Question 1easymultiple choice
Full question →easymultiple choiceObjective-mapped
A company runs a stateless web API on Amazon EC2 behind an Application Load Balancer. The team notices that during business hours, the ALB starts queueing requests and the average request latency rises. They want to scale out quickly and reliably based on demand, not CPU alone. Which Auto Scaling approach best matches this requirement?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Good practice is not just finding the correct option. The wrong answers often show the exact trap the exam wants you to fall into.
A
Distractor review
Use a fixed-size Auto Scaling group and increase capacity manually once per hour.
This is manual and slow, which can’t react to sudden traffic spikes effectively.
B
Best answer
Use target tracking scaling based on ALB request count per target.
Target tracking can automatically adjust capacity using ALB load metrics and respond faster.
C
Distractor review
Scale based only on EC2 instance memory utilization, regardless of load.
Memory utilization may not correlate with queueing or request latency, causing mismatched scaling.
D
Distractor review
Use step scaling with a single threshold on average network-in bytes.
Step scaling can work, but networking thresholds often lag behind request queuing and latency issues.
Common exam trap
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
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.
Technical deep dive
How to think about this question
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.
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.
- Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
- Underline the problem statement mentally.
- 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.
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More questions from this exam
Keep practising from the same exam bank, or move into a focused topic page if this question exposed a weak area.
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Question 2
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Question 5
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SAA-C03 question test?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use target tracking scaling based on ALB request count per target. — Target tracking scaling based on ALBRequestCountPerTarget directly reflects application demand as seen by the load balancer. As request pressure increases and instances get busier, the metric rises, prompting Auto Scaling to add instances. When traffic drops, capacity decreases, controlling cost. This approach is better than scaling on CPU alone when bottlenecks show up as request queueing and latency rather than raw compute utilization. Why others are wrong: A is too slow and defeats the goal of scaling quickly based on real traffic demand. C can be misleading because memory utilization may remain stable while requests queue and latency rises. D is possible in some cases, but step scaling on network-in bytes is less directly tied to request handling capacity and may add or remove instances at the wrong time.
What should I do if I get this SAA-C03 question wrong?
Then try more questions from the same exam bank and focus on understanding why the wrong options are tempting.
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