Compute Engine
Compute Engine provides scalable virtual machines in Google Cloud, similar to AWS EC2 and Azure Virtual Machines. It is used when teams need full infrastructure control over the operating system, installed software, and runtime environment.
What it does
Virtual machines in GCP.
When to use
Use Compute Engine when you need flexible virtual machines, custom server configuration, or migration of existing workloads into GCP.
Key Concepts
Instances are virtual machines with configurable machine types and storage.
Persistent disks provide attached block storage for instances.
Networking is managed through VPCs, subnets, firewall rules, and load balancing.
Compute Engine is often combined with managed databases, storage, and monitoring services.
Common Use Cases
Running backend services and APIs.
Migrating existing applications into GCP.
Hosting custom Linux-based workloads with full control.
Interview Questions
What is Compute Engine?
How is Compute Engine similar to EC2?
When would you choose a VM instead of a serverless or managed platform service?