DEA-C01 Data Ingestion and Transformation Practice Question
A company needs to ingest data from an external API that returns CSV files daily. The files range from 100 MB to 2 GB. The data should be landed in Amazon S3 and then transformed using AWS Glue. Which ingestion method is most cost-effective and requires the least operational overhead?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is that candidates often over-engineer the solution by choosing streaming or dedicated network services (like Kinesis Firehose or Direct Connect) for a simple batch ingestion task, failing to recognize that a serverless, scheduled Lambda function is the most cost-effective and low-overhead approach for daily CSV file transfers from an external API.
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
✓
Schedule an AWS Lambda function to download the CSV file and upload it to Amazon S3
Scheduling an AWS Lambda function to download the CSV file from the external API and upload it to Amazon S3 is the most cost-effective and operationally lightweight approach. Lambda can handle files up to 2 GB (with appropriate memory and timeout settings) and runs on a serverless, pay-per-execution model, eliminating the need for infrastructure management. This method directly addresses the daily, batch-oriented nature of the data ingestion without requiring additional services or complex configurations.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Set up AWS DataSync to transfer the file from the API endpoint to S3
Why it's wrong here
DataSync is for transferring data from on-premises or other cloud storage, not for API calls.
- ✗
Use Amazon Kinesis Data Firehose with a direct PUT
Why it's wrong here
Designed for streaming, not for batch file downloads.
- ✗
Deploy an AWS Direct Connect connection to the external API for faster transfer
Why it's wrong here
Direct Connect is a network service, not a data ingestion method.
- ✓
Schedule an AWS Lambda function to download the CSV file and upload it to Amazon S3
Why this is correct
Simple, cost-effective, and serverless for daily files.
Quick reference
AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison
| Storage Class | Min Duration | Retrieval | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3 Standard | None | Immediate | Frequently accessed data |
| S3 Standard-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Infrequent access, rapid retrieval |
| S3 One Zone-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Non-critical infrequent data |
| S3 Intelligent-Tiering | None | Immediate–hours | Unknown or changing access patterns |
| S3 Glacier Instant | 90 days | Milliseconds | Archive with instant retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Flexible | 90 days | Minutes–hours | Archive, flexible retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Deep Archive | 180 days | Hours | Long-term compliance archive |
Go deeper
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This DEA-C01 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 DEA-C01 exam.