DBS-C01 Deployment and Migration Practice Question
This DBS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of deployment and migration. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 is deploying a MySQL RDS instance using this CloudFormation template. After deployment, they notice that the database is not automatically backed up at the scheduled time. 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.
The storage type gp2 does not support automated backups.
Why wrong: gp2 supports automated backups.
B
The PreferredBackupWindow is not defined, so backups are disabled.
Why wrong: The template defines a backup window.
C
MultiAZ is enabled, which disables automated backups.
Why wrong: MultiAZ does not disable backups; it is supported with backups.
D
The BackupRetentionPeriod must be greater than 0 to enable automated backups; however, it is set to 7, so this is not the issue. The actual cause might be that the DB instance is using a storage engine not supported for backups (e.g., MyISAM).
RDS automated backups require InnoDB; MyISAM tables cause backup failure.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The BackupRetentionPeriod must be greater than 0 to enable automated backups; however, it is set to 7, so this is not the issue. The actual cause might be that the DB instance is using a storage engine not supported for backups (e.g., MyISAM).
Option D is correct because the BackupRetentionPeriod is set to 7, which is greater than 0, so automated backups are enabled. However, the most likely cause of the backup failure is that the DB instance is using a storage engine like MyISAM, which does not support point-in-time recovery or consistent automated backups in Amazon RDS. RDS automated backups rely on the InnoDB storage engine for crash recovery and transaction consistency; MyISAM tables can cause backup failures or incomplete backups.
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.
✗
The storage type gp2 does not support automated backups.
Why it's wrong here
gp2 supports automated backups.
✗
The PreferredBackupWindow is not defined, so backups are disabled.
Why it's wrong here
The template defines a backup window.
✗
MultiAZ is enabled, which disables automated backups.
Why it's wrong here
MultiAZ does not disable backups; it is supported with backups.
✓
The BackupRetentionPeriod must be greater than 0 to enable automated backups; however, it is set to 7, so this is not the issue. The actual cause might be that the DB instance is using a storage engine not supported for backups (e.g., MyISAM).
Why this is correct
RDS automated backups require InnoDB; MyISAM tables cause backup failure.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates focus on the BackupRetentionPeriod being set to 7 (which is correct) and overlook the storage engine limitation, assuming all MySQL storage engines are equally supported for automated backups in RDS.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Amazon RDS automated backups use the InnoDB storage engine's consistent read view and binary logs for point-in-time recovery. MyISAM tables do not support transactional consistency, so RDS cannot guarantee a consistent backup state; this often leads to backup failures or warnings in the RDS event log. In a real-world scenario, if a customer migrates a legacy MySQL database with MyISAM tables to RDS, they must convert those tables to InnoDB to ensure automated backups work reliably.
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 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
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.
Deployment and Migration — This question tests Deployment and Migration — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The BackupRetentionPeriod must be greater than 0 to enable automated backups; however, it is set to 7, so this is not the issue. The actual cause might be that the DB instance is using a storage engine not supported for backups (e.g., MyISAM). — Option D is correct because the BackupRetentionPeriod is set to 7, which is greater than 0, so automated backups are enabled. However, the most likely cause of the backup failure is that the DB instance is using a storage engine like MyISAM, which does not support point-in-time recovery or consistent automated backups in Amazon RDS. RDS automated backups rely on the InnoDB storage engine for crash recovery and transaction consistency; MyISAM tables can cause backup failures or incomplete backups.
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". 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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Question Discussion
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