SAA-C03 Design Cost-Optimized Architectures Practice Question
A log archive serves infrequently accessed user documents that must be available immediately when requested. Which S3 storage class is likely the best cost fit? The design must avoid adding custom operational scripts.
⚠ Common exam trap
AWS often tests the misconception that 'infrequently accessed' automatically means Glacier or Deep Archive, but the key differentiator is the 'immediate availability' requirement, which eliminates any cold storage class with retrieval delays.
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
✓
S3 Standard-IA or S3 One Zone-IA depending on resilience requirements
S3 Standard-IA or S3 One Zone-IA is the best cost fit because the workload involves infrequently accessed documents that require immediate retrieval. These storage classes offer lower storage costs than S3 Standard while maintaining low-latency access (milliseconds), and they avoid custom operational scripts since retrieval is automatic via standard S3 GET requests. The choice between Standard-IA and One Zone-IA depends on whether the data requires multi-AZ resilience or can tolerate a single-AZ failure.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Instance store volumes
Why it's wrong here
Instance store volumes are ephemeral, physically attached to one EC2 host, and lose all data when that instance stops, terminates, or fails — so archived documents cannot persist or be served reliably. They suit temporary scratch data, buffers, or replicated caches where durability is handled elsewhere, not durable, immediately retrievable document archives.
- ✓
S3 Standard-IA or S3 One Zone-IA depending on resilience requirements
Why this is correct
S3 Standard-IA and One Zone-IA both provide immediate millisecond retrieval with lower storage pricing than S3 Standard, matching infrequently accessed documents needing instant availability. Choosing between them depends on resilience: One Zone-IA sacrifices multi-AZ durability, and neither requires custom operational scripts.
- ✗
S3 Standard for all objects
Why it's wrong here
S3 Standard bills at the highest per-gigabyte rate and charges no retrieval fee, yet the workload's infrequent access pattern makes that premium unnecessary. It suits frequently accessed, latency-sensitive data. S3 Standard-IA matches the immediate-retrieval requirement at a lower storage rate, so Standard overspends without adding capability.
- ✗
S3 Glacier Deep Archive
Why it's wrong here
S3 Glacier Deep Archive retrieval takes hours, so archived documents cannot be served immediately on request — failing the stem's availability requirement. It is designed for long-term retention of data accessed once or twice yearly, where multi-hour restore latency is acceptable; that is the scenario where it would be the right choice.
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 |
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This SAA-C03 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 SAA-C03 exam.