DBS-C01 Workload-Specific Database Design Practice Question
A company runs a financial application on Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL that requires point-in-time recovery (PITR) with a recovery point objective (RPO) of 1 second and recovery time objective (RTO) of 5 minutes. Which configuration meets these requirements at the lowest cost?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently assume a read replica can provide fast failover and low RPO, but they overlook that read replicas use asynchronous replication, which introduces lag and requires manual promotion, failing both the RPO and RTO requirements.
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
✓
Multi-AZ RDS with synchronous standby.
Multi-AZ RDS for PostgreSQL with synchronous standby replication provides automatic failover to a standby in a different Availability Zone, enabling an RTO of typically 1–2 minutes, well within the 5-minute requirement. Automated backups and transaction logs allow PITR with an RPO of 1 second by restoring to any point within the retention period, and the synchronous standby ensures zero data loss during failover, meeting the strict RPO at the lowest cost for this high-availability need.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Multi-AZ RDS with synchronous standby.
Why this is correct
Automatic failover within minutes, minimal data loss.
- ✗
Single-AZ RDS with automated backups and manual snapshot restore.
Why it's wrong here
Manual restore exceeds RTO.
- ✗
Single-AZ RDS with a read replica and promote on failure.
Why it's wrong here
Promotion is manual and slower.
- ✗
Single-AZ RDS with cross-region snapshot copy.
Why it's wrong here
Does not meet RTO.
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