Quick Answer
The answer is to examine the CodeDeploy deployment group configuration and the CloudWatch Logs for CodeDeploy. CloudWatch Logs capture detailed output from each lifecycle event—such as BeforeInstall or ApplicationStop—including script errors, permission failures, and exit codes, making them the primary diagnostic source for pinpointing why a step failed. The deployment group configuration is equally critical because misconfigured settings like incorrect instance tags, load balancer deregistration delays, or invalid IAM roles can silently prevent deployments from reaching healthy instances. On the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional DOP-C02 exam, this pairing tests your ability to distinguish between runtime errors (visible in logs) and structural misconfigurations (visible in group settings), a common trap where candidates focus only on logs and overlook the group’s role in orchestrating the deployment. Remember the mnemonic “Logs for the code, Group for the road”—logs reveal script-level failures, while the group configuration defines the deployment path.
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 DevOps engineer is troubleshooting an AWS CodeDeploy deployment that failed. Which TWO resources should the engineer examine to identify the cause of the failure? (Choose two.)
EC2 instance system logs
Why wrong: Not automatically available.
CloudWatch Logs for CodeDeploy
Contains deployment events and error messages.
S3 access logs
Why wrong: Not related to CodeDeploy.
CloudTrail logs
Why wrong: Logs API calls, not deployment execution.
CodeDeploy deployment group configuration
Misconfiguration can cause failures.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
CloudWatch Logs for CodeDeploy
Option B is correct because AWS CodeDeploy emits detailed logs about deployment lifecycle events (e.g., BeforeInstall, ApplicationStop) to CloudWatch Logs. These logs contain error messages, script output, and status codes that directly indicate why a deployment step failed, such as a permission issue or a script syntax error. Examining CloudWatch Logs for CodeDeploy is the primary method to diagnose deployment failures.
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.
EC2 instance system logs
Why it's wrong here
Not automatically available.
CloudWatch Logs for CodeDeploy
Why this is correct
Contains deployment events and error messages.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
S3 access logs
Why it's wrong here
Not related to CodeDeploy.
CloudTrail logs
Why it's wrong here
Logs API calls, not deployment execution.
CodeDeploy deployment group configuration
Why this is correct
Misconfiguration can cause failures.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse CloudTrail (API auditing) with CloudWatch Logs (application-level logging), or they mistakenly think EC2 system logs are relevant for application deployment failures, when in fact CodeDeploy-specific logs are the correct source.
Detailed technical explanation
CodeDeploy agents on EC2 instances write deployment events to the agent log file (e.g., /opt/codedeploy-agent/deployment-root/deployment-logs/codedeploy-agent-deployments.log) and also forward these events to CloudWatch Logs if configured. The CloudWatch Logs stream for CodeDeploy includes the exit codes and stderr from each lifecycle hook script, which is critical for debugging. In a real-world scenario, a deployment might fail because a script references a file that doesn't exist; the CloudWatch Logs entry would show a 'No such file or directory' error, while CloudTrail would only show the API call that started the deployment.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
What to study next
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Incident and Event Response — study guide chapter
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Incident and Event Response practice questions
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FAQ
Incident and Event Response — This question tests Incident and Event Response — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: CloudWatch Logs for CodeDeploy — Option B is correct because AWS CodeDeploy emits detailed logs about deployment lifecycle events (e.g., BeforeInstall, ApplicationStop) to CloudWatch Logs. These logs contain error messages, script output, and status codes that directly indicate why a deployment step failed, such as a permission issue or a script syntax error. Examining CloudWatch Logs for CodeDeploy is the primary method to diagnose deployment failures.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 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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