Question 1easymultiple choice
Full question →easymultiple choiceObjective-mapped
A company runs its customer-facing web app on EC2 behind an Application Load Balancer. The database is Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL. The requirement is that if a single Availability Zone fails, the database must automatically fail over within the same AWS Region with minimal application changes. Which database setup best meets 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 an RDS single-AZ instance and periodically restore from automated backups if needed.
Single-AZ deployments do not provide automatic failover for an AZ outage. Restoring from backups requires manual or scripted intervention, increasing downtime.
B
Best answer
Deploy the RDS PostgreSQL instance as Multi-AZ with automatic failover enabled.
Multi-AZ RDS maintains a standby instance in a different AZ. If the primary fails, RDS performs automatic failover, preserving the same database endpoint behavior.
C
Distractor review
Create a read replica in a different AZ and use it only when the primary fails.
A read replica does not automatically replace a failed primary instance. You would need manual promotion and application rerouting.
D
Distractor review
Use RDS with Multi-AZ disabled, but increase storage IOPS to prevent failover.
Performance changes do not address AZ availability. Storage IOPS does not provide automatic failover capabilities during an Availability Zone outage.
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.
Question 1
A team needs to distribute TCP traffic (not HTTP) across multiple services. The services must see the original client source IP for auditing. Which AWS load balancer is the best fit?
Question 2
A team wants to run containerized services with AWS-managed orchestration and autoscaling. They do NOT require Kubernetes compatibility. Which AWS service choice is most appropriate to meet these goals?
Question 3
A solutions architect is designing an S3 bucket for a IoT ingestion API. The objects must never be publicly accessible, even if a developer later adds an overly broad bucket policy. What should the architect configure? The design must avoid adding custom operational scripts.
Question 4
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Question 5
A team wants to delegate IAM management to developers, but must ensure developers can never grant themselves permissions beyond a specific limit. Which AWS mechanism best matches this requirement?
Question 6
A solutions architect is designing an S3 bucket for a healthcare document service. The objects must never be publicly accessible, even if a developer later adds an overly broad bucket policy. What should the architect configure?
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: Deploy the RDS PostgreSQL instance as Multi-AZ with automatic failover enabled. — Choosing an RDS Multi-AZ deployment with automatic failover enables the database to survive a single Availability Zone failure within the same Region. RDS keeps a standby instance in another AZ and, upon failure, transitions to the standby without you having to redesign the application to connect to a new database. This best matches the requirement for minimal application changes and automatic failover behavior. Why others are wrong: The single-AZ approach lacks automatic failover, so restoring from backups would not meet the low-downtime goal. A read replica can improve read scalability, but it does not automatically become the primary for failover. Increasing IOPS targets performance, not resilience to AZ-level failures.
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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