This ANS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of network design. 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 has a VPC with public and private subnets. The private subnets need to access the internet for software updates. The company has an internet gateway attached to the VPC and a NAT gateway in a public subnet. Which route table configuration is required for the private subnets to access the internet?
Add a route in the private subnet route table with destination 0.0.0.0/0 and target the internet gateway.
Why wrong: Direct internet gateway route would bypass NAT and private IPs would not work.
B
Add a route in the private subnet route table with destination 0.0.0.0/0 and target the NAT gateway.
This allows private instances to use NAT for internet access.
C
Add a route in the public subnet route table with destination 0.0.0.0/0 and target the NAT gateway.
Why wrong: Public subnet route table needs internet gateway, not NAT.
D
Add a route in the private subnet route table with destination 0.0.0.0/0 and target the internet gateway, and associate an Elastic IP with the NAT gateway.
Why wrong: Private subnets cannot route directly to internet gateway.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Add a route in the private subnet route table with destination 0.0.0.0/0 and target the NAT gateway.
Option B is correct because private subnets require a default route (0.0.0.0/0) pointing to the NAT gateway to enable outbound internet access while preventing inbound traffic from the internet. The NAT gateway, residing in a public subnet with an associated Elastic IP, translates private IP addresses to the Elastic IP for internet-bound traffic. The internet gateway is used by public subnets, not private subnets, for direct internet access.
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.
✗
Add a route in the private subnet route table with destination 0.0.0.0/0 and target the internet gateway.
Why it's wrong here
Direct internet gateway route would bypass NAT and private IPs would not work.
✓
Add a route in the private subnet route table with destination 0.0.0.0/0 and target the NAT gateway.
Why this is correct
This allows private instances to use NAT for internet access.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Add a route in the public subnet route table with destination 0.0.0.0/0 and target the NAT gateway.
Why it's wrong here
Public subnet route table needs internet gateway, not NAT.
✗
Add a route in the private subnet route table with destination 0.0.0.0/0 and target the internet gateway, and associate an Elastic IP with the NAT gateway.
Why it's wrong here
Private subnets cannot route directly to internet gateway.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
AWS often tests the misconception that private subnets can use the internet gateway directly via a default route, but the trap here is that private subnets must route through a NAT gateway or NAT instance to maintain their private nature and avoid direct inbound internet access.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
The NATgateway uses source network address translation (SNAT) to replace the private source IP with its Elastic IP for outbound traffic, and the return traffic is translated back to the private IP. The route table in the private subnet must have a 0.0.0.0/0 route pointing to the NAT gateway's ENI (elastic network interface) or the NAT gateway ID, not the internet gateway ID. In a real-world scenario, if the NAT gateway is in a different availability zone, you must ensure the route table points to the correct NAT gateway in the same AZ to avoid cross-AZ data transfer 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 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.
Network Design — This question tests Network Design — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Add a route in the private subnet route table with destination 0.0.0.0/0 and target the NAT gateway. — Option B is correct because private subnets require a default route (0.0.0.0/0) pointing to the NAT gateway to enable outbound internet access while preventing inbound traffic from the internet. The NAT gateway, residing in a public subnet with an associated Elastic IP, translates private IP addresses to the Elastic IP for internet-bound traffic. The internet gateway is used by public subnets, not private subnets, for direct internet access.
What should I do if I get this ANS-C01 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.
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Question Discussion
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