The answer is to set the DNS TTL for the RDS endpoint to 1 second and use Amazon RDS Proxy. These two changes directly address the 30-second write outage by minimizing the time it takes for application connections to re-establish after a failover. RDS Proxy pools and reuses database connections, so when the primary instance fails, the proxy quickly redirects existing connections to the standby without the overhead of establishing new TCP sessions. Meanwhile, a short DNS TTL of 1 second ensures that cached DNS records expire almost immediately, forcing the application to resolve the new standby’s IP address without waiting for a default TTL of 60 seconds or more. On the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional DOP-C02 exam, this question tests your understanding of how to reduce failover latency beyond the default Multi-AZ setup—a common trap is assuming larger instances or synchronous replication (which is already in place) will help. Memory tip: think “Proxy + TTL = PTTL” (pronounced “pittle”) to recall that pooling and fast DNS resolution cut write downtime.
DOP-C02 Resilient Cloud Solutions Practice Question
This DOP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of resilient cloud solutions. 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 company is running a critical application on Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL with Multi-AZ deployment. The application performs frequent writes. During a recent failover test, the team observed that the application experienced a 30-second write outage. To minimize downtime during automatic failovers, which configuration change should the DevOps engineer implement? (Choose TWO.)
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "minimum / minimize"
Why it matters: Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Configure Amazon RDS Proxy in front of the RDS instance.
Option A is correct because using Amazon RDS Proxy reduces failover time by pooling and reusing connections, so the application can resume quickly after failover. Option D is correct because enabling Multi-AZ with automatic failover is already in place, but ensuring the database connections use the RDS endpoint with a short DNS TTL allows faster reconnection. Option B (increasing DB instance size) does not reduce failover time. Option C (enabling Performance Insights) is for monitoring, not failover. Option E (using synchronous replication) is the default for Multi-AZ and does not reduce failover time.
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.
✗
Enable Performance Insights to monitor database load.
Why it's wrong here
Performance Insights is a monitoring feature, not a failover improvement.
✓
Configure Amazon RDS Proxy in front of the RDS instance.
The clue word "minimum / minimize" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Use synchronous replication to the standby instance.
Why it's wrong here
Multi-AZ already uses synchronous replication; this does not change failover time.
✗
Increase the DB instance class to a larger size.
Why it's wrong here
Larger instance size improves performance but does not reduce failover time.
✓
Set the DNS TTL for the RDS endpoint to 1 second.
Why this is correct
Short TTL helps clients quickly resolve the new primary IP after failover.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "minimum / minimize" 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
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
→Underline the problem statement mentally.
→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 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
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which DOP-C02 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Resilient Cloud Solutions — This question tests Resilient Cloud Solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Configure Amazon RDS Proxy in front of the RDS instance. — Option A is correct because using Amazon RDS Proxy reduces failover time by pooling and reusing connections, so the application can resume quickly after failover. Option D is correct because enabling Multi-AZ with automatic failover is already in place, but ensuring the database connections use the RDS endpoint with a short DNS TTL allows faster reconnection. Option B (increasing DB instance size) does not reduce failover time. Option C (enabling Performance Insights) is for monitoring, not failover. Option E (using synchronous replication) is the default for Multi-AZ and does not reduce failover time.
What should I do if I get this DOP-C02 question wrong?
Identify which DOP-C02 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "minimum / minimize". Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.
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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