The answer is to create a new target group for the Application Load Balancer and update the ECS service to use it. This is the minimal change because an ECS service using Fargate is tightly coupled to its target group’s protocol; an NLB target group uses TCP/TLS, while an ALB requires HTTP/HTTPS, so simply swapping the load balancer type without a matching target group will fail. On the AWS Certified Developer Associate DVA-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding that ECS services are associated with target groups, not directly with load balancers, and that the target group’s protocol must align with the listener’s protocol. A common trap is thinking you can edit the existing target group’s protocol, but AWS does not allow changing a target group’s type after creation. Memory tip: “Target group first, load balancer second—match the protocol to fix the connection.”
DVA-C02 Deployment Practice Question
This DVA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of deployment. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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 developer is deploying a microservice to Amazon ECS using Fargate. The service needs to be accessible from the internet via an Application Load Balancer. The developer creates the ECS service with a network load balancer by mistake. What is the minimal change required to fix the deployment?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Create a new target group for the ALB and update the ECS service to use it.
The minimal change is to create a new target group configured for the Application Load Balancer (ALB) and update the ECS service to use it. An ECS service with Fargate must be associated with a target group that matches the load balancer type; since the service was created with a Network Load Balancer (NLB), its existing target group uses TCP/TLS protocols. Creating an ALB-compatible target group (HTTP/HTTPS) and reassigning it to the service corrects the mismatch without deleting the service.
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.
✓
Create a new target group for the ALB and update the ECS service to use it.
Why this is correct
Updating the service to use a new target group is a minimal change.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Update the ECS service to point to the ALB listener.
Why it's wrong here
ECS service configuration uses target groups, not listeners directly.
✗
Change the existing target group to use ALB protocol.
Why it's wrong here
Target group protocol is set at creation; cannot change from NLB to ALB.
✗
Delete the ECS service and recreate it with an ALB.
Why it's wrong here
While possible, it's not minimal; the service can be updated.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates assume you can modify the existing target group's protocol or simply point the service to the ALB listener, but AWS requires a target group of the correct type to be explicitly associated with the ECS service.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, ECS services register tasks with a target group via the `awsvpc` network mode, and the load balancer type is determined by the target group's protocol (TCP/UDP/TLS for NLB, HTTP/HTTPS for ALB). A common real-world scenario is when a developer accidentally selects NLB during service creation in the AWS console; the fix is to create a new ALB target group and update the service's `loadBalancers` configuration via the AWS CLI or console, which triggers a rolling update of the tasks. Note that the ALB itself must already exist and have a listener configured to forward traffic to the new target group.
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 company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
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 — This question tests Deployment — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Create a new target group for the ALB and update the ECS service to use it. — The minimal change is to create a new target group configured for the Application Load Balancer (ALB) and update the ECS service to use it. An ECS service with Fargate must be associated with a target group that matches the load balancer type; since the service was created with a Network Load Balancer (NLB), its existing target group uses TCP/TLS protocols. Creating an ALB-compatible target group (HTTP/HTTPS) and reassigning it to the service corrects the mismatch without deleting the service.
What should I do if I get this DVA-C02 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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This DVA-C02 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 DVA-C02 exam.
Question Discussion
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