DBS-C01 Workload-Specific Database Design Practice Question
A company is using Amazon RDS for Oracle with a very large database (10 TB). They need to migrate to Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL with minimal downtime. The source database is heavily used with constant writes. Which migration strategy is most appropriate?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers confuse read replicas (which are engine-specific and cannot change database engines) with DMS replication, or assume that Oracle GoldenGate is always the best choice for heterogeneous migrations without considering AWS-native alternatives like DMS.
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 Database Migration Service (DMS) with ongoing replication to migrate from Oracle to Aurora PostgreSQL.
AWS DMS with ongoing replication (change data capture) is the most appropriate strategy for migrating a heavily written 10 TB Oracle database to Aurora PostgreSQL with minimal downtime. DMS can perform a full load of the existing data and then continuously replicate changes from Oracle's redo logs to Aurora PostgreSQL, allowing the source to remain fully operational until a brief cutover window. This approach minimizes downtime compared to offline export/import methods and is natively supported by AWS.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Export the Oracle database using expdp and import into Aurora PostgreSQL using pg_restore.
Why it's wrong here
This requires downtime and does not support continuous replication.
- ✓
Use AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) with ongoing replication to migrate from Oracle to Aurora PostgreSQL.
Why this is correct
DMS supports full load and CDC, minimizing downtime.
- ✗
Create a read replica of the RDS Oracle instance and promote it to an Aurora PostgreSQL instance.
Why it's wrong here
Cross-engine replication is not supported for read replicas.
- ✗
Use Oracle GoldenGate to replicate data to an Aurora PostgreSQL instance.
Why it's wrong here
GoldenGate is not managed by AWS and requires additional licensing and complexity.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
One of 1,663 original DBS-C01 practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.