Google Cloud Platform FAQ

This guide covers common Google Cloud Platform issues and their solutions for the Data Engineering Zoomcamp, including VM management, authentication, billing, and service configuration.

Table of contents

  1. VM & Infrastructure Issues
    1. Changing IP addresses when VM restarts
    2. Compute Engine metadata access failure
    3. VM instance deletion concerns
  2. Authentication & SDK Setup
    1. Google Cloud SDK PATH issue on Windows
    2. Windows SDK installation and authentication issues
    3. gcloud auth hanging in VS Code with WSL2
  3. Project & Billing Configuration
    1. Project creation failed error
    2. Billing account error
    3. Billing not enabled error despite activation
    4. OR-CBAT-15 ERROR for free trial account
  4. Service Accounts & Keys
    1. Finding the service account JSON file
  5. SSH & Access Issues
    1. SSH public key errors with multiple users

VM & Infrastructure Issues

Changing IP addresses when VM restarts

Problem: VM IP address changes every time the instance restarts, breaking SSH connections and configurations.

Root Cause: VMs use ephemeral IP addresses by default, which change after each restart.

Solution: Set up a static IP address:

  1. Create static IP:
    • Go to VPC Network → IP addresses in GCP Console
    • Create a new static IP address
  2. Attach to VM:
    • Assign the static IP to your VM instance
    • This prevents extra charges (you’re only charged for unassigned static IPs)
  3. Update configurations:
    • Your SSH config file will remain valid between VM restarts
    • No need to update connection settings repeatedly

Benefits:

  • Consistent IP address across restarts
  • No additional configuration changes needed
  • Cost-effective (no charges when IP is attached)

Compute Engine metadata access failure

Problem:

Failed to load

When trying to access the metadata section in Compute Engine (e.g., to add SSH keys).

Root Cause: Compute Engine API is not enabled for the project.

Solution: Enable the Compute Engine API:

  1. Go to Google Cloud Marketplace
  2. Enable the Compute Engine API
  3. Wait a few minutes for the API to be fully activated
  4. Retry accessing the metadata section

VM instance deletion concerns

Problem: Uncertainty about whether to delete VM instance after completing lectures.

Solution: Do NOT delete your VM instance in Google Cloud Platform. Keep it running as you’ll need it again for:

  • Week 1 readings and assignments
  • Future course modules
  • Ongoing project work

Cost management tip: Stop (don’t delete) the instance when not in use to save on compute costs while preserving your setup.

Authentication & SDK Setup

Google Cloud SDK PATH issue on Windows

Problem:

The installer is unable to automatically update your system PATH. 
Please add C:\tools\google-cloud-sdk\bin

Root Cause: Windows PATH environment variable wasn’t automatically updated during SDK installation.

Solution: Configure environment properly:

  1. Install Anaconda Navigator:
    • Check “Add conda to the PATH” during installation
  2. Install/reinstall Git Bash with these options:
    • Add GitBash to Windows Terminal
    • Use Git and optional Unix tools from command prompt
  3. Configure bash profile:
    conda init bash
  4. Optional: Set GitBash as default terminal in Windows Terminal settings

Windows SDK installation and authentication issues

Problem:

WARNING: Cannot find a quota project to add to ADC. You might receive a "quota exceeded" or "API not enabled" error.

Root Cause: Improper SDK installation or missing project configuration.

Solution: Reinstall and configure SDK properly:

  1. Reinstall SDK:
    # Extract and run installation
unzip google-cloud-sdk.zip
google-cloud-sdk\install.bat
  2. Verify installation:
    gcloud version
  3. Initialize project:
    gcloud init
  4. Set up application default credentials:
    gcloud auth application-default login

gcloud auth hanging in VS Code with WSL2

Problem: gcloud auth application-default login command hangs in VS Code with WSL2.

Root Cause: Browser authentication flow conflicts with WSL2 environment.

Solution: Follow specific authentication steps:

  1. Don’t click the browser prompt (it will show an error)
  2. Ctrl+click the long authentication link that appears in terminal
  3. Configure Trusted Domains in the popup that appears
  4. Select first or second entry from the options

Result: Future gcloud auth attempts will open in your default browser automatically.

Project & Billing Configuration

Project creation failed error

Problem:

WARNING: Project creation failed: HttpError accessing https://cloudresourcemanager.googleapis.com/v1/projects?alt=json: 
response: {...}, "error": {"code": 409, "message": "Requested entity already exists", "status": "ALREADY_EXISTS"}

Root Cause: Project IDs must be globally unique across ALL GCP users. Once a project ID is used by any user, it cannot be reused.

Solution: Create a more unique project identifier:

  • Add your name, numbers, or random characters
  • Example: de-zoomcamp-yourname-2024 instead of de-zoomcamp
  • Use timestamp or random strings for uniqueness

Billing account error

Problem:

Error 403: The project to be billed is associated with an absent billing account., accountDisabled

Root Cause: Either incorrect project ID or missing billing account configuration.

Solution: Check and fix billing setup:

  1. Verify project ID:
    • Ensure you’re using YOUR specific project ID
    • Each student needs their own unique project
  2. Link billing account:
    • Go to Billing in GCP Console
    • Link your billing account to the current project
    • Ensure billing is enabled

Billing not enabled error despite activation

Problem:

Error: Error updating Dataset "projects/<your-project-id>/datasets/demo_dataset": 
googleapi: Error 403: Billing has not been enabled for this project.

Despite having enabled billing.

Root Cause: Billing configuration cache or synchronization issue.

Solution: Reset billing configuration:

  1. Disable billing for the project in GCP Console
  2. Wait a few minutes
  3. Re-enable billing for the project
  4. Wait for changes to propagate (5-10 minutes)

This process refreshes the billing configuration and resolves the issue.

OR-CBAT-15 ERROR for free trial account

Problem: Google refuses credit/debit card during free trial account setup.

Root Cause: Geographic or card-specific restrictions for GCP free trial.

Solution: Try alternative payment methods:

  1. Try a different card (different bank or type)
  2. Regional considerations:
    • Kaspi (Kazakhstan) cards may not work
    • TBC (Georgia) cards typically work
    • Pyypl web-card might work as alternative
  3. Contact support (though they may have limited ability to help)

Service Accounts & Keys

Finding the service account JSON file

Problem: Cannot locate the “ny-rides.json” service account file.

Root Cause: The file needs to be generated from your GCP project.

Solution: Generate your service account key:

  1. Navigate to service accounts:
    • Go to GCP Console
    • Select your project
    • Go to IAM & Admin → Service Accounts
  2. Create key:
    • Click on the service account email
    • Go to “KEYS” tab
    • Click “Add Key” → “Create new key”
    • Select JSON format
    • Click “Create”
  3. Download and secure:
    • File will download automatically
    • Store securely and never commit to version control

Note: The service account JSON file is project-specific and private to your account.

SSH & Access Issues

SSH public key errors with multiple users

Problem: SSH connection fails due to username mismatches between SSH configuration and VM.

Root Cause: Mismatch between SSH username configuration and actual VM username.

Solution: Align usernames across configurations:

  1. Check VM username:
    • Visible in GCP Console under VM instance details
    • Note the actual username shown
  2. Update SSH configuration:
    • SSH public key file
    • GCP Console SSH keys section
    • Local SSH config file (~/.ssh/config)
  3. Temporary access:
    • Use browser-based SSH in GCP Console while fixing configuration
    • This allows you to access the VM to troubleshoot

Example SSH config:

Host gcp-vm
    HostName <EXTERNAL_IP>
    User <CORRECT_USERNAME>
    IdentityFile ~/.ssh/gcp