This DVA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of deployment. 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 developer is using AWS OpsWorks for Chef Automate to manage a stack. The developer needs to deploy a new application version to existing instances. Which OpsWorks feature should the developer use?
Recipes
Recipes run on instances to perform tasks like deploying applications.
Custom JSON
Why wrong: Custom JSON passes data to recipes, but does not trigger deployment.
Stacks
Why wrong: Stacks are the top-level container, not a deployment mechanism.
Layers
Why wrong: Layers define the configuration of instances, not deployment actions.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Recipes
Recipes are Chef cookbook components that define the sequence of commands to execute on an instance. To deploy a new application version, the developer can run a custom recipe (e.g., via an OpsWorks lifecycle event or a manual 'Execute Recipes' action) that pulls the updated code, restarts services, or performs any necessary deployment steps. This directly maps to the requirement of deploying a new version to existing instances.
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.
Recipes
Why this is correct
Recipes run on instances to perform tasks like deploying applications.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Custom JSON
Why it's wrong here
Custom JSON passes data to recipes, but does not trigger deployment.
Stacks
Why it's wrong here
Stacks are the top-level container, not a deployment mechanism.
Layers
Why it's wrong here
Layers define the configuration of instances, not deployment actions.
Common exam traps
The trap here is confusing the static configuration elements (Stacks, Layers, Custom JSON) with the dynamic execution mechanism (Recipes) needed to actually perform a deployment action on running instances.
Detailed technical explanation
Under the hood, OpsWorks for Chef Automate uses Chef Infra Client runs to apply recipes during lifecycle events (Setup, Configure, Deploy, Undeploy, Shutdown). The 'Execute Recipes' stack command allows ad-hoc recipe runs on selected instances, which is ideal for deploying a new application version without triggering a full lifecycle event. In a real-world scenario, a developer might create a custom cookbook with a 'deploy' recipe that uses the `deploy_revision` or `git` resource to pull the latest code from a repository and restart the application server.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Deployment — study guide chapter
Learn the concepts, then practise the questions
Deployment practice questions
Targeted practice on this topic area only
All DVA-C02 questions
1,616 questions across all exam domains
AWS Certified Developer Associate DVA-C02 study guide
Full concept coverage aligned to exam objectives
DVA-C02 practice test guide
How to use practice tests most effectively before exam day
Related practice questions
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
Practise DVA-C02 questions linked to Development with AWS Services.
Practise DVA-C02 questions linked to Security.
Practise DVA-C02 questions linked to Deployment.
Practise DVA-C02 questions linked to Troubleshooting and Optimization.
Practise DVA-C02 questions linked to DVA-C02 fundamentals.
Practise DVA-C02 questions linked to DVA-C02 scenario.
Practise DVA-C02 questions linked to DVA-C02 troubleshooting.
Practice this exam
Short sessions build daily habit. Longer sessions build exam-day stamina. Try a timed session to simulate real conditions.
FAQ
Deployment — This question tests Deployment — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Recipes — Recipes are Chef cookbook components that define the sequence of commands to execute on an instance. To deploy a new application version, the developer can run a custom recipe (e.g., via an OpsWorks lifecycle event or a manual 'Execute Recipes' action) that pulls the updated code, restarts services, or performs any necessary deployment steps. This directly maps to the requirement of deploying a new version to existing instances.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
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
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.