- A
AWS Storage Gateway
Why wrong: Storage Gateway is for file/volume storage.
- B
AWS Snowball Edge
Why wrong: Snowball is for offline data transfer.
- C
AWS DataSync
Why wrong: DataSync is for file transfers, not databases.
- D
AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
DMS supports continuous replication.
Question 726 of 1,786
AWS DMS for Database Migration to RDS: Minimizing Downtime
This DEA-C01 practice question tests your understanding of data store management. 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 needs to migrate an on-premises 10 TB PostgreSQL database to Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL with minimal downtime. Which AWS service should be used for the migration?
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
✓
AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) is the correct choice because it is specifically designed for migrating databases to AWS with minimal downtime. It supports continuous replication from an on-premises PostgreSQL source to Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL using change data capture (CDC), allowing the source database to remain operational during the migration.
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.
- ✗
AWS Storage Gateway
Why it's wrong here
Storage Gateway is for file/volume storage.
- ✗
AWS Snowball Edge
Why it's wrong here
Snowball is for offline data transfer.
- ✗
AWS DataSync
Why it's wrong here
DataSync is for file transfers, not databases.
- ✓
AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
Why this is correct
DMS supports continuous replication.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may confuse data transfer services (like Snowball Edge or DataSync) with database migration tools, overlooking that DMS is the only AWS service that supports live, ongoing replication and schema conversion for relational databases like PostgreSQL.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
AWS DMS uses a replication instance to connect to the source and target databases, capturing changes via native PostgreSQL logical replication (using the pglogical extension or built-in slot-based replication). For minimal downtime, DMS performs a full load of existing data followed by CDC, which streams incremental changes from the source's write-ahead logs (WAL) to the target, ensuring near-zero downtime even for multi-terabyte databases.
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.
TExam Day Tips
- 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.
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Data Store Management — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this DEA-C01 question test?
Data Store Management — This question tests Data Store Management — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) — AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) is the correct choice because it is specifically designed for migrating databases to AWS with minimal downtime. It supports continuous replication from an on-premises PostgreSQL source to Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL using change data capture (CDC), allowing the source database to remain operational during the migration.
What should I do if I get this DEA-C01 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Same concept, more angles
2 more ways 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 company wants to migrate its on-premises MySQL database to Amazon RDS for MySQL with minimal downtime. Which AWS service should be used for the migration?
easy- ✓ A.AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
- B.AWS Schema Conversion Tool (SCT)
- C.AWS DataSync
- D.AWS Direct Connect
Why A: AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) is purpose-built for migrating databases to AWS with minimal downtime by using ongoing replication (change data capture, CDC) from the source MySQL database to the target Amazon RDS for MySQL instance. This allows the source to remain fully operational during the migration, meeting the minimal-downtime requirement.
Variation 2. A company is migrating its on-premises MySQL database to Amazon RDS for MySQL. They want to minimize downtime and ensure data consistency. Which AWS service should be used for the migration?
easy- A.AWS S3 Transfer Acceleration
- B.AWS Glue
- ✓ C.AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
- D.AWS Snowball Edge
Why C: AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) is the correct choice because it is specifically designed for migrating databases to AWS with minimal downtime. DMS supports homogeneous migrations like MySQL to Amazon RDS for MySQL, and it uses ongoing replication (change data capture) to keep the source and target databases in sync during the migration, ensuring data consistency and allowing a cutover with only seconds of downtime.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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.
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