Quick Answer
The answer is Amazon CloudWatch, VPC Flow Logs, and Amazon GuardDuty. VPC Flow Logs capture detailed metadata about all IP traffic flowing through your VPC, which CloudWatch ingests to create custom metrics and alarms for real-time traffic analysis, while GuardDuty applies machine learning and threat intelligence to detect anomalies within that traffic data. On the AWS Certified Advanced Networking Specialty ANS-C01 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how these three services layer together for network monitoring, with a common trap being to confuse CloudTrail (API logging) or AWS Config (resource compliance) as traffic analysis tools. Remember that CloudTrail tracks who did what, not what flowed where, and Config tracks configuration drift, not packet metadata. A helpful memory tip is "Flow, Watch, Guard" — VPC Flow Logs for the data, CloudWatch for the metrics, and GuardDuty for the anomaly detection.
This ANS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of network management and operations. 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.
A company wants to implement a network monitoring solution that provides real-time traffic analysis and anomaly detection. Which THREE AWS services should be used together?
AWS Config
Why wrong: Config tracks resource configuration.
Amazon GuardDuty
GuardDuty provides anomaly detection using VPC Flow Logs data.
VPC Flow Logs
Flow Logs capture network traffic metadata.
AWS CloudTrail
Why wrong: CloudTrail logs API calls, not network traffic.
Amazon CloudWatch
CloudWatch provides metrics and alarms for real-time monitoring.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Amazon GuardDuty
The correct answers are A, B, and E. VPC Flow Logs capture traffic, CloudWatch provides metrics and alarms, and GuardDuty provides anomaly detection. Option C is wrong because CloudTrail is for API logs, not traffic analysis. Option D is wrong because AWS Config is for configuration tracking.
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.
Amazon GuardDuty
Why this is correct
GuardDuty provides anomaly detection using VPC Flow Logs data.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
VPC Flow Logs
Why this is correct
Flow Logs capture network traffic metadata.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
AWS CloudTrail
Why it's wrong here
CloudTrail logs API calls, not network traffic.
Amazon CloudWatch
Why this is correct
CloudWatch provides metrics and alarms for real-time monitoring.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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
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
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.
Network Management and Operations — study guide chapter
Learn the concepts, then practise the questions
Network Management and Operations 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
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to Network Management and Operations.
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to Network Security, Compliance and Governance.
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to Network Design.
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to Network Implementation.
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to ANS-C01 fundamentals.
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to ANS-C01 scenario.
Practise ANS-C01 questions linked to ANS-C01 troubleshooting.
Practice this exam
Short sessions build daily habit. Longer sessions build exam-day stamina. Try a timed session to simulate real conditions.
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: Amazon GuardDuty — The correct answers are A, B, and E. VPC Flow Logs capture traffic, CloudWatch provides metrics and alarms, and GuardDuty provides anomaly detection. Option C is wrong because CloudTrail is for API logs, not traffic analysis. Option D is wrong because AWS Config is for configuration tracking.
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.
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 →
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.
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.