This ANS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of network implementation. 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.
Refer to the exhibit. A CloudFormation template creates a VPC with public and private subnets. The template includes an Internet Gateway and a route table with a default route to the IGW, associated with the public subnet. An EC2 instance launched in the public subnet cannot be reached from the internet. The security group allows inbound HTTP from 0.0.0.0/0. What is the MOST likely missing resource?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
An Elastic IP address assigned to the instance or auto-assign public IP enabled on the subnet
The EC2 instance in the public subnet cannot be reached from the internet because it lacks a publicly routable IP address. Even though the subnet has a default route to the Internet Gateway (IGW) and the security group allows inbound HTTP from 0.0.0.0/0, the instance must have either an Elastic IP address assigned directly or the subnet must have the 'Auto-assign public IPv4 address' attribute enabled. Without a public IP, the IGW cannot perform 1-to-1 NAT to translate the instance's private IP to a public IP, making it unreachable from the internet.
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.
An Elastic IP address assigned to the instance or auto-assign public IP enabled on the subnet
Why this is correct
Public instances need a public IP to be reachable.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
A route table for the private subnet
Why it's wrong here
Private subnet not relevant to public instance.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The ANS-C01 exam often tests the misconception that a route to an IGW and a permissive security group are sufficient for internet access, but candidates overlook the mandatory requirement for a public IP address on the instance or subnet for inbound connectivity.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
The Internet Gateway performs 1-to-1 NAT only for instances that have a public IPv4 address (either Elastic IP or auto-assigned). When an instance lacks a public IP, the IGW has no mapping to forward inbound traffic to the instance's private IP. This is defined by AWS's VPC networking model, where the IGW acts as the target in the route table but requires a public IP on the instance for inbound traffic to succeed. In contrast, outbound traffic from a public subnet instance with no public IP would still fail because the IGW cannot translate the source private IP to a public IP without an associated Elastic IP.
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 company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
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 Implementation — This question tests Network Implementation — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: An Elastic IP address assigned to the instance or auto-assign public IP enabled on the subnet — The EC2 instance in the public subnet cannot be reached from the internet because it lacks a publicly routable IP address. Even though the subnet has a default route to the Internet Gateway (IGW) and the security group allows inbound HTTP from 0.0.0.0/0, the instance must have either an Elastic IP address assigned directly or the subnet must have the 'Auto-assign public IPv4 address' attribute enabled. Without a public IP, the IGW cannot perform 1-to-1 NAT to translate the instance's private IP to a public IP, making it unreachable from the internet.
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.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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