CLF-C02 Cloud Concepts Practice Question
A company's employees access AWS services using the AWS Management Console from their office laptops, the AWS mobile app on their smartphones, and the AWS CLI from their home computers. Which cloud computing characteristic does this illustrate?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse 'broad network access' with 'rapid elasticity' because both involve flexibility, but broad network access is about the variety of access methods and devices, not the ability to scale resources.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Broad network access
Broad network access is the correct answer because the scenario describes employees accessing AWS services from multiple types of devices (office laptops, smartphones, home computers) using different access methods (AWS Management Console, AWS mobile app, AWS CLI). This directly illustrates the cloud characteristic that resources are available over the network and can be accessed by standard protocols (e.g., HTTPS for the console and mobile app, HTTP/HTTPS for CLI API calls) from a wide range of client platforms, including mobile phones, laptops, and workstations.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
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Rapid elasticity
Why it's wrong here
Rapid elasticity is a NIST cloud characteristic focused on dynamically provisioning and releasing resources to scale with demand, often automated and appearing unlimited to the consumer. It concerns the speed and degree of resource scaling, not the variety of client devices (mobile, laptop, workstation) that can connect. The question describes ubiquitous access across heterogeneous platforms, which is the definition of broad network access, not elasticity.
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Resource pooling
Why it's wrong here
Resource pooling is the NIST characteristic where the provider's computing resources are pooled to serve multiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with physical and virtual resources dynamically assigned according to consumer demand. This addresses location independence and the illusion of infinite capacity, but it says nothing about the client platforms used to access the cloud. In contrast, broad network access is specifically about availability over the network from diverse devices such as phones, laptops, and workstations.
- ✓
Broad network access
Why this is correct
Broad network access is the cloud characteristic that describes capabilities being available over the network and accessible from heterogeneous client platforms including mobile phones, laptops, and workstations — which is exactly what this scenario describes.
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Measured service
Why it's wrong here
Measured service is the NIST characteristic in which cloud systems automatically control and optimize resource use by leveraging a metering capability at some level of abstraction appropriate to the service type (e.g., storage, processing, bandwidth). It enables pay-per-use billing and provides transparency for both provider and consumer. It is unrelated to the types of client devices that can access the service; the scenario's mention of multiple device types aligns with broad network access, not metered usage.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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