ANS-C01 NAT Gateway Practice Question
A company has a VPC with multiple subnets. They want to centrally control outbound traffic to the internet and log all traffic. Which AWS service should they use?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often assume VPC Traffic Mirroring can both control and log, but it only copies traffic; it does not enforce policies. The correct approach is to use a service that actually controls outbound traffic, such as NAT Gateway, and add logging via VPC Flow Logs.
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
✓
NAT Gateway
NAT Gateway provides centralized outbound internet access for instances in private subnets. While it does not natively log traffic, you can enable VPC Flow Logs on the VPC to capture metadata of all traffic, including that traversing the NAT Gateway. This combination meets both the control and logging requirements. Other options either fail to control traffic (VPC Traffic Mirroring only copies, VPC Flow Logs only logs) or provide control at a different level (Network ACL is stateless and subnet-level).
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
NAT Gateway
Why this is correct
Correct. NAT Gateway centralizes outbound internet traffic, and combined with VPC Flow Logs, you can log all traffic. This satisfies both requirements.
- ✗
Network ACL
Why it's wrong here
Network ACLs are stateless and control traffic at the subnet level, but they do not specifically handle outbound internet traffic and do not log by themselves.
- ✗
VPC Flow Logs
Why it's wrong here
VPC Flow Logs only log traffic metadata; they do not control or block traffic.
- ✗
VPC Traffic Mirroring
Why it's wrong here
VPC Traffic Mirroring copies traffic for inspection but does not control or block it. It cannot enforce outbound policies on its own.
Visual reference
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
One of 1,621 original ANS-C01 practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This ANS-C01 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 ANS-C01 exam.