This DBS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of deployment and migration. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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 wants to migrate a 10 TB Microsoft SQL Server database from on-premises to Amazon RDS for SQL Server. The migration must be completed within a week and minimize network bandwidth usage. Which approach is most suitable?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "minimum / minimize"
Why it matters: Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.
Back up the database to Amazon S3 using AWS CLI
Why wrong: S3 alone does not restore to RDS natively.
Set up AWS Direct Connect and use DMS
Why wrong: Direct Connect still uses network bandwidth.
Use AWS DMS over the internet
Why wrong: Would consume high bandwidth and may not complete in a week.
Use AWS Snowball Edge to transfer backup files, then restore to RDS
Snowball Edge bypasses network bandwidth constraints.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Use AWS Snowball Edge to transfer backup files, then restore to RDS
AWS Snowball Edge is the most suitable approach because it allows you to transfer the 10 TB database backup files physically, bypassing the internet entirely. This eliminates network bandwidth constraints and ensures the migration can be completed within a week, as the data is shipped to AWS and then restored to Amazon RDS for SQL Server using native restore operations.
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.
Back up the database to Amazon S3 using AWS CLI
Why it's wrong here
S3 alone does not restore to RDS natively.
Set up AWS Direct Connect and use DMS
Why it's wrong here
Direct Connect still uses network bandwidth.
Use AWS DMS over the internet
Why it's wrong here
Would consume high bandwidth and may not complete in a week.
Use AWS Snowball Edge to transfer backup files, then restore to RDS
Why this is correct
Snowball Edge bypasses network bandwidth constraints.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "minimum / minimize" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often overlook the physical transfer option (Snowball) for large migrations, mistakenly assuming that AWS DMS or Direct Connect can handle multi-terabyte datasets within tight deadlines without considering provisioning times or bandwidth constraints.
Detailed technical explanation
AWS Snowball Edge uses a ruggedized device with built-in storage and compute, allowing you to perform local data transfers via the Snowball client or NFS mount. Once the device is returned, AWS imports the data into an S3 bucket, from which you can restore the backup files to RDS using the `RESTORE DATABASE` command with the `FROM URL` option pointing to the S3 location. This approach is ideal for large datasets where network transfer is impractical, and it avoids the latency and bandwidth costs of online methods.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
What to study next
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FAQ
Deployment and Migration — This question tests Deployment and Migration — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Use AWS Snowball Edge to transfer backup files, then restore to RDS — AWS Snowball Edge is the most suitable approach because it allows you to transfer the 10 TB database backup files physically, bypassing the internet entirely. This eliminates network bandwidth constraints and ensures the migration can be completed within a week, as the data is shipped to AWS and then restored to Amazon RDS for SQL Server using native restore operations.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Yes — watch for: "minimum / minimize". Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.
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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