DEA-C01 Data Operations and Support Practice Question
A data engineer needs to transfer 50 TB of data from an on-premises Hadoop cluster to Amazon S3. The network bandwidth is limited to 500 Mbps. Which TWO methods are appropriate for this transfer? (Choose TWO.)
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
✓
Order an AWS Snowball Edge device to physically ship the data.
Options B and E are correct. AWS Snowball Edge is a physical device suitable for transferring large amounts of data (like 50 TB) when network bandwidth is limited (500 Mbps). AWS DataSync can also transfer data over the network with built-in optimization, making it appropriate for this scenario. Options A and C are incorrect: AWS Direct Connect provides a dedicated connection but does not increase bandwidth beyond 500 Mbps, and S3 Transfer Acceleration speeds up transfers but still relies on the same limited bandwidth. Option D is incorrect: Amazon Kinesis Data Firehose is designed for real-time streaming, not bulk data transfer.
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 an AWS Direct Connect connection for higher bandwidth.
Why it's wrong here
Direct Connect provides dedicated bandwidth but does not itself transfer data.
- ✓
Order an AWS Snowball Edge device to physically ship the data.
Why this is correct
Snowball is ideal for large datasets with low bandwidth.
- ✗
Use S3 Transfer Acceleration to upload over the internet.
Why it's wrong here
Transfer Acceleration improves speed but cannot overcome the 500 Mbps limit.
- ✗
Use Amazon Kinesis Data Firehose to stream the data.
Why it's wrong here
Kinesis is for real-time streaming, not bulk historical transfer.
- ✓
Use AWS DataSync to transfer data over the network.
Why this is correct
DataSync can optimize network transfer and handle large volumes.
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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Same concept, more angles
1 more way this is tested on DEA-C01
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. A data engineer needs to transfer 50 TB of data from an on-premises HDFS cluster to Amazon S3. The on-premises network has a 1 Gbps link to AWS. Which AWS service should be used to perform the transfer efficiently?
easy- ✓ A.AWS DataSync
- B.Amazon S3 Transfer Acceleration
- C.AWS Snowball Edge
- D.AWS Direct Connect
Why A: AWS DataSync is the correct choice because it is designed for large-scale data transfers over the network, handling 50 TB efficiently over a 1 Gbps link by parallelizing transfers and automating scheduling. Amazon S3 Transfer Acceleration only improves upload speed over long distances but is not a dedicated transfer service. AWS Snowball Edge would be slower due to shipping and is unnecessary since the network link is sufficient. AWS Direct Connect provides a dedicated network connection but is not a data transfer service.
JA
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.