- A
CloudWatch Logs with a metric filter on CPU utilization logs.
Why wrong: CPU utilization is a metric, not a log.
- B
CloudTrail to monitor EC2 instance CPU usage.
Why wrong: CloudTrail records API calls, not metrics.
- C
CloudWatch alarm on the CPUUtilization metric with a period of 5 minutes and threshold of 90.
Alarms evaluate metrics over time and trigger actions.
- D
Amazon S3 server access logs to check CPU utilization.
Why wrong: S3 logs are for object access, not CPU.
Question 1,347 of 1,750
Configuring CloudWatch Alarms for CPU Utilization on EC2 Instances
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 DevOps engineer needs to set up an alert for when the CPU utilization of an EC2 instance exceeds 90% for 5 consecutive minutes. Which CloudWatch features should be used?
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
✓
CloudWatch alarm on the CPUUtilization metric with a period of 5 minutes and threshold of 90.
Option C is correct because CloudWatch alarms can be configured on the `CPUUtilization` metric (a standard EC2 metric emitted every 5 minutes by default) with a threshold of 90 and an evaluation period of 1 (since the period is set to 5 minutes, one evaluation period covers the 5 consecutive minutes). This directly meets the requirement without additional setup.
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.
- ✗
CloudWatch Logs with a metric filter on CPU utilization logs.
Why it's wrong here
CPU utilization is a metric, not a log.
- ✗
CloudTrail to monitor EC2 instance CPU usage.
Why it's wrong here
CloudTrail records API calls, not metrics.
- ✓
CloudWatch alarm on the CPUUtilization metric with a period of 5 minutes and threshold of 90.
Why this is correct
Alarms evaluate metrics over time and trigger actions.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Amazon S3 server access logs to check CPU utilization.
Why it's wrong here
S3 logs are for object access, not CPU.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may confuse CloudWatch Logs metric filters (used for custom log-based metrics) with native EC2 metrics, or mistakenly think CloudTrail or S3 logs can monitor system performance, when only CloudWatch alarms on the `CPUUtilization` metric directly satisfy the requirement.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
The `CPUUtilization` metric is part of the 7 default EC2 metrics emitted to CloudWatch at a 5-minute granularity (1-minute with detailed monitoring). An alarm with period=300 seconds (5 minutes) and evaluation periods=1 checks a single data point that aggregates CPU usage over that 5-minute window, effectively detecting sustained high utilization. In practice, if you need faster detection (e.g., 1-minute intervals), you must enable detailed monitoring, which incurs additional costs.
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 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
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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Monitoring and Logging — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this DOP-C02 question test?
Monitoring and Logging — This question tests Monitoring and Logging — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: CloudWatch alarm on the CPUUtilization metric with a period of 5 minutes and threshold of 90. — Option C is correct because CloudWatch alarms can be configured on the `CPUUtilization` metric (a standard EC2 metric emitted every 5 minutes by default) with a threshold of 90 and an evaluation period of 1 (since the period is set to 5 minutes, one evaluation period covers the 5 consecutive minutes). This directly meets the requirement without additional setup.
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 →
Same concept, more angles
1 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 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?
easy- A.AWS CloudTrail
- B.VPC Flow Logs
- ✓ C.Amazon CloudWatch Alarms
- D.AWS Config
Why C: Amazon CloudWatch Alarms are the appropriate service to monitor CPU utilization metrics and trigger an alert when utilization exceeds 80% for 5 consecutive minutes. CloudWatch Alarms can be set on the CPUUtilization metric of EC2 instances to take actions such as sending notifications. Option A (AWS CloudTrail) is incorrect because it logs API calls, not performance metrics. Option B (VPC Flow Logs) captures network traffic information, not CPU usage. Option D (AWS Config) tracks resource configuration changes, not real-time utilization.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 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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