DEA-C01 Data Operations and Support Practice Question
A data engineer is using AWS Step Functions to orchestrate an ETL workflow that includes an AWS Glue job. The Glue job occasionally fails due to transient issues, such as network timeouts. The engineer wants the Step Functions state machine to automatically retry the Glue job up to three times with exponential backoff before failing the workflow. Which Step Functions state configuration should the engineer use?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse error handling with retry logic; Catch is for fallback, not for automatic retries with backoff.
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
✓
Use a Retry field with MaxAttempts: 3 and BackoffRate: 2.0 in the task state that invokes the Glue job.
The Retry field in AWS Step Functions is specifically designed to handle retries on task failures, including automatic backoff. By specifying MaxAttempts and BackoffRate, the state machine will retry the Glue job invocation with exponential backoff, meeting the requirement without custom logic.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Configure the Glue job to have a retry policy in its job definition, such as MaxRetries: 3.
Why it's wrong here
AWS Glue job definitions do not have a built-in MaxRetries setting. Retry logic must be handled by the orchestrator, such as Step Functions. Glue jobs themselves do not automatically retry on failure; the orchestrator must manage retries.
- ✓
Use a Retry field with MaxAttempts: 3 and BackoffRate: 2.0 in the task state that invokes the Glue job.
Why this is correct
The Retry field in a Step Functions task state allows you to specify retry behavior for failed tasks. Setting MaxAttempts to 3 and BackoffRate to 2.0 will retry the Glue job up to three times with exponential backoff (doubling the wait time between retries). This matches the requirement.
- ✗
Use a Catch field with ErrorEquals: ["States.ALL"] and Next: "RetryState" to redirect to a retry state.
Why it's wrong here
The Catch field is used to catch errors and transition to a fallback state, but it does not provide automatic retries with backoff. You would need to manually implement a retry loop using a Choice state and a Wait state, which is more complex and not the intended use of Catch.
- ✗
Set the TimeoutSeconds and HeartbeatSeconds fields in the task state to trigger a retry.
Why it's wrong here
TimeoutSeconds and HeartbeatSeconds are used to set timeouts and heartbeat monitoring, but they do not cause automatic retries. If a task times out or misses a heartbeat, it fails, but you would still need a Retry field to retry it. These fields alone do not provide retry with backoff.
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Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Amazon Web Services exam blueprint
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.