- A
Geolocation routing policy
Why wrong: Geolocation routes based on user location, not for failover.
- B
Failover routing policy
Failover routing policy is designed for active-passive failover configurations.
- C
Weighted routing policy
Why wrong: Weighted routing distributes traffic based on weights, not for active-passive failover.
- D
Latency routing policy
Why wrong: Latency routing does not provide failover based on health checks; it routes based on latency.
Question 1,048 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 deploying a multi-tier web application across two AWS Regions with an active-passive failover architecture. The application uses Application Load Balancers (ALBs) in each Region, and traffic must be directed to the active Region using DNS. Which routing policy should be used for the Amazon Route 53 record set to achieve this?
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
✓
Failover routing policy
The failover routing policy in Amazon Route 53 is designed specifically for active-passive failover architectures. It uses health checks to monitor the primary endpoint (active Region) and automatically routes traffic to the secondary endpoint (passive Region) only when the primary health check fails. This matches the requirement of directing traffic to the active Region using DNS.
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.
- ✗
Geolocation routing policy
Why it's wrong here
Geolocation routes based on user location, not for failover.
- ✓
Failover routing policy
Why this is correct
Failover routing policy is designed for active-passive failover configurations.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Weighted routing policy
Why it's wrong here
Weighted routing distributes traffic based on weights, not for active-passive failover.
- ✗
Latency routing policy
Why it's wrong here
Latency routing does not provide failover based on health checks; it routes based on latency.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse failover routing with latency or weighted routing, assuming that automatic failover can be achieved by simply distributing traffic, but only failover routing policy provides the health-check-driven active-passive behavior required for this architecture.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, Route 53 failover routing policy requires you to create two records (primary and secondary) with the same name, each associated with a health check. The health check monitors the ALB endpoint in each region using HTTP/HTTPS or TCP probes; if the primary health check fails, Route 53 returns only the secondary record in DNS responses. This relies on DNS TTL values (typically 60 seconds) to control failover timing, and you must ensure health checks are configured with appropriate thresholds (e.g., 3 consecutive failures) to avoid flapping.
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 media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
Visual reference
Quick reference
Common DNS Record Types
| Record | Purpose | Example |
|---|---|---|
| A | IPv4 address mapping | example.com → 93.184.216.34 |
| AAAA | IPv6 address mapping | example.com → 2606:2800::1 |
| CNAME | Alias to another hostname | www → example.com |
| MX | Mail server for domain | example.com → mail.example.com (priority 10) |
| TXT | Text data (SPF, DKIM, verification) | v=spf1 include:_spf.example.com ~all |
| NS | Authoritative name servers | example.com NS ns1.example.com |
| PTR | Reverse DNS (IP → hostname) | 34.216.184.93.in-addr.arpa → example.com |
| SOA | Zone authority record | Primary NS, admin email, serial, TTL defaults |
What to study next
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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: Failover routing policy — The failover routing policy in Amazon Route 53 is designed specifically for active-passive failover architectures. It uses health checks to monitor the primary endpoint (active Region) and automatically routes traffic to the secondary endpoint (passive Region) only when the primary health check fails. This matches the requirement of directing traffic to the active Region using DNS.
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.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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