Quick Answer
The answer is AWS X-Ray because it provides end-to-end tracing of requests between EC2 instances, capturing detailed network performance metrics such as hop-by-hop latency and packet-level timing. Unlike VPC Flow Logs, which only log metadata like source and destination IPs without measuring latency, X-Ray’s service maps and trace data pinpoint exactly where delays occur—whether from network congestion, application processing, or cross-AZ routing. On the AWS Certified Advanced Networking Specialty ANS-C01 exam, this question tests your ability to distinguish between monitoring services: CloudTrail records API calls, AWS Config tracks configuration drift, and VPC Flow Logs capture flow metadata, but only X-Ray reveals performance bottlenecks. A common trap is assuming Flow Logs suffice for latency analysis, but they lack timing granularity. Memory tip: think “X-Ray vision” for seeing through the network stack to spot latency, while Flow Logs are just a “guest list” of traffic.
This ANS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of network management and operations. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 network engineer is troubleshooting high latency between two EC2 instances in the same VPC but different Availability Zones. Which AWS service can provide detailed network performance metrics to identify the source of latency?
AWS Config
Why wrong: Config tracks resource configuration, not latency.
AWS CloudTrail
Why wrong: CloudTrail logs API calls, not network performance.
AWS X-Ray
X-Ray traces requests and shows latency between components.
VPC Flow Logs
Why wrong: Flow Logs do not measure latency.
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 X-Ray
The correct answer is A because AWS X-Ray provides end-to-end tracing of requests and can identify network latency. Option B is wrong because VPC Flow Logs only capture metadata, not latency. Option C is wrong because CloudTrail records API calls, not network performance. Option D is wrong because AWS Config tracks configuration changes, not performance.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
AWS Config
Why it's wrong here
Config tracks resource configuration, not latency.
AWS CloudTrail
Why it's wrong here
CloudTrail logs API calls, not network performance.
AWS X-Ray
Why this is correct
X-Ray traces requests and shows latency between components.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
VPC Flow Logs
Why it's wrong here
Flow Logs do not measure latency.
Common exam traps
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
What to study next
Identify which ANS-C01 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
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FAQ
Network Management and Operations — This question tests Network Management and Operations — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: AWS X-Ray — The correct answer is A because AWS X-Ray provides end-to-end tracing of requests and can identify network latency. Option B is wrong because VPC Flow Logs only capture metadata, not latency. Option C is wrong because CloudTrail records API calls, not network performance. Option D is wrong because AWS Config tracks configuration changes, not performance.
Identify which ANS-C01 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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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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