The answer is Amazon API Gateway and AWS Lambda. This combination is correct because API Gateway provides a fully managed HTTP endpoint that receives and routes incoming requests, while Lambda executes the application logic in a stateless, event-driven manner without requiring any server provisioning or management. On the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner CLF-C02 exam, this question tests your understanding of core serverless architecture components and how they replace traditional web servers. A common trap is choosing Amazon EC2 or Elastic Beanstalk, which involve managing servers, or selecting Amazon S3, which serves static content but cannot run dynamic application logic. Remember that API Gateway is the front door for HTTP traffic, and Lambda is the compute engine behind it—think of it as a “gateway to functions.” A helpful memory tip: “API Gateway greets, Lambda computes.”
CLF-C02 Cloud Technology and Services Practice Question
This CLF-C02 practice question tests your understanding of cloud technology and services. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A developer wants to build a serverless application that responds to HTTP requests. Which combination of AWS services would be most appropriate?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Amazon API Gateway and AWS Lambda
Amazon API Gateway acts as a fully managed HTTP endpoint that receives and routes incoming requests to AWS Lambda functions, which execute the application logic without provisioning servers. This combination directly fulfills the requirement for a serverless application that responds to HTTP requests, as Lambda handles compute in a stateless, event-driven manner and API Gateway provides the HTTP interface with built-in features like throttling, authentication, and request validation.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Amazon EC2 and Elastic Load Balancing
Why it's wrong here
EC2 with ELB requires server management, making it not serverless.
✗
Amazon ECS and AWS Fargate
Why it's wrong here
ECS with Fargate is serverless containers, but not the typical HTTP API serverless pattern.
✓
Amazon API Gateway and AWS Lambda
Why this is correct
API Gateway + Lambda is the standard serverless HTTP API pattern — no server management required.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
AWS Elastic Beanstalk and Amazon RDS
Why it's wrong here
Elastic Beanstalk manages servers automatically but is not truly serverless.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may confuse 'serverless' with 'managed services' and choose options like ECS with Fargate or Elastic Beanstalk, which still involve underlying compute management, whereas the correct answer requires a fully event-driven, no-server model with API Gateway and Lambda.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, API Gateway supports multiple integration types, including Lambda proxy integration, where the entire HTTP request is passed to Lambda as a JSON event, and the function returns a formatted response. This pattern enables stateless, auto-scaling execution with Lambda's concurrency limits (default 1,000 per region) and API Gateway's 29-second timeout for HTTP APIs. A real-world scenario is a mobile app backend where each user request triggers a Lambda function to process data and return results, with API Gateway handling authentication via AWS IAM or Cognito, and caching responses to reduce latency.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this CLF-C02 question in full detail.
Cloud Technology and Services — This question tests Cloud Technology and Services — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Amazon API Gateway and AWS Lambda — Amazon API Gateway acts as a fully managed HTTP endpoint that receives and routes incoming requests to AWS Lambda functions, which execute the application logic without provisioning servers. This combination directly fulfills the requirement for a serverless application that responds to HTTP requests, as Lambda handles compute in a stateless, event-driven manner and API Gateway provides the HTTP interface with built-in features like throttling, authentication, and request validation.
What should I do if I get this CLF-C02 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
This CLF-C02 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Amazon Web Services certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the CLF-C02 exam.
Question Discussion
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.