DEA-C01 Data Store Management Practice Question
A data engineer needs to store large volumes of infrequently accessed compliance data in Amazon S3 for 10 years. The data must be retrievable within 12 hours if required for audits. The engineer wants the most cost-effective storage solution. Which S3 storage class should be used?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that any Glacier class would be equally cost-effective, but S3 Glacier Deep Archive is the cheapest and still meets the 12-hour retrieval requirement.
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
✓
S3 Glacier Deep Archive
The scenario requires long-term retention (10 years) with infrequent access and retrieval within 12 hours. S3 Glacier Deep Archive is specifically designed for this use case, offering the lowest storage cost among S3 classes while providing standard retrieval within 12 hours. It is the most cost-effective choice for compliance data that is rarely accessed.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
S3 Glacier Instant Retrieval
Why it's wrong here
S3 Glacier Instant Retrieval provides low-cost storage for long-lived data that is rarely accessed and requires millisecond retrieval. It is more expensive than S3 Glacier Flexible Retrieval and S3 Glacier Deep Archive. Since the retrieval time requirement is within 12 hours, not milliseconds, this class is unnecessarily expensive for the given scenario.
- ✗
S3 Standard-Infrequent Access (S3 Standard-IA)
Why it's wrong here
S3 Standard-IA is designed for data that is accessed less frequently but requires rapid access when needed. It offers lower storage costs than S3 Standard but is more expensive than archival classes. For data that must be retained for 10 years and is rarely accessed, it is not the most cost-effective option because it does not provide the deep archive pricing of Glacier classes.
- ✓
S3 Glacier Deep Archive
Why this is correct
S3 Glacier Deep Archive is the lowest-cost storage class in Amazon S3, designed for long-term retention of data that is rarely accessed. It provides standard retrieval within 12 hours, which meets the audit requirement. For compliance data retained for 10 years with infrequent access, it offers the most cost-effective solution.
- ✗
S3 Glacier Flexible Retrieval
Why it's wrong here
S3 Glacier Flexible Retrieval offers retrieval times from minutes to hours, with standard retrieval typically taking 3-5 hours and bulk retrieval up to 12 hours. It is a viable option, but it is not the most cost-effective for data that can tolerate up to 12 hours retrieval. S3 Glacier Deep Archive is cheaper and also meets the 12-hour requirement with standard retrieval.
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 |
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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
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