Quick Answer
The answer is Amazon CloudWatch Alarms, which is the correct AWS service to monitor CPU utilization and alert when it exceeds 80% for 5 consecutive minutes. CloudWatch Alarms work by evaluating metric data—such as the CPUUtilization metric emitted by EC2 instances—against a defined threshold over a specified period, and then triggering an action like an SNS notification or an Auto Scaling policy. On the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional DOP-C02 exam, this question tests your understanding of monitoring and event-driven responses within the CloudWatch ecosystem, often appearing as a straightforward scenario to distinguish CloudWatch Alarms from services like CloudTrail (API auditing), AWS Config (resource compliance), or VPC Flow Logs (network traffic analysis). A common trap is confusing CloudWatch Logs with CloudWatch Alarms, but remember: alarms evaluate metrics, not log data. Memory tip: “Alarms watch metrics, logs tell stories.”
This DOP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of monitoring and logging. 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 wants to monitor CPU utilization of its EC2 instances and receive an alert when utilization exceeds 80% for 5 consecutive minutes. Which AWS service should be used to create this alarm?
AWS CloudTrail
Why wrong: CloudTrail records API activity, not metric thresholds.
VPC Flow Logs
Why wrong: VPC Flow Logs capture network traffic, not CPU metrics.
Amazon CloudWatch Alarms
CloudWatch Alarms monitor metrics and trigger actions based on thresholds.
AWS Config
Why wrong: AWS Config evaluates resource configurations, not metric thresholds.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Amazon CloudWatch Alarms
Option A is correct because CloudWatch Alarms can monitor metrics like CPUUtilization and trigger actions. Option B is wrong because CloudTrail tracks API calls. Option C is wrong because AWS Config tracks resource configurations. Option D is wrong because VPC Flow Logs capture network traffic.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
AWS CloudTrail
Why it's wrong here
CloudTrail records API activity, not metric thresholds.
VPC Flow Logs
Why it's wrong here
VPC Flow Logs capture network traffic, not CPU metrics.
Amazon CloudWatch Alarms
Why this is correct
CloudWatch Alarms monitor metrics and trigger actions based on thresholds.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
AWS Config
Why it's wrong here
AWS Config evaluates resource configurations, not metric thresholds.
Common exam traps
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
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.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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
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.
Monitoring and Logging — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Monitoring and Logging — This question tests Monitoring and Logging — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Amazon CloudWatch Alarms — Option A is correct because CloudWatch Alarms can monitor metrics like CPUUtilization and trigger actions. Option B is wrong because CloudTrail tracks API calls. Option C is wrong because AWS Config tracks resource configurations. Option D is wrong because VPC Flow Logs capture network traffic.
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.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 20, 2026
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.
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