COA Architecture & System Design 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary consideration when designing system architecture?
- Scalability, reliability, and alignment with business requirements (Correct answer)
- Using the newest technology available
- Minimizing the number of components
- Matching competitor architectures
Correct answer: Scalability, reliability, and alignment with business requirements
System architecture must prioritize scalability, reliability, and alignment with business requirements to ensure long-term viability and value delivery.
Question 2: Which architectural pattern provides the best fault isolation?
- Microservices architecture with independent service boundaries (Correct answer)
- Monolithic architecture
- Single-tier architecture
- Flat file storage systems
Correct answer: Microservices architecture with independent service boundaries
Microservices architecture provides superior fault isolation because failures in one service do not directly affect others, improving overall system resilience.
Question 3: What role does documentation play in system architecture?
- It enables team understanding, maintenance, and future development decisions (Correct answer)
- It is only needed for compliance audits
- It slows down development
- It is optional for small systems
Correct answer: It enables team understanding, maintenance, and future development decisions
Architecture documentation is essential for team understanding, system maintenance, and informed decision-making about future development and changes.
Question 4: How should security be incorporated into system architecture?
- Integrated from the initial design phase as a foundational requirement (Correct answer)
- Added after all functional features are complete
- Handled entirely by the network team
- Only addressed when vulnerabilities are discovered
Correct answer: Integrated from the initial design phase as a foundational requirement
Security must be integrated from the initial design phase (security by design) to be effective, as retrofitting security is more costly and less thorough.
Question 5: What is the benefit of using a layered architecture approach?
- Separation of concerns enabling independent development and testing (Correct answer)
- Faster execution speed
- Reduced hardware requirements
- Elimination of all dependencies
Correct answer: Separation of concerns enabling independent development and testing
Layered architecture separates concerns so each layer can be developed, tested, and modified independently, improving maintainability and team productivity.
Question 6: When should architectural decisions be reviewed and potentially revised?
- When requirements change significantly or performance targets are not met (Correct answer)
- Never, once architecture is set it should not change
- Only during annual reviews
- Only when migrating to new hardware
Correct answer: When requirements change significantly or performance targets are not met
Architectural decisions should be reviewed when requirements change significantly or performance issues arise, ensuring the system continues to meet evolving needs.
COA Architecture & System Design 1
What is the primary consideration when designing system architecture?