Oracle Cloud (OCI) Interview Questions
1. What is a Policy in IAM?
A: A set of rules defining who can access a resource and what actions they can perform. Policies can be applied at the compartment or tenancy level.
2. How do you create a Network Security Group using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci network security-list create --name <name> --compartment-id <ocid> --egress-security-rules '[<json>]' --ingress-security-rules '[<json>]'3. What is IDCS Federation?
A: A feature that connects IDCS with external identity providers like Microsoft Active Directory or Okta, letting users access multiple systems with one identity.
4. How do you create a Compartment Landing Zone using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci landing-zone create --name <name> --compartment-id <ocid> --landing-zone-type <type> --default-config '<json>'5. What is a Tag?
A: A label you apply to resources to categorize them by attributes like cost center, environment, or project.
6. How do you enable MFA for a user in the Console?
A: Go to Users, click the user’s name, click Add MFA, select the device type, and follow the setup steps.
7. What is a Service Limit?
A: The maximum amount of a resource you can provision within a region or tenancy, preventing over-provisioning and ensuring efficient use.
8. How do you create a group in IAM using the Console?
A: Go to the Groups tab, click Create Group, provide a name, and select a compartment.
9. What is a Resource Principal?
A: A special identity representing a resource rather than a user, used to authenticate requests initiated by that resource.
10. How do you list all compartments using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci iam compartment list --compartment-id <tenancy-ocid>11. What is a Virtual Cloud Network (VCN)?
A: A private network within an Oracle Cloud region used to connect and isolate your resources. It consists of subnets, route tables, security lists, and other networking components.
12. How do you create a Dynamic Group using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci identity dynamic-group create --name <name> --description <desc> --matching-rule <rule>13. What is an Authentication Policy in IDCS?
A: A set of rules managing how authentication works covering things like password requirements, session settings, and MFA enforcement.
14. How do you create a policy in the Console?
A: Go to the Policies tab, click Create Policy, provide a name, write your policy statements, and choose a compartment.
15. What is a Delegation Token?
A: A short-lived token that lets third-party apps access your Oracle Cloud resources securely without exposing your credentials.
16. How do you view your Service Limits?
A: Navigate to the Service Limits tab in the Console to see current usage and maximum limits for each service.
17. What is IAM?
A: Identity and Access Management Oracle Cloud’s service for managing users, groups, and policies to control who can access what resources and how.
18. How do you create a VCN?
A: In the Console, go to Virtual Cloud Networks, click Create Virtual Cloud Network, provide a name, compartment, and CIDR block.
19. What is a Network Source in IAM?
A: A defined set of IP addresses or ranges used in policies to restrict resource access based on where requests originate.
20. How do you attach a policy to a group using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci iam group update --group-id <ocid> --add-policy <policy-ocid>21. What is a Compartment Landing Zone?
A: A predefined set of compartments and policies that enforce your organization’s standards, giving every new project a consistent, compliant starting point.
22. How do you create a Tag Namespace in the Console?
A: Go to the Tagging tab, click Create Namespace, and provide a name and configuration.
23. What is an Instance Principal?
A: A special identity representing a compute instance, allowing it to make authenticated API calls without embedding user credentials.
24. How do you move resources between compartments?
A: In the Console, select the resources, click Actions, then Move Resources and choose the destination. Via CLI:
oci resource-manager stack move --stack-id <ocid> --compartment-id <destination-ocid>25. What is a Security Zone?
A: A protected set of resources and policies in Oracle Cloud that enforces strict security and compliance rules for critical workloads.
26. How do you create a new user in IAM?
A: In the Console, go to Users, click Create User, and fill in the details. Via CLI:
oci iam user create --name <name> --description <desc> --compartment-id <ocid>27. What is a Route Table?
A: A component that defines routing rules for your VCN, controlling how traffic flows between subnets and to external networks.
28. How do you create a Resource Manager Stack using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci resource-manager stack create --compartment-id <ocid> --config-source <source>29. What is IDCS?
A: Oracle Identity Cloud Service a cloud-based identity platform providing authentication, authorization, and user management for Oracle Cloud and other services.
30. How do you enable Instance Principals via the Console?
A: Select the instance under the Instances tab and click Attach VNIC with Instance Principle.
31. What is a Tag Namespace?
A: A grouping of related tags that ensures consistent labeling across your tenancy.
32. How do you create a compartment in the Console?
A: Go to the Compartments tab, click Create Compartment, then fill in a name, description, and parent compartment if needed.
33. What is an Access Request in IAM?
A: A formal request submitted by a user to a policy owner asking for permission to access a specific resource.
34. How do you create a Customer-Managed Key in the Console?
A: Go to the Key Management tab, click Create Key, provide a name, select a compartment, and configure the key details.
35. What is the Root Compartment?
A: The top-level compartment automatically created when you sign up. All other compartments live inside it and it can never be deleted.
36. How do you create an Instance Configuration using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci compute-management instance-configuration create --name <name> --compartment-id <ocid> --instance-details '<json>'37. What is a Dynamic Group?
A: A rule-based collection of resources (not users) that share common attributes. Policies applied to a dynamic group affect all matching resources automatically.
38. How do you configure IDCS Federation in the Console?
A: Go to Identity Providers, click Add Identity Provider, and fill in the provider type, name, and configuration details.
39. What is a Subnet?
A: A segment of a VCN tied to a specific availability domain. You define its CIDR block when creating it.
40. How do you create a Security Zone in the Console?
A: Go to the Security Zones tab, click Create Security Zone, provide a name, select a compartment, and configure the zone.
41. What is Oracle Cloud Tenancy?
A: Your own secure, isolated space in Oracle Cloud where you create and manage all your resources like compute instances, storage, and networking components.
42. How do you view tags on a resource?
A: Select the resource in the Console and click the Tags tab to see all associated tag namespaces and values.
43. What is a Service Principal?
A: An identity representing a service or application, used to authenticate requests made by that service rather than a human user.
44. How do you create a compartment using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci iam compartment create --name <name> --description <desc> --compartment-id <parent-ocid>45. What is a Group Membership Rule?
A: A rule defining the criteria for automatically adding users to a dynamic group based on their attributes.
46. How do you generate an API Signing Key?
A: Go to Profile → API Keys in the Console, click Add API Key, then select Generate API Key Pair to get a public/private key pair for authenticating API requests.
47. What is a Compartment?
A: A logical container inside your tenancy used to group and isolate resources. It makes access control and resource management much simpler.
48. How do you create a Delegation Token using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci iam delegate-token create --compartment-id <ocid> --user-id <user-ocid> --description <desc>49. What is a Federation Connection in IDCS?
A: The actual link established between IDCS and an external identity provider, enabling cross-system user access.
50. How do you view a policy’s details using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci iam policy get --policy-id <policy-ocid>51. What is a Launch Plan?
A: A set of instructions for creating and managing multiple compute instances at once, ensuring they are all provisioned consistently.
52. How do you apply a tag to a resource using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci resource-manager resource-tag-attach --resource-id <ocid> --tag-namespace <namespace> --tag <value>53. What is a Custom Role in IAM?
A: A user-defined role with precisely the permissions needed for a task — nothing more, nothing less — giving you fine-grained access control.
54. How do you request a Service Limit increase?
A: Submit a support ticket through the Console or contact Oracle support, explaining which service needs an increase and why.
55. What is an Internet Gateway?
A: A networking component that connects your VCN to the public internet, enabling both inbound and outbound traffic.
56. How do you create a group using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci iam group create --name <name> --description <desc> --compartment-id <ocid>57. What is a Resource Manager Stack?
A: A collection of resources and Terraform configurations managed as a single unit, used to deploy and manage complex infrastructure consistently.
58. How do you create a Network Source in the Console?
A: Go to the Network Sources tab, click Create Network Source, and specify the name and IP address range.
59. What is MFA in Oracle Cloud?
A: Multi-Factor Authentication a security feature requiring users to verify their identity with an additional factor like SMS or a mobile app, beyond just a password.
60. How do you enable MFA using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci iam user update --user-id <ocid> --auth-tokens-enabled true61. What is a Home Region?
A: The region where your tenancy was first created. It stores your IAM policies and core networking resources. You cannot change it once set.
62. How do you create a Custom Role using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci iam custom-role create --name <name> --description <desc> --compartment-id <ocid> --permissions '<json>'63. What is Dynamic Group Membership?
A: A membership type where users or resources are added to a group automatically based on defined criteria, rather than a manually maintained list.
64. How do you launch a compute instance in a specific availability domain?
A: In the Console, choose the availability domain under Placement Configuration when creating the instance. In the CLI, use the --availability-domain option.
65. What is a Signing Certificate in IDCS?
A: A digital certificate used to sign and verify messages and tokens during authentication, ensuring message integrity.
66. How do you view policies attached to a user or group?
A: Select the user or group in the IAM Console and click the Policies tab to see all attached policies.
67. What is an Availability Domain?
A: A physically isolated data center within a region. Having multiple availability domains gives you redundancy and fault tolerance.
68. How do you attach a policy to a resource using the CLI?
A: Run:
oci iam resource-attach-policy --resource-id <ocid> --policy-id <policy-ocid>69. What is a Service Connector Hub?
A: A service that centrally connects multiple Oracle Cloud services and regions, simplifying cross-service workflows and enabling hybrid and multi-cloud setups.
70. How do you create a Resource Discovery Rule in the Console?
A: Select the dynamic group under the Groups tab, click Add Rule, go to the Resource Discovery tab, enter the rule statement, and click Add Rule.
71. What is the Oracle Cloud Infrastructure API?
A: A set of REST APIs for programmatically creating, updating, deleting, and managing all your Oracle Cloud resources.
72. How do you enable MFA for a user in IDCS?
A: Select the user in the IDCS Console, go to the Security tab, click Enable MFA, and choose your preferred method.
73. What is an OCI Group in IDCS?
A: A group in IDCS that syncs with a corresponding group in Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, keeping access control consistent between both systems.
74. What is a Customer-Managed Key?
A: A cryptographic key you create and control in Oracle Cloud for encrypting your data, ensuring it stays secure and confidential.
75. What is a Policy Attachment?
A: A link that connects a policy to a specific resource, applying the policy’s access rules directly to that resource.
76. What is a Service Account?
A: An account used to authenticate requests from a service or application, keeping service access separate from human user accounts.
77. What is a Resource Discovery Rule in IAM?
A: A rule that defines criteria for automatically discovering resources and adding them to a dynamic group.
78. Can you change your home region?
A: No. If you need a different default region, you would have to create a brand new tenancy there.
79. How can you use tags in IAM Policies?
A: You can reference specific tag values in policy statements to grant or deny access to resources based on their category or other attributes.
80. What is the difference between a Group and a Compartment?
A: A group is a collection of users for applying access policies. A compartment is a container for organizing cloud resources. They serve different purposes but work together for access control.
81. What is an Instance Configuration?
A: A saved template of settings used to quickly and consistently create new compute instances with the same specifications.
82. How do you create a Group Membership Rule in the Console?
A: Select the dynamic group under the Groups tab, click Add Rule, enter the rule statement, and set its priority.
