SAA-C03 Design High-Performing Architectures Practice Question

A company is deploying a new web application on AWS. The application will serve static content (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, images) and dynamic API requests. The company expects a global user base and wants to minimize latency for all users. The static content is stored in an Amazon S3 bucket, and the dynamic APIs are hosted on Amazon EC2 instances behind an Application Load Balancer. Which service should the company use to accelerate both static and dynamic content delivery?

⚠ Common exam trap

Many candidates confuse AWS Global Accelerator with a CDN; Global Accelerator does not cache content at the edge, so it is not the best choice for accelerating static content delivery.

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

✓

Amazon CloudFront with the S3 bucket and ALB as origins

Amazon CloudFront is a global content delivery network that caches static content at edge locations and can also forward dynamic requests to an Application Load Balancer origin. By using CloudFront with both the S3 bucket and the ALB as origins, the company can accelerate delivery of static and dynamic content for a global user base, reducing latency and improving performance.

Answer analysis

Option-by-option breakdown

For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.

✗
Amazon Route 53 with latency-based routing to multiple Regions
Why it's wrong here
Latency-based routing directs users to the Region with the lowest latency, but it does not cache content or accelerate delivery from a single origin. It requires deploying the application in multiple Regions, which increases complexity and cost. For a single-Region deployment, it does not address the need to accelerate both static and dynamic content globally.
✓
Amazon CloudFront with the S3 bucket and ALB as origins
Why this is correct
Amazon CloudFront is a content delivery network that caches static content at edge locations and can also forward dynamic requests to the ALB origin. By configuring both the S3 bucket and the ALB as origins, CloudFront can serve static content from cache and dynamically route API calls, reducing latency for global users. This is the most effective solution for mixed content.
✗
AWS Global Accelerator
Why it's wrong here
AWS Global Accelerator improves the performance of TCP and UDP traffic by routing through the AWS global network, but it does not cache content at edge locations. It is ideal for dynamic content and gaming, but for static content it would not provide caching benefits. Using it alone would not accelerate static content delivery as effectively as a CDN.
✗
AWS Direct Connect with a public virtual interface
Why it's wrong here
AWS Direct Connect provides a dedicated network connection from on-premises to AWS, but it is not designed for global end-user acceleration. It would not help users around the world access the application faster unless they are on the same corporate network. It is not a content delivery solution and does not cache static content.

Quick reference

AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison

Storage Class	Min Duration	Retrieval	Use Case
S3 Standard	None	Immediate	Frequently accessed data
S3 Standard-IA	30 days	Immediate	Infrequent access, rapid retrieval
S3 One Zone-IA	30 days	Immediate	Non-critical infrequent data
S3 Intelligent-Tiering	None	Immediate–hours	Unknown or changing access patterns
S3 Glacier Instant	90 days	Milliseconds	Archive with instant retrieval
S3 Glacier Flexible	90 days	Minutes–hours	Archive, flexible retrieval
S3 Glacier Deep Archive	180 days	Hours	Long-term compliance archive

Go deeper

SAA-C03 Design High-Performing Architectures Practice Question

Why each option matters

Option-by-option breakdown

AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison

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