloud multizone region (MZR) is designed to enhance the availability, reliability, and resilience of cloud services. It consists of three or more separate, geographically dispersed zones within a single region, which are interconnected through high-speed and low-latency networks.

Multiple Zones for High Availability:In a multizone region, each zone represents a separate data center or availability zone with its own independent power, cooling, and networking. The multiple zones are interconnected, allowing for failover capabilities. If one zone experiences a failure, services can continue to operate in another zone within the same MZR, minimizing downtime and ensuring business continuity.

Resilience and Disaster Recovery:MZRs are specifically designed to offer a higher level of fault tolerance compared to single-zone regions. They provide geographic redundancywithin the same region, meaning that workloads can be replicated across different zones, thereby protecting against zone-level failures.

Interconnected Yet Independent:While the zones within an MZR are interconnected for data replication and low-latency communication, they are also physically and logically separated to prevent a single point of failure from affecting multiple zones.

Comparison with Other Options:

Option A is partially correct but does not fully describe an MZR.

Option B is incorrect because a failure in one zone does not affect all other zones.

Option C is incorrect as it does not specify that an MZR consists of multiple zones within the same geographical region.

References:

IBM Cloud Multizone Regions (MZR) Overview

IBM Cloud Architect Exam Study Guide

IBM Cloud Global Data Center Locations

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The two private registry options available to IBM Cloud OpenShift clusters areIBM Cloud Container Registryandthe internal registry setup at cluster creation time.

IBM Cloud Container Registry: This is a private image registry that integrates with IBM Cloud OpenShift. It allows users to store and manage Docker images in a private repository securely. This option is specifically designed to work seamlessly with Kubernetes and OpenShift clusters in IBM Cloud.

Internal Registry at Cluster Creation Time: IBM Cloud OpenShift also supports an internal image registry that is set up during cluster creation. This internal registry allows for the storage and management of container images directly within the OpenShift cluster, providing a secure and private environment for images that are not meant to be publicly accessible.

References from IBM Cloud Professional Architect Materials:

According to IBM Cloud OpenShift documentation on Configuring Private Registries, these two options are available for IBM Cloud OpenShift clusters.

Other options are incorrect:

A. GitHubandC. Docker Hubare public registries.

E. Red Hat Quayis another private registry solution but is not directly listed as an option specific to IBM Cloud OpenShift clusters.

Therefore, the correct answers areB. IBM Cloud Container RegistryandD. The internal registry setup at cluster creation time.

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A key tenet of Modern Hybrid Cloud is that itfocuses on the portability and automatic scaling of workloads.

Modern Hybrid Cloud: This concept revolves around the ability to seamlessly move and manage workloads across multiple cloud environments (public, private, and on-premises) with consistent security, management, and operational practices. Portability and automatic scaling are essential components that enable workloads to be dynamically allocated and scaled based on demand.

Portability and Scalability: By focusing on these aspects, a modern hybrid cloud provides flexibility and efficiency, ensuring that workloads can run optimally across different environments without being tied to a specific infrastructure.

References from IBM Cloud Professional Architect Materials:

IBM's materials on Hybrid Cloud emphasize the importance of workload portability and scalability as key factors in modern cloud architectures.

Other options are incorrect:

B. Focuses on lifting and shifting workloads quickly to the cloudis more of a migration strategy, not a core principle of a modern hybrid cloud.

C. Designed to mimic on-premisesandD. Based on extending on-premises infrastructuredo not encompass the broader goals of a hybrid cloud strategy.

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Local resiliency in IBM Cloud refers to using a separate zone within the same region that has its own independent power supply, cooling, and networking. This approach provides redundancy within a single geographical region, ensuring that if one zone fails due to a localized event, other zones can continue to operate without interruption.

Local Resiliency Definition:By deploying resources in separate zones within the same region, clients achieve local resiliency that protects against localized failures such as power outages or hardware failures affecting only one zone.

Why This is Considered Local Resiliency:It offers redundancy and fault tolerance without requiring resources to be spread across multiple regions, reducing latency and providing a balance between availability and performance.

Comparison with Other Options:

A (Physical events):Describes regional or global resiliency.

B (Multiple copies of data across sites):Refers to data redundancy, which is different from local resiliency.

C (Testing site strategy):Focuses on testing rather than a strategy for resiliency.

References:

IBM Cloud Resiliency Solutions

IBM Cloud Architect Exam Study Guide

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IBM Cloud Transit Gateway provides secure and scalable connectivity between multiple IBM Cloud VPCs (Virtual Private Clouds) and other IBM Cloud resources, including PowerVS (Power Virtual Servers) and classic networking environments.

Benefits:

Connectivity Between Multiple VPCs and PowerVS:Allows seamless networking between VPCs and PowerVS, supporting hybrid and multi-cloud architectures.

Direct Link Connectivity:Supports direct, high-speed private connectivity between VPCs and classic IBM Cloud infrastructure, enabling secure communication without traversing the public internet.

Comparison with Other Options:

A (Connectivity over the internet):Transit Gateway provides private connectivity, not public internet connectivity.

C (Default connectivity to services in multiple regions):Not a direct benefit of Transit Gateway, as regional connectivity may require additional configuration.

References:

IBM Cloud Transit Gateway Documentation

IBM Cloud Architect Exam Study Guide

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For storing data for long-term archival purposes with a minimal I/O load and a peak IOPS requirement of 50,Tier 5 storageis the most appropriate choice.

Tier 5 Storage: This storage tier is designed for workloads with low performance and IOPS requirements, such as long-term data archival or infrequently accessed data. Tier 5 offers the lowest cost option and is ideal for scenarios where data is rarely accessed, and there is a minimal input/output operation per second (IOPS) requirement.

Workload Suitability: Given that the workload described involves minimal I/O load and a peak IOPS requirement of 50, Tier 5 provides an optimal balance between cost and the minimal performance needed for such an archival workload.

References from IBM Cloud Professional Architect Materials:

IBM documentation on IBM Cloud Storage Tiers indicates that Tier 5 storage is suitable for long-term data storage and archival, where performance requirements are minimal.

Other options are incorrect:

B. Tier 2 storage,C. Tier 3 storage, andD. Tier 1 storageprovide higher performance than necessary for the described archival workload, resulting in potentially unnecessary costs.

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IBM Cloud offers two content delivery networks (CDNs): CDN and Cloud Internet Services (CIS). These two offerings are underpinned by the networks of Akamai and Cloudflare, respectively.

IBM Cloud CDN:IBM Cloud uses Akamai’s global network for its Content Delivery Network (CDN) service. Akamai is one of the largest and most trusted CDN providers globally, known for its expansive network that delivers content with low latency and high availability.

IBM Cloud Internet Services (CIS):This service is built on Cloudflare's global network and offers a suite of services, including a CDN, DDoS protection, web application firewall (WAF), and more. Cloudflare's network spans many data centers worldwide, optimizing traffic delivery and securing applications.

Comparison with Other Options:

Limelight and KeyCDN (A), CDN 77 and CloudFront (C), Cloudflare and Fastly (D):These are other CDN providers but do not represent the networks underpinning IBM Cloud's CDN offerings.

References:

IBM Cloud CDN Documentation

IBM Cloud Internet Services (CIS) Documentation

IBM Cloud Architect Exam Study Guide

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An IBM Cloud Virtual Private Endpoint (VPE) provides a connection point from a Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) to other IBM Cloud services. This allows secure, private communication between resources within a VPC and IBM Cloud services without traversing the public internet, enhancing security and performance.

What is a Virtual Private Endpoint?VPE is a mechanism that enables private connections from a VPC to supported IBM Cloud services such as databases, object storage, and others. It eliminates the need for public IP addresses and reduces the exposure to potential attacks over the public internet.

Why This Option Describes VPE:It clearly explains that VPE is for connecting VPC resources to other IBM Cloud services, fitting the purpose of secure, internal cloud communication.

Comparison with Other Options:

A (Classic to microservices), C (VPC to on-premises), D (Classic to on-premises):None accurately describe the function of a Virtual Private Endpoint in IBM Cloud.

References:

IBM Cloud VPC Virtual Private Endpoints Documentation

IBM Cloud Networking Services

IBM Cloud Architect Exam Study Guide

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Watson Assistant helps companies reduce costs per contact by handling common inquiries and providing quick assistance through automation. By using a virtual agent, companies can reduce the number of queries that require human intervention, thereby lowering the overall cost associated with customer support operations.

How Watson Assistant Reduces Costs:Watson Assistant automates responses to frequently asked questions and common tasks, freeing up human agents to handle more complex inquiries. This leads to lower staffing requirements and operational costs.

Comparison with Other Options:

B (Remove the requirement for all human agents):Watson Assistant reduces but does not eliminate the need for human agents.

C (Provide live agents who can speak multiple languages):Not a function of Watson Assistant; it is a virtual agent technology.

D (Check insurance claim details for non-native English speakers):Watson Assistant can handle multilingual conversations, but the primary benefit is cost reduction.

References:

IBM Watson Assistant Overview

IBM Cloud Architect Exam Study Guide

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IBM Cloud Analytics Engine decouples compute and storage to provide independent scaling and cost management capabilities. This approach allows organizations to scale compute resources (such as CPU and memory) separately from storage resources, optimizing both performance and cost.

Independent Scaling:Decoupling compute and storage means that users can scale the computational power (e.g., number of nodes, processing capabilities) independently of the storage capacity (e.g., data stored in IBM Cloud Object Storage). This is particularly useful in data analytics workloads where the compute requirements may vary significantly over time, but the storage requirements remain relatively constant.

Cost Control:By allowing compute and storage to be managed separately, users have greater flexibility to control costs. For example, users can increase compute power temporarily to handle a peak workload without the need to increase storage costs. Conversely, they can store large datasets without paying for unused compute capacity. This decoupling leads to a more cost-effective and efficient use of cloud resources.

Advantages in Cloud Environments:Decoupling compute and storage aligns with the best practices in modern cloud environments, where elasticity, scalability, and cost efficiency are paramount. It allows organizations to adapt quickly to changing business needs and workload demands, reducing overhead and improving resource utilization.

References:

IBM Cloud Analytics Engine Documentation

IBM Cloud Architect Exam Study Guide

IBM Cloud Object Storage

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cloud-initis a widely used tool in IBM Cloud for initializing virtual server instances (VSIs) with user data. It allows users to provide configuration instructions or scripts that are executed when a new virtual server is created.cloud-initis highly versatile and supports a variety of use cases, such as installing software packages, setting up the environment, and managing users.

What iscloud-init?It is a standard method for cloud instance initialization in many cloud environments, including IBM Cloud.cloud-initreads the user data provided during the instance's launch and executes the required configurations, allowing for automated setup and customization.

Why usecloud-init?It enables users to automate the bootstrapping process of virtual servers by defining configurations that can range from simple commands to complex scripts. This reduces manual intervention, saves time, and ensures consistency in server setups.

Relationship with Other Options:

cloud-config (B)is a YAML file format used bycloud-initfor providing configuration details. However, the termcloud-initrefers to the actual tool used to process the user data.

server-config (C)anduser-data (D)are not specific tools but terms that might describe parts of thecloud-initprocess.

References:

IBM Cloud Virtual Servers Documentation

IBM Cloud Architect Exam Study Guide

cloud-init Official Documentation

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In Infrastructure as Code (IaC) using IBM Cloud Schematics, a declarative approach defines the "end state" or "desired state" of the infrastructure.

Declarative Approach: In the declarative model, you specify the final desired state of the infrastructure you want, and the IaC tool (IBM Cloud Schematics in this case) takes the responsibility of determining the sequence of steps necessary to achieve that state. This is opposed to an imperative approach, where you explicitly define each step required to reach the desired outcome.

IBM Cloud Schematics: IBM Cloud Schematics is a tool that allows users to define their infrastructure and services as code using Terraform. In a declarative approach, the user creates Terraform configuration files that describe the desired state of all resources, like VMs, networks, databases, etc. Schematics then reconciles the current state with the desired state by applying the appropriate changes.

References from IBM Cloud Professional Architect Materials:

According to IBM documentation on IBM Cloud Schematics, it focuses on defining the desired state (end state) of the resources. This is a fundamental concept of Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and the declarative approach in cloud computing.

The other options do not accurately describe the declarative approach:

A. Future stateis too vague and not a recognized term in the context of IaC.

C. Declarative stateis not a defined term in the IaC context.

D. Start staterefers to the initial configuration, not the desired outcome.

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The main advantage of using IBM Code Engine over traditional server provisioning isgreater scalability.

IBM Code Engine: It is a fully managed, serverless platform that automatically scales up or down based on the workload demand. Unlike traditional server provisioning, which requires manual configuration and scaling of resources, IBM Code Engine dynamically adjusts the compute capacity, allowing applications to handle variable loads efficiently.

Scalability Advantage: IBM Code Engine's serverless architecture eliminates the need for pre-provisioning servers, thus avoiding over-provisioning or under-provisioning issues. It can automatically scale from zero to thousands of instances based on demand, making it highly efficient for scaling applications.

References from IBM Cloud Professional Architect Materials:

According to IBM documentation on IBM Code Engine, it provides a serverless experience with automatic scaling, where the platform handles all the provisioning, scaling, and management of resources.

The other options are incorrect:

A. Lower latencymay be a benefit, but it's not the main advantage.

B. Better load balancingis part of scalability but not the primary advantage over traditional provisioning.

C. Higher securitycould be a benefit but isn't specific to IBM Code Engine's main advantage over server provisioning.

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IBM Key Protect is a cloud-based key management service that allows organizations to manage encryption keys used to protect their data across IBM Cloud services. The primary objective of IBM Key Protect is to securely generate, store, manage, and use cryptographic keys to protect sensitive data.

Key Management System:IBM Key Protect provides lifecycle management for keys, including creating, rotating, importing, and deleting keys. This service integrates with various IBM Cloud services to enable secure data encryption and protect data at rest and in transit.

Use Cases:It is designed for organizations that need to ensure compliance with data security regulations and protect their data using industry-standard encryption practices. It provides a centralized key management solution for cloud-native applications and workloads.

Comparison with Other Options:

Hardware security module (B)is a different type of secure key storage, which can be used alongside IBM Key Protect but is not its primary function.

Data analytics platform (C)andCloud-based data storage solution (D)are unrelated to key management and encryption.

References:

IBM Key Protect Documentation

IBM Cloud Architect Exam Study Guide

IBM Cloud Security Services

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IBM Cloud follows theFedRAMP (Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program)to ensure its services meet the security and compliance standards of the US government.

FedRAMP: It is a U.S. government-wide program that provides a standardized approach to security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring for cloud products and services. FedRAMP authorization is mandatory for any cloud services used by federal agencies, ensuring they meet strict security requirements.

IBM Cloud Compliance: IBM Cloud adheres to FedRAMP standards to provide its services to government agencies, ensuring that its cloud solutions meet stringent security and compliance requirements, as documented in IBM's FedRAMP Certification.

Why Other Options are Incorrect:

A. CIS (Center for Internet Security)andB. NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology)are frameworks and standards organizations but not specific programs like FedRAMP.

D. FIPS (Federal Information Processing Standards)defines security and interoperability standards but does not pertain to the overall authorization of cloud services.

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The capabilities of IBM Cloud Block Storage for VPC are:

Stores Volume Data Redundantly Across Multiple Physical Disks in an Availability Zone: IBM Cloud Block Storage is designed to provide redundancy and durability by storing data across multiple physical disks within the same availability zone. This ensures data availability and protection against disk failures.

Provides Primary Boot Volumes and Secondary Data Volumes: Block Storage in IBM Cloud VPC can be used as both primary boot volumes for the operating system and secondary data volumes for storing additional data.

References from IBM Cloud Professional Architect Materials:

IBM documentation on IBM Cloud Block Storage for VPC outlines these capabilities, including redundant data storage and support for both boot and data volumes.

Other options are incorrect:

A. Provides a highly available, durable, and secure platform for storing unstructured datadescribes object storage, not block storage.

C. Provides storage in a separate zoneis incorrect; storage is typically within the same zone as compute resources.

E. Provides fast, flexible network-attached, NFS-based storagedescribes a different type of storage.

Therefore, the correct answers areB. Stores volume data redundantly across multiple physical disks in an availability zoneandD. Provides primary boot volumes and secondary data volumes.

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