The answer is that the CloudWatch agent is being starved of CPU resources, causing it to drop logs, and the best course of action is to increase the instance size or CPU credits. This occurs because the agent relies on a scheduled batch upload every 5 seconds, and when CPU utilization exceeds 90%, the operating system preempts the agent’s process, preventing it from flushing its buffer to CloudWatch Logs. On the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional DOP-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how resource contention—specifically CPU starvation—can silently cause log loss, a common trap where candidates mistakenly blame disk space or network bandwidth. The key distinction is that high CPU directly throttles the agent’s execution cycle, whereas disk or network issues produce explicit error messages. Memory tip: think “CPU choke, logs broke”—if the CPU is pegged, the agent’s batch window is missed, not the data itself.
DOP-C02 Incident and Event Response Practice Question
This DOP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of incident and event response. 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 company runs a critical application on a fleet of EC2 instances managed by an Auto Scaling group. The application generates logs that are sent to CloudWatch Logs using the CloudWatch agent. Recently, the operations team noticed that some instances are missing logs for certain periods. The CloudWatch agent is configured to batch log events and send them every 5 seconds. The instances have high CPU utilization (90%+) during the missing periods. The DevOps engineer suspects that the agent is being throttled or failing. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause and the BEST course of action?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The CloudWatch agent is being starved of CPU resources, causing it to drop logs. Increase the CPU credits or instance size.
Option A is correct because high CPU utilization can cause the CloudWatch agent to miss its scheduled batch upload, leading to log loss. Option B is wrong because disk space issues would cause different symptoms (disk full errors). Option C is wrong because the log group retention does not cause missing logs. Option D is wrong because network bandwidth, while possible, is less likely than CPU starvation given the high CPU utilization.
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.
✗
The network bandwidth is saturated, causing log delivery to fail. Increase instance network performance.
Why it's wrong here
High CPU is the primary indicator, not network.
✗
The CloudWatch Logs retention policy is set to 1 day, so older logs are deleted. Increase retention.
Why it's wrong here
Retention affects existing logs, not missing periods.
✓
The CloudWatch agent is being starved of CPU resources, causing it to drop logs. Increase the CPU credits or instance size.
Why this is correct
High CPU can prevent the agent from processing log batches in time.
Clue confirmation
The clue words "best", "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
The instances are running out of disk space, preventing log buffering. Add more EBS volume space.
Why it's wrong here
Disk space would cause different errors, not missing periods.
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 healthcare organisation deploys an application with a public-facing web tier and a private database tier. The database subnet has no public IP and only accepts connections from the web tier's security group. Questions like this test whether you can design cloud network isolation using VNets/VPCs, subnets, and security group rules.
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.
Incident and Event Response — This question tests Incident and Event Response — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The CloudWatch agent is being starved of CPU resources, causing it to drop logs. Increase the CPU credits or instance size. — Option A is correct because high CPU utilization can cause the CloudWatch agent to miss its scheduled batch upload, leading to log loss. Option B is wrong because disk space issues would cause different symptoms (disk full errors). Option C is wrong because the log group retention does not cause missing logs. Option D is wrong because network bandwidth, while possible, is less likely than CPU starvation given the high CPU utilization.
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: "best", "most likely". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
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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