- A
Configure each private subnet's route table to route 0.0.0.0/0 to the NAT Gateway in the same Availability Zone.
This ensures traffic uses the NAT Gateway in the same AZ.
- B
Use a NAT instance in an Auto Scaling group.
Why wrong: NAT instances are less reliable than NAT Gateways.
- C
Deploy a NAT Gateway in each Availability Zone.
This provides high availability; each AZ has its own NAT Gateway.
- D
Use a single route table for all private subnets and route to one NAT Gateway.
Why wrong: This would force all traffic through one NAT Gateway, reducing availability.
- E
Deploy a single NAT Gateway in one Availability Zone.
Why wrong: Single NAT Gateway is a single point of failure.
Question 283 of 1,705
ANS-C01 Network Design Practice Question
This ANS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of network design. 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 company is designing a network for a VPC with a CIDR of 10.0.0.0/16. The VPC has three private subnets in three different Availability Zones. The company needs to provide internet access to instances in the private subnets for software updates. The architecture must be highly available and cost-effective. Which TWO actions should the network engineer take?
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
✓
Configure each private subnet's route table to route 0.0.0.0/0 to the NAT Gateway in the same Availability Zone.
Option A is correct because configuring each private subnet's route table to route 0.0.0.0/0 to the NAT Gateway in the same Availability Zone ensures that traffic from instances in that subnet uses a NAT Gateway that is in the same AZ, avoiding cross-AZ data transfer costs and maintaining high availability. Option C is correct because deploying a NAT Gateway in each Availability Zone provides redundancy; if one AZ fails, the other NAT Gateways continue to provide internet access, meeting the high availability requirement while remaining cost-effective compared to using NAT instances with Auto Scaling.
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.
- ✓
Configure each private subnet's route table to route 0.0.0.0/0 to the NAT Gateway in the same Availability Zone.
- ✗
Use a NAT instance in an Auto Scaling group.
Why it's wrong here
NAT instances are less reliable than NAT Gateways.
- ✓
Deploy a NAT Gateway in each Availability Zone.
- ✗
Use a single route table for all private subnets and route to one NAT Gateway.
- ✗
Deploy a single NAT Gateway in one Availability Zone.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The ANS-C01 exam often tests the misconception that a single NAT Gateway is sufficient for high availability, but the trap here is that a NAT Gateway is an AZ-scoped resource, so you need one per AZ to avoid a single point of failure and cross-AZ data transfer costs.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
NAT Gateways are managed by AWS and automatically scale up to 45 Gbps, handling burst traffic without manual intervention. They are implemented as a horizontally scaled, redundant service within an Availability Zone, but they are not resilient to AZ failures, so deploying one per AZ is necessary for true high availability. Cross-AZ traffic through a NAT Gateway incurs standard data transfer charges (e.g., $0.01/GB for inter-AZ traffic), which can add significant cost if a single NAT Gateway is used for subnets in multiple AZs.
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 startup's cloud architect reviews their monthly bill and notices costs are higher than expected for a long-running batch job. Switching from on-demand instances to Reserved Instances — or using Spot/Preemptible VMs — can reduce compute costs by up to 72 %. Questions like this test whether you understand the tradeoffs between commitment, flexibility, and cost across cloud pricing models.
Visual reference
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 — study guide chapter
Learn the concepts, then practise the questions
- →
Network Design practice questions
Targeted practice on this topic area only
- →
All ANS-C01 questions
1,705 questions across all exam domains
- →
AWS Certified Advanced Networking Specialty ANS-C01 study guide
Full concept coverage aligned to exam objectives
- →
ANS-C01 practice test guide
How to use practice tests most effectively before exam day
Related practice questions
Related ANS-C01 practice-question pages
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
Network Management and Operations practice questions
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to Network Management and Operations.
Network Security, Compliance and Governance practice questions
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to Network Security, Compliance and Governance.
Network Design practice questions
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to Network Design.
Network Implementation practice questions
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to Network Implementation.
ANS-C01 fundamentals practice questions
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to ANS-C01 fundamentals.
ANS-C01 scenario practice questions
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to ANS-C01 scenario.
ANS-C01 troubleshooting practice questions
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to ANS-C01 troubleshooting.
Practice this exam
Start a free ANS-C01 practice session
Short sessions build daily habit. Longer sessions build exam-day stamina. Try a timed session to simulate real conditions.
FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this ANS-C01 question test?
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: Configure each private subnet's route table to route 0.0.0.0/0 to the NAT Gateway in the same Availability Zone. — Option A is correct because configuring each private subnet's route table to route 0.0.0.0/0 to the NAT Gateway in the same Availability Zone ensures that traffic from instances in that subnet uses a NAT Gateway that is in the same AZ, avoiding cross-AZ data transfer costs and maintaining high availability. Option C is correct because deploying a NAT Gateway in each Availability Zone provides redundancy; if one AZ fails, the other NAT Gateways continue to provide internet access, meeting the high availability requirement while remaining cost-effective compared to using NAT instances with Auto Scaling.
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.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Keep practising
More ANS-C01 practice questions
- A financial services company has a VPC with a public subnet and a private subnet. EC2 instances in the private subnet ne…
- A company is designing a network security architecture for a multi-account environment using AWS Transit Gateway. The se…
- A company is using AWS Direct Connect to connect its on-premises network to AWS. The company wants to encrypt all traffi…
- A company uses AWS Transit Gateway to connect multiple VPCs and on-premises networks via AWS Site-to-Site VPN. The secur…
- A company runs a web application on EC2 instances behind an Application Load Balancer (ALB). The application must be acc…
- A global e-commerce company uses a hub-and-spoke network topology with a transit VPC in us-east-1. Each spoke VPC has an…
Last reviewed: Jul 4, 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.
Question Discussion
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.