ACA Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield ACA facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. In MaxCompute, what is a 'project' equivalent to? → An isolated resource and data management unit similar to a database namespace
2. Which of the following is true about the Alibaba Cloud account root user (primary account)? → It has unrestricted access to all resources and should be protected carefully
3. What is the difference between a System Policy and a Custom Policy in Alibaba Cloud RAM? → System policies are predefined by Alibaba Cloud; custom policies are user-defined
4. In Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate, what is the purpose of a literature review in database services? → To survey existing research and identify gaps that the current study addresses
5. Which Alibaba Cloud service provides a fully managed platform for building, training, and deploying machine learning models? → Machine Learning Platform for AI (PAI)
6. Which Alibaba Cloud service is a fully managed, serverless big data computing platform designed for large-scale data warehousing and batch analytics? → MaxCompute
7. There are three types of node instances in an E-MapReduce cluster: master, core, and _____. → Task
8. E-MapReduce on Alibaba Cloud is built on top of which open-source framework? → Apache Hadoop and Spark
9. Which storage option is recommended for sharing persistent data between multiple pods in an ACK cluster within the same availability zone? → Alibaba Cloud NAS (Network Attached Storage) mounted as a PersistentVolume
10. What is the relationship between theory and practice in Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate load balancing? → Theory provides the foundation and framework that guides effective practical application
11. What is the primary consideration when implementing new technology in Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate? → Ensuring compatibility with existing systems and meeting user requirements
12. What is the relationship between theory and practice in Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate virtual private cloud? → Theory provides the foundation and framework that guides effective practical application
13. In Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate, why is virtual private cloud knowledge important for professional certification? → It demonstrates competence and ensures practitioners meet established standards
14. In Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate, what does "statistical significance" mean? → The result is unlikely to have occurred by chance alone (typically p < 0.05)
15. A developer needs to access OSS from a mobile app without exposing long-term credentials. Which approach should be used? → Use STS to issue short-lived tokens for the mobile app
16. Which node type in DataWorks can edit the Python code to operate data in MaxCompute? → PyODPS Node
17. What is the recommended way to organize RAM users that share the same job function in Alibaba Cloud? → Add all users to a RAM Group and attach policies to the group
18. In Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate, what is the primary benefit of implementing automated content delivery network? → Increased efficiency, accuracy, and consistency in operations
19. In Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate, what is the purpose of an audit trail in information systems? → To maintain a chronological record of system activities and changes
20. What is the purpose of Horizontal Pod Autoscaler (HPA) in an ACK cluster? → To scale the number of pod replicas up or down based on CPU/memory or custom metrics
21. Which backup strategy in Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate provides the most comprehensive data protection? → Regular incremental backups combined with periodic full backups
22. In Alibaba Cloud RAM, what is the effect of attaching a Deny statement to a policy when the same action is also allowed by another policy? → The Deny always overrides the Allow, blocking the action
23. What is the primary objective of auto scaling in Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate? → To ensure competence and proficiency in core auto scaling concepts
24. Which Alibaba Cloud service is used to collect, subscribe to, and distribute real-time message streams, similar to Apache Kafka? → DataHub
25. In Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate, what should be the first action when discovering a security breach? → Assess the situation and follow established incident response procedures
26. When using E-MapReduce (EMR) on Alibaba Cloud, where is it recommended to store large datasets to reduce costs and decouple storage from compute? → On Alibaba Cloud OSS (Object Storage Service)
27. What is the purpose of access controls in Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate content delivery network? → To ensure only authorized users can view or modify sensitive data and systems
28. In Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate, what is the primary objective of security best practices? → To protect people, property, and information from threats and unauthorized access
29. What is the relationship between theory and practice in Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate cloud monitoring? → Theory provides the foundation and framework that guides effective practical application
30. What is a "control group" in Alibaba Cloud Certified Associate research? → A group that does not receive the experimental treatment, serving as a baseline comparison