Quick Answer
The answer is the Evictions metric. This is correct because the Evictions metric in Amazon ElastiCache for Redis directly counts the number of keys that have been removed from the cache due to memory pressure, which is the exact indicator of cache evictions. When the cache’s memory limit is reached, Redis automatically evicts keys to make room for new data, and monitoring this metric confirms whether evictions are degrading application performance. On the AWS Certified Database Specialty DBS-C01 exam, this question tests your ability to distinguish between key ElastiCache metrics: a common trap is confusing Evictions with CacheHits or CurrItems, but remember that CacheHits measures successful retrievals, not removals, and CurrItems only shows the current count of stored keys. A helpful memory tip is to think of “Evictions” as “Ejections”—when memory is full, keys are ejected, and this metric tracks those ejections directly.
This DBS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of monitoring and troubleshooting. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 using Amazon ElastiCache for Redis as a caching layer for a web application. The application's response time has increased, and the operations team suspects that cache evictions are occurring frequently. Which ElastiCache metric should be monitored to confirm cache evictions?
CacheHits
Why wrong: CacheHits indicates successful cache lookups, not evictions.
SwapUsage
Why wrong: SwapUsage indicates memory pressure but not directly evictions.
Evictions
Evictions metric directly counts evicted keys.
CurrItems
Why wrong: CurrItems shows current number of items, not evictions.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Evictions
Option B is correct because Evictions metric shows the number of keys evicted due to memory pressure. Option A is wrong because CacheHits shows successful retrievals. Option C is wrong because CurrItems shows the current number of items, not evictions. Option D is wrong because SwapUsage shows swap usage, not evictions.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
CacheHits
Why it's wrong here
CacheHits indicates successful cache lookups, not evictions.
SwapUsage
Why it's wrong here
SwapUsage indicates memory pressure but not directly evictions.
Evictions
Why this is correct
Evictions metric directly counts evicted keys.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
CurrItems
Why it's wrong here
CurrItems shows current number of items, not evictions.
Common exam traps
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.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
CurrItems shows current number of items, not evictions.
Detailed technical explanation
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.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A cloud solutions architect for a retail company is evaluating services for a new workload. The correct answer here reflects best practice for the specific scenario described — not a general cloud recommendation. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Cloud exam questions reward reading the constraint carefully: the same technology can be right or wrong depending on the use case.
What to study next
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.
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FAQ
Monitoring and Troubleshooting — This question tests Monitoring and Troubleshooting — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Evictions — Option B is correct because Evictions metric shows the number of keys evicted due to memory pressure. Option A is wrong because CacheHits shows successful retrievals. Option C is wrong because CurrItems shows the current number of items, not evictions. Option D is wrong because SwapUsage shows swap usage, not evictions.
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.
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
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 is using Amazon ElastiCache for Redis as a caching layer for a web application. Users report that some cached data is missing, causing slower responses. Which ElastiCache feature should be checked first to understand key evictions?
mediumWhy C: Option A is correct because Evictions metric shows how many keys are evicted due to memory pressure. Option B is wrong because CacheHits shows hits, not evictions. Option C is wrong because ReplicationLag is for replication. Option D is wrong because CPUUtilization does not directly show evictions.
Variation 2. A company is using Amazon ElastiCache for Redis as a caching layer. The application is experiencing higher latency than expected. The team suspects that cache evictions are occurring due to memory pressure. Which ElastiCache metric should be monitored to confirm this?
mediumWhy B: Option D is correct because `Evictions` metric shows the number of evicted keys due to memory limit. Option A is wrong because `CacheHits` shows successful reads. Option B is wrong because `CurrConnections` shows current connections. Option C is wrong because `ReplicationLag` shows replication delay, not evictions.
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Last reviewed: Jun 20, 2026
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.
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