Quick Answer
The answer is Amazon RDS for MySQL with Multi-AZ deployment, which meets the requirement for high availability and automatic failover across multiple Availability Zones. This is correct because Multi-AZ automatically provisions a synchronous standby replica in a different AZ; if the primary instance fails, RDS handles failover to the standby typically within 60–120 seconds, ensuring minimal downtime. On the AWS Certified Database Specialty DBS-C01 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of the distinction between Multi-AZ for high availability and Read Replicas for read scaling—a common trap is confusing the two. Remember that Multi-AZ uses synchronous replication for failover, while Read Replicas use asynchronous replication and are not designed for automatic failover. A useful memory tip: Multi-AZ is for “availability,” Read Replicas are for “reading.”
This DBS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of workload-specific database design. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 runs an application that requires a relational database with high availability across multiple Availability Zones. The database must automatically failover with minimal downtime. Which AWS service meets these requirements?
Amazon RDS for MySQL with Multi-AZ deployment.
Automatic failover to standby in different AZ.
Amazon DynamoDB with global tables.
Why wrong: NoSQL, not relational.
Amazon Redshift with cross-Region snapshots.
Why wrong: Not suitable for OLTP.
Amazon RDS for MySQL with a single instance.
Why wrong: No high availability.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Amazon RDS for MySQL with Multi-AZ deployment.
Amazon RDS for MySQL with Multi-AZ deployment automatically provisions and maintains a synchronous standby replica in a different Availability Zone. If the primary instance fails, Amazon RDS automatically fails over to the standby, typically within 60–120 seconds, providing high availability with minimal downtime. This meets the requirement for a relational database with automatic failover across multiple Availability Zones.
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.
Amazon RDS for MySQL with Multi-AZ deployment.
Why this is correct
Automatic failover to standby in different AZ.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Amazon DynamoDB with global tables.
Why it's wrong here
NoSQL, not relational.
Amazon Redshift with cross-Region snapshots.
Why it's wrong here
Not suitable for OLTP.
Amazon RDS for MySQL with a single instance.
Why it's wrong here
No high availability.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates may confuse DynamoDB global tables (multi-Region replication) with Multi-AZ failover, or assume that a single RDS instance with automated backups provides the same availability as Multi-AZ, but automated backups do not provide automatic failover or synchronous replication.
Detailed technical explanation
In a Multi-AZ deployment, Amazon RDS uses synchronous replication to the standby instance using the database engine's native replication (e.g., MySQL's semi-synchronous replication). The failover is handled by Amazon RDS by updating the DNS record to point to the standby instance's endpoint, and the process is transparent to the application if it uses the RDS endpoint. A subtle behavior is that Multi-AZ does not serve read traffic from the standby; it is only used for failover, so read replicas are needed for read scaling.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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
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FAQ
Workload-Specific Database Design — This question tests Workload-Specific Database Design — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Amazon RDS for MySQL with Multi-AZ deployment. — Amazon RDS for MySQL with Multi-AZ deployment automatically provisions and maintains a synchronous standby replica in a different Availability Zone. If the primary instance fails, Amazon RDS automatically fails over to the standby, typically within 60–120 seconds, providing high availability with minimal downtime. This meets the requirement for a relational database with automatic failover across multiple Availability Zones.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 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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