The correct answer is a Multi-AZ deployment with a standby replica in a different Availability Zone. This configuration achieves high availability and automatic failover by using synchronous replication from the primary DB instance to a standby in a separate AZ, ensuring zero data loss during a failure and allowing RDS to automatically flip the DNS to the standby. On the AWS Certified Database Specialty DBS-C01 exam, this question tests your ability to distinguish Multi-AZ from Read Replicas and Single-AZ setups—a common trap is confusing Read Replicas (which are for read scaling, not automatic failover) with Multi-AZ. Remember, for RDS MySQL, Multi-AZ uses synchronous replication to a standby, while Aurora uses a different cluster-based model. Memory tip: “Multi-AZ = automatic failover; Read Replica = read scaling only.”
DBS-C01 Deployment and Migration Practice Question
This DBS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of deployment and migration. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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 is deploying a new application that uses Amazon RDS for MySQL. The database must be highly available with automatic failover. Which deployment configuration meets these requirements?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Multi-AZ deployment with a standby replica in a different Availability Zone
Multi-AZ deployment with a standby replica provides automatic failover in RDS MySQL. Option C is correct. Option A (Read Replica) does not provide automatic failover. Option B (Single-AZ) lacks high availability. Option D (Multi-AZ with synchronous replication) is correct but the description is more accurate for Aurora; for RDS MySQL, Multi-AZ uses synchronous replication to a standby.
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.
✗
Single-AZ with a Read Replica in the same region
Why it's wrong here
Read Replicas do not provide automatic failover.
✗
Multi-AZ deployment with synchronous replication to a cross-region replica
Why it's wrong here
Cross-region replicas are for disaster recovery, not automatic failover.
✓
Multi-AZ deployment with a standby replica in a different Availability Zone
Why this is correct
Multi-AZ provides automatic failover.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Single-AZ with automated backups
Why it's wrong here
No automatic failover.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
→Underline the problem statement mentally.
→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
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which DBS-C01 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Deployment and Migration — This question tests Deployment and Migration — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Multi-AZ deployment with a standby replica in a different Availability Zone — Multi-AZ deployment with a standby replica provides automatic failover in RDS MySQL. Option C is correct. Option A (Read Replica) does not provide automatic failover. Option B (Single-AZ) lacks high availability. Option D (Multi-AZ with synchronous replication) is correct but the description is more accurate for Aurora; for RDS MySQL, Multi-AZ uses synchronous replication to a standby.
What should I do if I get this DBS-C01 question wrong?
Identify which DBS-C01 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
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 →
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 deploy an Amazon RDS for MySQL database for a new application. The database must be highly available with automatic failover. Which configuration should they choose?
easy
A.Deploy a single-AZ instance with automated backups
B.Deploy a cross-region replica
C.Deploy a single-AZ instance with a read replica
✓ D.Deploy a Multi-AZ instance with a standby replica
Why D: Multi-AZ deployment provides automatic failover to a standby in a different AZ. Option A (single-AZ) does not provide HA. Option C (read replicas) do not provide automatic failover. Option D (cross-region) is for DR, not HA.
Variation 2. A company is deploying a new web application that uses Amazon RDS for MySQL. To meet high availability requirements, the database must automatically failover to a standby in a different Availability Zone with minimal downtime. Which deployment configuration should be used?
easy
✓ A.Multi-AZ deployment with automatic failover
B.Single-AZ deployment with enhanced monitoring
C.Multi-AZ cluster deployment
D.Single-AZ deployment with a read replica
Why A: Option A is correct because a Multi-AZ deployment automatically creates a standby in a different AZ and handles failover. Option B is wrong because read replicas are for read scaling, not automatic failover. Option C is wrong because a single-AZ deployment does not provide automatic failover. Option D is wrong because a cluster configuration exists for Aurora, not standard RDS for MySQL.
Last reviewed: Jun 20, 2026
Question Discussion
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This DBS-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 DBS-C01 exam.
Question Discussion
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