SAA-C03 Design High-Performing Architectures Practice Question
A startup runs a static website hosted on Amazon S3. The website is accessed globally, and users in Europe report slow load times. The company wants to improve performance for these users without changing the website's code. Which AWS service should the company use?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse S3 Transfer Acceleration with CloudFront; Transfer Acceleration speeds up uploads to S3, not downloads for website users.
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 an S3 origin.
CloudFront caches static content at edge locations worldwide, bringing it closer to users. For a static website on S3, creating a CloudFront distribution with the S3 bucket as the origin is the standard solution to reduce latency for global users. It requires no changes to the website code, only configuration of the distribution and updating DNS to point to CloudFront.
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 CloudFront with an S3 origin.
Why this is correct
CloudFront is a content delivery network that caches content at edge locations worldwide. By distributing the S3-hosted static website through CloudFront, users in Europe are served from nearby edge locations, reducing latency and improving load times. This requires no code changes, only a CloudFront distribution pointing to the S3 bucket.
- ✗
AWS Global Accelerator with an S3 endpoint.
Why it's wrong here
Global Accelerator improves performance by routing traffic over the AWS global network to endpoints like ALBs, NLBs, or EC2 instances. It does not support S3 buckets as endpoints. Therefore, it cannot be used to accelerate access to a static website hosted on S3. This option is not applicable.
- ✗
AWS Direct Connect.
Why it's wrong here
Direct Connect provides a dedicated network connection from on-premises to AWS, improving bandwidth and reducing cost for hybrid workloads. It does not help global users access a public static website faster. It is not a content delivery solution and would not address the latency experienced by European users.
- ✗
Amazon S3 Transfer Acceleration.
Why it's wrong here
S3 Transfer Acceleration speeds up uploads and downloads to S3 by using AWS edge locations, but it is primarily designed for uploading large objects to S3, not for serving static website content to end users. It does not cache content at the edge, so it does not reduce latency for repeated website visits.
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 and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Amazon Web Services exam blueprint
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.