DBS-C01 Deployment and Migration Practice Question
A company is migrating an on-premises PostgreSQL database to Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL. The database is 2 TB in size and has a sustained write rate of 50 MB/s. The migration must have minimal downtime. Which migration approach should be used?
⚠ Common exam trap
Watch out — candidates often choose pg_dump/pg_restore (Option B) because they are familiar with it for smaller databases, but they fail to account for the downtime required by a 2 TB database with a high write rate, or they mistakenly think AWS DMS full-load (Option C) can handle ongoing writes without CDC.
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 AWS DMS with ongoing replication (change data capture)
AWS DMS with ongoing replication (change data capture) is the correct approach because it allows a full load of the 2 TB database followed by continuous replication of changes from the on-premises PostgreSQL source to the RDS for PostgreSQL target, minimizing downtime to a brief cutover window. The sustained 50 MB/s write rate indicates a high-volume transactional workload that cannot be captured by a single full-load task, making CDC essential for near-zero downtime migration.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Create an RDS read replica from the on-premises database
Why it's wrong here
RDS read replicas cannot be created from on-premises databases.
- ✗
Use pg_dump and pg_restore
Why it's wrong here
pg_dump/pg_restore requires downtime during the entire process.
- ✗
Use AWS DMS with a full-load task only
Why it's wrong here
Full-load only does not capture ongoing changes, leading to downtime.
- ✓
Use AWS DMS with ongoing replication (change data capture)
Why this is correct
Ongoing replication allows minimal downtime by continuously synchronizing changes.
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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.