Quick Answer
The answer is the customer gateway and the virtual private gateway. These two components are required to establish an AWS Site-to-Site VPN connection because they form the logical endpoints of the encrypted IPsec tunnel: the virtual private gateway anchors the AWS side of the VPN, routing traffic from your VPC to your on-premises network, while the customer gateway represents your on-premises VPN device in AWS, providing the necessary public IP address and BGP ASN or static route configuration. On the AWS Certified Advanced Networking Specialty ANS-C01 exam, this concept tests your understanding of the fundamental building blocks of hybrid networking, often appearing in scenario-based questions where you must identify mandatory versus optional components like transit gateways or VPN CloudHub. A common trap is confusing the VPN connection itself with the gateway objects—remember, you cannot establish a tunnel without both a VGW and a CGW defined. Memory tip: think of the VGW as the “door” on the AWS side and the CGW as the “key” from your data center; both are needed to open the tunnel.
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.
Which TWO of the following are required to establish an AWS Site-to-Site VPN connection? (Select TWO.)
Direct Connect gateway
Why wrong: Used with Direct Connect.
Virtual private gateway
AWS-side endpoint for the VPN.
Customer gateway
Represents the on-premises device.
Transit gateway
Why wrong: Optional, not required.
VPN connection
Why wrong: This is the connection itself, not a component.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Virtual private gateway
A virtual private gateway (VGW) is required as the AWS-side endpoint for the VPN tunnel; it anchors the encrypted IPsec session and routes traffic from the VPC to the on-premises network. The customer gateway (CGW) represents the on-premises VPN device in AWS, providing the public IP and BGP ASN (for dynamic routing) or static route configuration needed to establish the tunnel. Both are mandatory components of an AWS Site-to-Site VPN connection.
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.
Direct Connect gateway
Why it's wrong here
Used with Direct Connect.
Virtual private gateway
Why this is correct
AWS-side endpoint for the VPN.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Customer gateway
Why this is correct
Represents the on-premises device.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Transit gateway
Why it's wrong here
Optional, not required.
VPN connection
Why it's wrong here
This is the connection itself, not a component.
Common exam traps
AWS often tests the misconception that a transit gateway is required for Site-to-Site VPN, but it is only needed when connecting multiple VPCs or using advanced routing features; a simple VPN to a single VPC only needs a VGW and CGW.
Detailed technical explanation
The VPN tunnel uses IPsec with IKEv1 or IKEv2 to negotiate security associations (SAs) and encrypt traffic; the VGW and CGW must match pre-shared keys and encryption parameters. For dynamic routing, BGP (RFC 4271) is used over the tunnel to exchange routes, requiring the CGW to have a BGP ASN and the VGW to use a private ASN (default 64512). In a real-world scenario, if the CGW is misconfigured with an incorrect public IP or BGP ASN, the IKE phase 1 handshake will fail, and the VPN will never come up.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
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
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FAQ
Network Design — This question tests Network Design — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Virtual private gateway — A virtual private gateway (VGW) is required as the AWS-side endpoint for the VPN tunnel; it anchors the encrypted IPsec session and routes traffic from the VPC to the on-premises network. The customer gateway (CGW) represents the on-premises VPN device in AWS, providing the public IP and BGP ASN (for dynamic routing) or static route configuration needed to establish the tunnel. Both are mandatory components of an AWS Site-to-Site VPN connection.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 30, 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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