The correct answer is to use DynamoDB Streams and AWS Lambda to capture changes and write them to S3, then run incremental Glue jobs. This approach solves the core problem of handling Glue ETL from DynamoDB without impacting production by implementing change data capture (CDC), which reads only the incremental updates rather than scanning the entire 10-million-item table each time. On the AWS Certified Data Engineer Associate DEA-C01 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of minimizing read capacity consumption on heavily used DynamoDB tables while keeping S3 data current—a common trap is assuming that increasing read capacity or reducing parallelism solves the root issue, but both still require full table scans. The key insight is that DynamoDB Streams provides a near-real-time, low-impact mechanism for capturing item-level changes, which Lambda can batch and write to S3 for Glue to process incrementally. Memory tip: think "Streams for streams of changes" to remember that DynamoDB Streams is the go-to for incremental CDC without production disruption.
DEA-C01 Data Ingestion and Transformation Practice Question
This DEA-C01 practice question tests your understanding of data ingestion and transformation. 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 company is using AWS Glue to run ETL jobs that transform data from Amazon DynamoDB to Amazon S3. The DynamoDB table has a large number of items (over 10 million) and is heavily used by production applications. The Glue job reads the entire DynamoDB table each time it runs, causing increased read capacity consumption and affecting production performance. The team wants to reduce the impact on the source DynamoDB table while still keeping the S3 data up-to-date. What should the team do?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Use DynamoDB Streams and AWS Lambda to capture changes and write them to S3, then run incremental Glue jobs.
Option B is correct because using DynamoDB Streams with AWS Lambda allows incremental change data capture (CDC), reducing the need to read the entire table. Option A is wrong because increasing read capacity might help but still reads the whole table. Option C is wrong because reducing parallelism increases job duration but still reads everything. Option D is wrong because exporting to S3 via the console is a one-time operation, not incremental.
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.
✓
Use DynamoDB Streams and AWS Lambda to capture changes and write them to S3, then run incremental Glue jobs.
Why this is correct
Captures only changes, reducing read impact.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Increase the DynamoDB read capacity units to handle the Glue job's read load.
Why it's wrong here
Increases cost but still reads the entire table each time.
✗
Use the DynamoDB console to export the table to S3 in Parquet format.
Why it's wrong here
Export is one-time; does not keep data up-to-date.
✗
Reduce the parallelism of the Glue job to lower the read throughput.
Why it's wrong here
Reduces impact but still reads full table, just slower.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
→Underline the problem statement mentally.
→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 media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which DEA-C01 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Data Ingestion and Transformation — This question tests Data Ingestion and Transformation — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use DynamoDB Streams and AWS Lambda to capture changes and write them to S3, then run incremental Glue jobs. — Option B is correct because using DynamoDB Streams with AWS Lambda allows incremental change data capture (CDC), reducing the need to read the entire table. Option A is wrong because increasing read capacity might help but still reads the whole table. Option C is wrong because reducing parallelism increases job duration but still reads everything. Option D is wrong because exporting to S3 via the console is a one-time operation, not incremental.
What should I do if I get this DEA-C01 question wrong?
Identify which DEA-C01 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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