ANS-C01 Network Design Practice Question
A company wants to connect an Amazon RDS for SQL Server database instance in a VPC to an on-premises application. The connection must be encrypted in transit and should traverse the AWS backbone network. Which solution meets these requirements?
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to think Direct Connect alone provides encryption, but it does not; the question explicitly requires encryption in transit, so a Site-to-Site VPN must be layered over Direct Connect, not just Direct Connect or a VPN alone.
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
✓
Establish an AWS Site-to-Site VPN connection over AWS Direct Connect
An AWS Site-to-Site VPN connection over AWS Direct Connect provides an encrypted IPSec tunnel that traverses the AWS backbone network, ensuring encryption in transit and meeting the requirement to keep traffic off the public internet. Direct Connect provides a private physical connection to AWS, and the Site-to-Site VPN adds encryption over that link, which is ideal for connecting an on-premises application to an RDS for SQL Server instance in a VPC.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Set up an AWS Client VPN endpoint and connect the on-premises application
Why it's wrong here
Client VPN is for individual remote users, not for site-to-site connectivity.
- ✗
Create a VPC endpoint for RDS and connect on-premises to the endpoint
Why it's wrong here
RDS does not have a VPC endpoint; VPC endpoints are for services like S3 and DynamoDB.
- ✓
Establish an AWS Site-to-Site VPN connection over AWS Direct Connect
Why this is correct
A VPN over Direct Connect provides encrypted IPsec tunnels over the private AWS backbone.
- ✗
Configure ClassicLink to connect the on-premises network to the VPC
Why it's wrong here
ClassicLink is a deprecated feature for linking EC2-Classic to VPC, not for on-premises connectivity.
Quick reference
VPN Protocol Comparison
| Protocol | Port | Encryption | Authentication | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IKEv2 / IPsec | UDP 500 / 4500 | AES-256 | Certificates / PSK | Site-to-site & remote access |
| SSL / TLS VPN | TCP 443 | TLS 1.3 | Certificates / MFA | Clientless remote access |
| L2TP / IPsec | UDP 1701 | AES (IPsec) | PSK / Certificates | Legacy remote access |
| WireGuard | UDP 51820 | ChaCha20 | Public keys | Modern high-performance VPN |
| PPTP | TCP 1723 | MPPE (weak) | MS-CHAPv2 | Legacy — avoid in production |
PPTP is considered insecure. IKEv2/IPsec and SSL VPN are the current recommended options.
Go deeper
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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.