Which architecture reduces the number of physical servers?

SY0-701 By islever Editorial Last updated

Short answer

C Virtualization

Question

A company is redesigning its infrastructure and wants to reduce the number of physical servers in use. Which of the following architectures is best suited for this goal?
  1. Serverless
  2. Segmentation
  3. Virtualization Correct Answer
  4. Microservices

Key Takeaways

The exam tests your understanding of virtualization's core purpose; the common trap is confusing it with serverless or microservices, which address scalability and application structure rather than physical server consolidation.

For reducing physical servers, virtualization is the best-suited architecture, as confirmed by unanimous community consensus. It allows multiple virtual machines to run on a single physical host, maximizing hardware utilization and lowering infrastructure footprint.

Common mistake: Choosing Serverless is the most likely wrong answer. Serverless eliminates the need to manage servers but still relies on underlying physical infrastructure provided by a cloud provider, so it does not directly reduce the number of physical servers the company controls.

Expert Analysis

Why the Answer Is Correct

Virtualization enables multiple virtual machines (VMs) to run on a single physical server, directly reducing the number of physical servers required. This architecture maximizes hardware utilization and simplifies management, aligning perfectly with the company's goal of minimizing physical infrastructure. As comment [3] explains, virtualization allows multiple VMs to run on one physical server, optimizing resource usage.

Why the Other Options Are Wrong

Serverless abstracts away servers but does not reduce the company's physical server count; the cloud provider still runs physical servers. Segmentation is a network or security technique that divides resources or networks, not a hardware consolidation strategy. Microservices is an application development architecture that breaks applications into smaller services; it can be deployed on virtualized infrastructure but does not inherently reduce physical servers.

Community Comment Notes

Comment [2] praises test-takers 'for not taking the bait,' indicating a distractor option was designed to lure those who confuse 'no server management' with 'no physical servers.' Comment [4] reinforces that the question only says reduce physical servers, not eliminate servers entirely. These comments highlight the importance of reading the exact goal and choosing the architecture that directly consolidates physical hardware.

Official Reference

https://www.comptia.org/training/exam-objectives/security-sy0-701

This link opens the official vendor documentation in a new tab.

Exam Strategy

Focus on the specific outcome in the question: 'reduce physical servers.' Virtualization is the only option that directly consolidates multiple virtual servers onto one physical machine, so look for that key phrase and match it to the architecture designed for hardware optimization.

Community Votes

C
100%

100% of anonymous learners picked answer C. Votes are pick records left by other test-takers — they are not the verified answer.

Discussion 6 contributions

Compiled from public community threads and reader submissions, lightly edited for clarity. Handles and vote tallies are shown as recorded, and comments reflect the views of individual contributors.

From public community threads 6

  1. MAKOhunter33333333 👍 6 Answered C
    Remove physical servers > transition to virtualization for services like the cloud.
  2. Etc_Shadow28000 👍 4 Answered C
    C. Virtualization Virtualization is the architecture best suited for reducing the number of physical servers in use. It allows multiple virtual machines (VMs) to run on a single physical server, maximizing the utilization of hardware resources and reducing the need for multiple physical servers. Therefore, the correct answer is: C. Virtualization
  3. Examplary 👍 4
    Proud of all of you for not taking the bait!
  4. dbrowndiver 👍 3 Answered C
    Virtualization is the correct answer because it enables the reduction of physical servers by allowing multiple virtual servers to operate on a single physical machine. Virtualization optimizes resource usage and simplifies management, aligning perfectly with the company's goal of minimizing physical infrastructure.
  5. Syl0 👍 3
    It only says reduce the number of physical servers, it didn't say it doesn't want servers....
Show 1 more comment
  1. Shaman73 👍 2 Answered C
    C. Virtualization

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