Quick Answer
The answer is AWS Network Firewall with AWS Firewall Manager. This combination is correct because AWS Network Firewall provides the actual stateful, managed firewall service that inspects traffic at the VPC level, while AWS Firewall Manager acts as the central policy engine to deploy and enforce those firewall rules consistently across multiple VPCs and accounts. On the AWS Certified Advanced Networking Specialty ANS-C01 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of centralized security governance versus per-resource controls—a common trap is confusing Security Groups or Network ACLs, which are scoped to individual VPCs or subnets and lack cross-account management. AWS WAF, by contrast, operates at the application layer and cannot serve as a network firewall. A useful memory tip: think of Firewall Manager as the "orchestrator" and Network Firewall as the "enforcer"—together they give you a single pane of glass for network-level rule compliance across your entire AWS organization.
This ANS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of network security, compliance and governance. 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 company wants to centrally manage firewall rules across multiple VPCs in different AWS accounts. Which AWS service should they use?
AWS Network Firewall with AWS Firewall Manager
AWS Network Firewall provides centralized management through Firewall Manager.
Security Groups
Why wrong: Security Groups are managed per VPC and do not provide central management across accounts.
AWS WAF
Why wrong: AWS WAF is for web application firewall, not network-level firewall.
Network ACLs
Why wrong: Network ACLs are per subnet and not centrally managed.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
AWS Network Firewall with AWS Firewall Manager
Option C is correct because AWS Network Firewall can be centrally managed using AWS Firewall Manager. Option A is wrong because Security Groups are per-VPC and not centrally managed. Option B is wrong because Network ACLs are per-subnet. Option D is wrong because AWS WAF is for web application layer, not network firewall.
Key principle: Count usable hosts — not total addresses — and remember that the network and broadcast addresses are not available to hosts in standard IPv4 subnets.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
AWS Network Firewall with AWS Firewall Manager
Security Groups
Why it's wrong here
Security Groups are managed per VPC and do not provide central management across accounts.
AWS WAF
Why it's wrong here
AWS WAF is for web application firewall, not network-level firewall.
Network ACLs
Why it's wrong here
Network ACLs are per subnet and not centrally managed.
Common exam traps
Subnetting questions often tempt you into counting all addresses. In normal IPv4 subnets, the network and broadcast addresses are not usable host addresses.
Detailed technical explanation
Subnetting questions test whether you can identify the network, broadcast address, usable range, mask and correct subnet. Slow down enough to calculate the block size correctly.
Key takeaway
Count usable hosts — not total addresses — and remember that the network and broadcast addresses are not available to hosts in standard IPv4 subnets.
Real-world example
A healthcare organisation deploys an application with a public-facing web tier and a private database tier. The database subnet has no public IP and only accepts connections from the web tier's security group. Questions like this test whether you can design cloud network isolation using VNets/VPCs, subnets, and security group rules.
What to study next
Review block sizes, usable host formulas (2^n − 2), and how to find network and broadcast addresses for /24 through /30. Then practise related ANS-C01 subnetting questions on CIDR, address ranges, and subnet selection.
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FAQ
Network Security, Compliance and Governance — This question tests Network Security, Compliance and Governance — CIDR notation defines the prefix length..
The correct answer is: AWS Network Firewall with AWS Firewall Manager — Option C is correct because AWS Network Firewall can be centrally managed using AWS Firewall Manager. Option A is wrong because Security Groups are per-VPC and not centrally managed. Option B is wrong because Network ACLs are per-subnet. Option D is wrong because AWS WAF is for web application layer, not network firewall.
Review block sizes, usable host formulas (2^n − 2), and how to find network and broadcast addresses for /24 through /30. Then practise related ANS-C01 subnetting questions on CIDR, address ranges, and subnet selection.
CIDR notation defines the prefix length.
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Last reviewed: Jun 20, 2026
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.
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