← DOP-C02·Amazon Web Services

Question 906 of 1,740

Configuration Management and IaC →mediumMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped

Quick Answer

The correct answer is to use an AWS Config rule with an auto-remediation action that applies the required tag to non-compliant resources. This approach works because AWS Config continuously evaluates EC2 instances against a managed or custom rule that checks for the 'Environment' tag with allowed values of 'Production' or 'Development', and when non-compliance is detected—even at launch—the auto-remediation action triggers an AWS Systems Manager Automation document to automatically apply the missing tag. On the DOP-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how to enforce EC2 tags at launch using AWS Config auto-remediation, a key concept for maintaining compliance without blocking resource creation. A common trap is choosing a CloudFormation stack policy or a service control policy, but those either lack real-time enforcement or apply at the account level, not per resource. Memory tip: think "Config catches, Automation patches"—the rule detects the gap, and the automation fills it in, ensuring tagging compliance is enforced immediately after launch.

DOP-C02 Configuration Management and IaC Practice Question

This DOP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of configuration management and iac. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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 team wants to enforce that all EC2 instances launched in an AWS account have a specific tag 'Environment' with value 'Production' or 'Development'. The team uses AWS CloudFormation to provision resources. Which approach should the team use to enforce tagging compliance at launch?

Question 1mediummultiple choice

Full question →

A
Configure a CloudFormation stack policy that denies stack updates if the tag is missing.
Why wrong: Stack policies protect resources during updates, not enforce tags at launch.
B
Add an IAM policy that denies ec2:RunInstances unless the request includes the required tag.
Why wrong: IAM policies can require tags only if the ec2:RunInstances action checks for tags at launch, which is not possible without a service control policy (SCP) and proper condition keys.
C
Create an AWS Service Catalog portfolio with a tag option constraint that requires the tag.
Why wrong: Service Catalog only enforces tags for products launched through its portfolio, not for standalone CloudFormation stacks.
D
Use an AWS Config rule with an auto-remediation action that applies the required tag to non-compliant resources.
AWS Config can evaluate resources against rules and trigger auto-remediation to apply missing tags.

Full breakdown with real-world context →

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

✓

Use an AWS Config rule with an auto-remediation action that applies the required tag to non-compliant resources.

Option D is correct because AWS Config rules can evaluate EC2 instances for the presence of the 'Environment' tag with allowed values and, when combined with an auto-remediation action (e.g., using AWS Systems Manager Automation), can automatically apply the missing tag to non-compliant resources. This enforces tagging compliance at launch and throughout the resource lifecycle, even if the instance was launched without the tag. The auto-remediation action can be triggered as soon as the Config rule detects non-compliance, ensuring the tag is applied shortly after launch.

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.

✗
Configure a CloudFormation stack policy that denies stack updates if the tag is missing.
Why it's wrong here
Stack policies protect resources during updates, not enforce tags at launch.
✗
Add an IAM policy that denies ec2:RunInstances unless the request includes the required tag.
Why it's wrong here
IAM policies can require tags only if the ec2:RunInstances action checks for tags at launch, which is not possible without a service control policy (SCP) and proper condition keys.
✗
Create an AWS Service Catalog portfolio with a tag option constraint that requires the tag.
Why it's wrong here
Service Catalog only enforces tags for products launched through its portfolio, not for standalone CloudFormation stacks.
✓
Use an AWS Config rule with an auto-remediation action that applies the required tag to non-compliant resources.
Why this is correct
AWS Config can evaluate resources against rules and trigger auto-remediation to apply missing tags.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.

Common exam traps

Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword

The trap here is that candidates often confuse 'enforcement at launch' with 'prevention at launch' and incorrectly choose an IAM policy (Option B) or a Service Catalog constraint (Option C), not realizing that AWS Config with auto-remediation provides a more flexible and comprehensive enforcement mechanism that works across all launch methods and can correct non-compliance after the fact.

Detailed technical explanation

How to think about this question

AWS Config rules use AWS Lambda functions or managed rules to evaluate resource configurations against desired policies; the auto-remediation feature leverages Systems Manager Automation documents to perform corrective actions like tagging. Under the hood, the remediation action is triggered by a CloudWatch Events rule that fires when the Config rule evaluation result changes to NON_COMPLIANT, allowing near-real-time enforcement. In a real-world scenario, this approach is preferred because it catches instances launched by any method (console, CLI, SDK, CloudFormation, Auto Scaling) and can also handle cases where tags are accidentally removed after launch.

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.

TExam Day Tips

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 exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.

Related DOP-C02 practice-question pages

Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.

Configuration Management and IaC practice questions

Practise DOP-C02 questions linked to Configuration Management and IaC.

Resilient Cloud Solutions practice questions

Practise DOP-C02 questions linked to Resilient Cloud Solutions.

Monitoring and Logging practice questions

Practise DOP-C02 questions linked to Monitoring and Logging.

Incident and Event Response practice questions

Practise DOP-C02 questions linked to Incident and Event Response.

Security and Compliance practice questions

Practise DOP-C02 questions linked to Security and Compliance.

SDLC Automation practice questions

Practise DOP-C02 questions linked to SDLC Automation.

DOP-C02 fundamentals practice questions

Practise DOP-C02 questions linked to DOP-C02 fundamentals.

DOP-C02 scenario practice questions

Practise DOP-C02 questions linked to DOP-C02 scenario.

DOP-C02 troubleshooting practice questions

Practise DOP-C02 questions linked to DOP-C02 troubleshooting.

Practice this exam

Start a free DOP-C02 practice session

Short sessions build daily habit. Longer sessions build exam-day stamina. Try a timed session to simulate real conditions.

10 questions 20 questions 30 questions 50 questions Timed 30

DOP-C02 practice-test guide →Study guide →Browse all practice tests

FAQ

Questions learners often ask

What does this DOP-C02 question test?

Configuration Management and IaC — This question tests Configuration Management and IaC — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..

What is the correct answer to this question?

The correct answer is: Use an AWS Config rule with an auto-remediation action that applies the required tag to non-compliant resources. — Option D is correct because AWS Config rules can evaluate EC2 instances for the presence of the 'Environment' tag with allowed values and, when combined with an auto-remediation action (e.g., using AWS Systems Manager Automation), can automatically apply the missing tag to non-compliant resources. This enforces tagging compliance at launch and throughout the resource lifecycle, even if the instance was launched without the tag. The auto-remediation action can be triggered as soon as the Config rule detects non-compliance, ensuring the tag is applied shortly after launch.

What should I do if I get this DOP-C02 question wrong?

Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.

What is the key concept behind this question?

Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.

About these practice questions

Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →

How Courseiva writes practice questions · Editorial policy

Same concept, more angles

2 more ways this is tested on DOP-C02

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 engineer wants to ensure that all EC2 instances launched in an AWS account automatically have a specific set of tags applied for cost allocation. Which AWS service should they use to enforce this?

easy

A.AWS Service Catalog
✓ B.AWS Config
C.Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling
D.AWS CloudFormation

Why B: Option D is correct because AWS Config rules can be used to check for required tags and trigger remediation. Option A is wrong because CloudFormation is for infrastructure as code, not automatic enforcement. Option B is wrong because Service Catalog allows users to provision products but does not enforce tags on all instances. Option C is wrong because EC2 Auto Scaling does not enforce tagging across all instances.

Variation 2. A DevOps team manages a multi-account AWS environment using AWS Organizations. They need to enforce a mandatory tag (e.g., 'CostCenter') on all resources created across accounts. Which combination of services should be used to automatically remediate non-compliant resources?

hard

A.AWS Service Control Policies (SCPs) to deny creation of resources without the tag.
B.AWS CloudTrail to detect non-compliant resource creation and send notifications.
✓ C.AWS Config rules with automatic remediation using AWS Systems Manager Automation or Lambda.
D.AWS Resource Groups & Tag Editor to manually add tags to non-compliant resources.

Why C: Option B is correct because AWS Config can detect non-compliant resources and trigger a custom Lambda function to automatically add the missing tag. Option A is incorrect because SCPs only prevent certain actions but do not remediate existing resources. Option C is incorrect because CloudTrail logs events but does not remediate. Option D is incorrect because Tag Editor is a manual tool, not automated.

Keep practising

Question Discussion

Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.

Loading comments…

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.