L9. Networking: VPC, Cloud Load Balancing, Cloud CDN, and Cloud Interconnect
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Google Cloud networking is built on the same infrastructure as Google Search. The Digital Leader exam tests VPC design, load balancing options, CDN, and connectivity from on-premises to Google Cloud.
Google Cloud VPC
A Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) provides a private, isolated network for your Google Cloud resources. Key characteristics unique to Google Cloud VPCs:
- Global VPCs: a single Google Cloud VPC spans all regions by default (unlike AWS where VPCs are Regional)
- Subnets are regional: while the VPC is global, subnets are bound to a specific region
- Default VPC: every project gets a default VPC with subnets in every region
- Firewall rules: stateful rules applied at instance level (using network tags or service accounts)
- VPC peering: connect two VPCs privately (no internet)
- Shared VPC: share a single VPC across multiple projects within an Organization
- Private Google Access: allow resources without external IPs to access Google APIs
Cloud Load Balancing
Google Cloud Load Balancing is a fully managed, software-defined load balancing service. Load balancer types:
| Type | Traffic | Scope | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global External HTTP(S) | HTTP/HTTPS | Global | Multi-region web apps |
| Regional External HTTP(S) | HTTP/HTTPS | Regional | Regional web apps |
| External TCP/UDP | TCP/UDP | Regional | Non-HTTP external traffic |
| Internal HTTP(S) | HTTP/HTTPS | Regional | Internal microservices |
| Internal TCP/UDP | TCP/UDP | Regional | Internal L4 traffic |
Cloud CDN
Cloud CDN (Content Delivery Network) caches content at Google's edge network (130+ edge locations) to serve users with lower latency. Works with: Global External HTTP(S) Load Balancer, Cloud Storage, custom origins. Cache Control: TTL-based caching; cache invalidation API available.
Cloud Interconnect
For private, high-bandwidth connectivity from on-premises to Google Cloud: Dedicated Interconnect: direct physical connection to Google's network at 10 or 100 Gbps. Best for highest throughput requirements. Partner Interconnect: connection through a supported service provider when you can't reach a Google colocation facility. Cloud VPN: encrypted IPsec tunnel over the public internet. Lower cost, lower bandwidth than Interconnect.
Cloud DNS
Cloud DNS is Google's authoritative, highly available managed DNS service (100% uptime SLA). Exam tip: Google Cloud VPCs are global (span all regions); subnets are regional. Cloud Load Balancing uses anycast IPs for global routing. Dedicated Interconnect = private, bypasses internet, high bandwidth.
- ✓Google Cloud VPCs are global (span all regions); subnets are regional resources within the VPC
- ✓Shared VPC lets multiple projects within an organization share one VPC network
- ✓Global External HTTPS Load Balancer uses anycast IPs to route users to the nearest healthy backend worldwide
- ✓Cloud CDN caches content at 130+ Google edge locations for low-latency global delivery
- ✓Dedicated Interconnect provides private 10/100 Gbps connections; Cloud VPN provides encrypted tunnels over the internet
1. What makes Google Cloud VPC fundamentally different from VPCs in other cloud providers?
2. A company needs a private, dedicated 10 Gbps physical connection from their on-premises datacenter to Google Cloud without using the public internet. Which service should they use?
Recommended: Pluralsight
Reinforce these lessons with Pluralsight's Google Cloud paths: structured video courses, GCP console labs, and practice exams for the Digital Leader certification.