- A
Use Amazon S3 batch operations to split the files before processing.
Why wrong: S3 Batch Operations are for large-scale bulk operations, not for splitting files.
- B
Add an S3 Event Notification to trigger the function asynchronously.
Why wrong: Event notifications are already likely used; not a fix for timeout.
- C
Reduce the Lambda timeout to 5 minutes to force faster processing.
Why wrong: Reducing timeout would cause more failures.
- D
Increase the Lambda function memory to 3008 MB.
More memory improves CPU and network, speeding up execution.
Question 48 of 1,616
DVA-C02 Troubleshooting and Optimization Practice Question
This DVA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of troubleshooting and optimization. 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 developer is troubleshooting an AWS Lambda function that times out when processing large files from Amazon S3. The function has a 15-minute timeout and 512 MB memory. What should the developer do to resolve this issue?
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
✓
Increase the Lambda function memory to 3008 MB.
Increasing the Lambda function memory to 3008 MB is correct because Lambda allocates CPU proportionally to memory, and more CPU reduces processing time for CPU-bound tasks like file parsing. The 15-minute timeout is already the maximum, so the issue is insufficient compute resources, not timeout duration. With 512 MB, the function lacks the CPU throughput to process large files within the timeout, so boosting memory (and thus CPU) directly addresses the root cause.
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.
- ✗
Use Amazon S3 batch operations to split the files before processing.
Why it's wrong here
S3 Batch Operations are for large-scale bulk operations, not for splitting files.
- ✗
Add an S3 Event Notification to trigger the function asynchronously.
Why it's wrong here
Event notifications are already likely used; not a fix for timeout.
- ✗
Reduce the Lambda timeout to 5 minutes to force faster processing.
Why it's wrong here
Reducing timeout would cause more failures.
- ✓
Increase the Lambda function memory to 3008 MB.
Why this is correct
More memory improves CPU and network, speeding up execution.
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 assume the 15-minute timeout is the problem and try to reduce it (Option C) or change invocation patterns (Option B), when the real issue is that Lambda's CPU allocation scales with memory, and insufficient memory leads to insufficient CPU for large file processing.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Lambda's memory-to-CPU ratio is approximately 1.5 GHz per 1769 MB (based on AWS's proportional allocation), so increasing memory from 512 MB to 3008 MB roughly quadruples CPU throughput. This is critical for I/O-bound or CPU-intensive tasks like decompressing or parsing large files from S3, where the bottleneck is compute, not network. In practice, developers should monitor the 'Duration' and 'Throttles' metrics in CloudWatch; if duration approaches the timeout but CPU utilization is high, memory increase is the correct fix, whereas if the function is waiting on external API calls, increasing memory would not help.
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.
Visual reference
Quick reference
AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison
| Storage Class | Min Duration | Retrieval | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3 Standard | None | Immediate | Frequently accessed data |
| S3 Standard-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Infrequent access, rapid retrieval |
| S3 One Zone-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Non-critical infrequent data |
| S3 Intelligent-Tiering | None | Immediate–hours | Unknown or changing access patterns |
| S3 Glacier Instant | 90 days | Milliseconds | Archive with instant retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Flexible | 90 days | Minutes–hours | Archive, flexible retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Deep Archive | 180 days | Hours | Long-term compliance archive |
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.
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Troubleshooting and Optimization — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this DVA-C02 question test?
Troubleshooting and Optimization — This question tests Troubleshooting and Optimization — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Increase the Lambda function memory to 3008 MB. — Increasing the Lambda function memory to 3008 MB is correct because Lambda allocates CPU proportionally to memory, and more CPU reduces processing time for CPU-bound tasks like file parsing. The 15-minute timeout is already the maximum, so the issue is insufficient compute resources, not timeout duration. With 512 MB, the function lacks the CPU throughput to process large files within the timeout, so boosting memory (and thus CPU) directly addresses the root cause.
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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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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