The correct answer is to add a manual approval action in the pipeline stage between Beta and Prod, and to configure the IAM policy to grant the approver the codepipeline:PutApprovalResult permission. This works because a manual approval action pauses the pipeline at a designated stage, requiring a human to review the deployment before it proceeds to production. The IAM policy is essential because it authorizes the specific user or role to approve or reject that action, preventing unauthorized changes. On the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional DOP-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of pipeline stage transitions and least-privilege IAM design—a common trap is confusing CodeCommit approval rules (for pull requests) with CodePipeline manual approvals. Remember: the approval action is a stage gate, not a trigger restriction. A useful memory tip is “Stage, then Sage”—first add the approval stage, then set the IAM policy to let the sage (approver) act.
DOP-C02 SDLC Automation Practice Question
This DOP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of sdlc automation. 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 uses AWS CodePipeline with multiple stages. The pipeline includes a Beta stage that deploys to a test environment and a Prod stage. The team wants to require manual approval before the Prod stage. Which TWO actions should be taken to implement this? (Choose TWO.)
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Ensure that the IAM user or role performing the approval has codepipeline:PutApprovalResult permissions.
Options B and E are correct. The approval action must be added to the pipeline structure as a stage with an approval action, and the IAM policy must allow the approver to perform the approval. Option A is wrong because CodeCommit approval rules are for pull requests. Option C is wrong because CloudWatch Events does not provide manual approval. Option D is wrong because the pipeline must be configured to use the manual approval action, not just restrict triggers.
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.
✓
Ensure that the IAM user or role performing the approval has codepipeline:PutApprovalResult permissions.
Why this is correct
The approver needs permissions to submit the approval result.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Use CloudWatch Events to trigger a Lambda function that requires manual sign-off.
Why it's wrong here
CloudWatch Events cannot enforce manual approval.
✗
Set the Prod stage to only run on manual invocation.
Why it's wrong here
Manual invocation starts the stage, but does not provide an approval step.
✓
Add a manual approval action in the pipeline stage between Beta and Prod.
Why this is correct
Manual approval actions pause the pipeline until approved.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Configure a CodeCommit approval rule template to require approval before merging.
Why it's wrong here
Approval rules in CodeCommit are for source control, not pipeline stages.
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 company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
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.
SDLC Automation — This question tests SDLC Automation — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Ensure that the IAM user or role performing the approval has codepipeline:PutApprovalResult permissions. — Options B and E are correct. The approval action must be added to the pipeline structure as a stage with an approval action, and the IAM policy must allow the approver to perform the approval. Option A is wrong because CodeCommit approval rules are for pull requests. Option C is wrong because CloudWatch Events does not provide manual approval. Option D is wrong because the pipeline must be configured to use the manual approval action, not just restrict triggers.
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.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
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These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. A DevOps team is implementing a CI/CD pipeline using AWS CodePipeline. The pipeline has a Source stage using CodeCommit, a Build stage using CodeBuild, and a Deploy stage using CloudFormation. The team wants to add manual approval before the Deploy stage for production deployments. How should this be configured?
medium
A.Configure a CloudWatch event to send an email on build success.
B.Use a Lambda function to approve based on build status.
✓ C.Add an Approval stage to the pipeline with SNS topic for notification.
D.Create a separate pipeline for production and trigger it manually.
Why C: Option A is correct because CodePipeline has a built-in Approval action type. Option B is wrong because SNS notifications do not block the pipeline. Option C is wrong because Lambda cannot pause the pipeline. Option D is wrong because a separate approval pipeline adds complexity.
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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.
Question Discussion
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