DEA-C01 Data Operations and Support Practice Question
A company is using Amazon DynamoDB as a data store for a real-time application. The application reads a single item by primary key and occasionally updates it. The data engineer notices high read latency during peak hours. Which TWO actions would most effectively reduce read latency?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse global tables or secondary indexes as solutions for read latency, when in fact they address different concerns (disaster recovery and query flexibility), while the correct approach is to either increase provisioned throughput or implement a caching layer like DAX.
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
✓
Increase the read capacity units for the table.
Increasing read capacity units (RCUs) for the DynamoDB table directly allocates more read throughput, reducing throttling and latency during peak hours when read demand exceeds provisioned capacity. This ensures the application can handle the higher read load without experiencing request throttling, which is a primary cause of increased latency.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Increase the read capacity units for the table.
Why this is correct
More capacity reduces throttling and latency during peaks.
- ✗
Enable DynamoDB global tables.
Why it's wrong here
Global tables are for disaster recovery, not latency reduction.
- ✗
Add a local secondary index on the table.
Why it's wrong here
LSI does not improve single-item reads by primary key.
- ✗
Disable auto-scaling and set a fixed read capacity.
Why it's wrong here
Fixed capacity may not handle peaks, causing throttling.
- ✓
Enable DynamoDB Accelerator (DAX) for the table.
Why this is correct
DAX provides in-memory caching, reducing read latency.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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