DVA-C02 Development with AWS Services Practice Question
A developer is implementing a solution to store application logs from multiple EC2 instances. The logs must be stored in a centralized location for analysis. Which services can the developer use to achieve this? (Choose TWO.)
⚠ Common exam trap
Watch out — candidates often confuse CloudTrail (which logs AWS API calls) with CloudWatch Logs (which stores application and system logs), leading them to incorrectly select CloudTrail as a solution for application log centralization.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Amazon CloudWatch Logs
Amazon CloudWatch Logs is correct because it provides a centralized service for collecting, monitoring, and storing log data from EC2 instances. By installing the CloudWatch Logs agent on each EC2 instance, logs are automatically streamed to CloudWatch Logs, where they can be analyzed, searched, and retained for auditing or troubleshooting.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Amazon CloudWatch Logs
Why this is correct
Amazon CloudWatch Logs is a highly scalable and durable service specifically designed for collecting, monitoring, and storing log data from various sources, including EC2 instances, containers, and serverless functions. It provides real-time monitoring, search capabilities, and the ability to set up alarms based on log patterns, making it ideal for operational visibility and troubleshooting application issues. Logs can be retained for specified periods or archived to S3 for long-term storage.
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AWS CloudTrail
Why it's wrong here
AWS CloudTrail is a service that records API calls made to AWS services by users, roles, or other AWS services, providing an audit trail for governance, compliance, and operational auditing of your AWS account. It specifically tracks management events and data events for certain services, detailing who did what, when, and from where. It is not designed for collecting or storing application-specific logs generated by the application code itself, which are distinct from AWS service API activity.
- ✗
Amazon Kinesis Data Analytics
Why it's wrong here
Amazon Kinesis Data Analytics is a service primarily used for processing and analyzing streaming data in real time using SQL or Apache Flink applications. While it can ingest data from Kinesis Data Streams or Firehose, its core function is real-time processing, transformations, and generating insights from data streams, not durable storage of raw application logs. It would typically be used *after* logs are collected and streamed, not as the primary storage solution for the logs themselves.
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Amazon DynamoDB
Why it's wrong here
Amazon DynamoDB is a fast, flexible NoSQL database service designed for applications requiring consistent single-digit millisecond latency at any scale. It excels at storing structured data with well-defined access patterns, such as user profiles or product catalogs. While technically capable of storing log entries, its cost model and query patterns are not optimized for the high-volume, append-only, often unstructured nature of application logs, making it an inefficient and expensive choice for this purpose.
- ✓
Amazon S3
Why this is correct
Amazon S3 (Simple Storage Service) is an object storage service offering industry-leading scalability, data availability, security, and performance. It is a highly durable and cost-effective solution for storing large volumes of unstructured data, including application logs, server logs, and access logs. Logs can be directly uploaded or delivered via services like Kinesis Firehose, and S3's lifecycle policies allow for cost-effective archiving and deletion over time, making it excellent for long-term log retention.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.