The answer is that the primary DB instance is under-provisioned, not the synchronous replication to secondary regions. Aurora Global Database uses asynchronous replication between regions, meaning the primary commits writes locally and then sends changes to secondary regions without waiting for their acknowledgment. Therefore, write latency in the primary is not caused by cross-region replication delays; instead, it typically stems from insufficient compute or I/O capacity on the primary instance itself. On the AWS Certified Database Specialty DBS-C01 exam, this question tests your understanding of Aurora Global Database’s replication model—a common trap is assuming that global replication is synchronous, which would indeed cause write latency, but Aurora’s architecture avoids that overhead. Remember the key distinction: Aurora Global Database replicates asynchronously across regions, so slow writes point to local resource constraints, not remote lag. A helpful memory tip is “Global async, local sync”—the primary’s writes are synchronous only within its own cluster, not across the globe.
DBS-C01 Workload-Specific Database Design Practice Question
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 a global application using Amazon Aurora Global Database. The primary region is us-east-1, and secondary regions are eu-west-1 and ap-southeast-1. The application reports that writes to the primary are taking longer than expected. What is the most likely cause?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Clue: "primary"
Why it matters: Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The Global Database replication to secondary regions is causing synchronous commit latencies.
Aurora Global Database uses asynchronous replication from the primary to secondary regions, not synchronous. However, the question states writes to the primary are taking longer than expected, which is a symptom of synchronous replication overhead. In Aurora Global Database, the primary commits locally and then asynchronously replicates to secondaries, so writes should not be directly impacted by secondary region latency. The most likely cause is that the primary DB instance is under-provisioned (Option C), leading to resource contention and slower write operations.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
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 failover occurred in the primary region.
Why it's wrong here
Multi-AZ failover would not persist as slow writes.
✓
The Global Database replication to secondary regions is causing synchronous commit latencies.
Why this is correct
Aurora Global Database uses synchronous replication across regions.
Clue confirmation
The clue words "most likely", "primary" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
The primary DB instance is under-provisioned.
Why it's wrong here
Under-provisioning would cause general slowness, but the global replication adds latency.
✗
Read replicas in secondary regions are overloaded.
Why it's wrong here
Read replicas do not impact primary write performance.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is confusing asynchronous replication with synchronous replication; candidates may incorrectly assume that Global Database replication causes synchronous commit delays, but Aurora Global Database is designed to avoid that by using asynchronous replication.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Aurora Global Database uses a dedicated replication channel with a storage-level asynchronous replication mechanism that typically has sub-second lag. The primary region commits writes locally without waiting for secondary regions, so secondary region load or replication lag does not increase primary write latency. Under-provisioning the primary instance (e.g., insufficient CPU, memory, or IOPS) directly impacts write performance, especially under high write loads or with large transactions.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
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
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Workload-Specific Database Design — This question tests Workload-Specific Database Design — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The Global Database replication to secondary regions is causing synchronous commit latencies. — Aurora Global Database uses asynchronous replication from the primary to secondary regions, not synchronous. However, the question states writes to the primary are taking longer than expected, which is a symptom of synchronous replication overhead. In Aurora Global Database, the primary commits locally and then asynchronously replicates to secondaries, so writes should not be directly impacted by secondary region latency. The most likely cause is that the primary DB instance is under-provisioned (Option C), leading to resource contention and slower write operations.
What should I do if I get this DBS-C01 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely", "primary". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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