DOP-C02 Configuration Management and IaC Practice Question
A company uses AWS CloudFormation to manage infrastructure. They have a production stack that creates an Auto Scaling group. They want to update the launch configuration to use a new Amazon Machine Image (AMI) ID without causing downtime. Which update policy should they set on the Auto Scaling group?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is that 'AutoScalingReplacingUpdate' is a valid CloudFormation update policy, but it replaces the entire Auto Scaling group at once, causing downtime. Candidates may mistakenly choose it thinking it's the only policy that updates launch configurations, but 'AutoScalingRollingUpdate' does so gradually, avoiding downtime.
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
✓
AutoScalingRollingUpdate
The AutoScalingRollingUpdate policy allows CloudFormation to update the Auto Scaling group's launch configuration by gradually replacing instances in batches, ensuring that a minimum number of instances remain in service throughout the update. This prevents downtime by terminating old instances and launching new ones with the updated AMI in a controlled, rolling fashion.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
AutoScalingScheduledAction
Why it's wrong here
ScheduledAction is for scaling based on time, not for updates.
- ✗
AutoScalingReplacingUpdate
Why it's wrong here
Replaces the entire group, causing potential downtime.
- ✓
AutoScalingRollingUpdate
Why this is correct
Rolling update updates instances in batches, minimizing downtime.
- ✗
AutoScalingBatchUpdate
Why it's wrong here
No such update policy exists in CloudFormation.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This DOP-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 DOP-C02 exam.