This SAA-C03 practice question tests your understanding of design cost-optimized architectures. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. A key principle to apply: aWS Compute Optimizer provides rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instances.. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A test environment has EC2 instances that are oversized based on CPU, memory, and network utilisation. Which AWS service should identify rightsizing recommendations? The design must avoid adding custom operational scripts.
AWS DataSync
Why wrong: DataSync transfers data and does not recommend compute sizes.
AWS Shield
Why wrong: Shield protects against DDoS and does not analyse instance sizing.
AWS Artifact
Why wrong: Artifact provides compliance reports and agreements, not rightsizing recommendations.
AWS Compute Optimizer
Compute Optimizer analyses utilisation metrics and recommends rightsizing for supported resources.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
AWS Compute Optimizer
AWS Compute Optimizer uses machine learning to analyze historical utilization metrics (CPU, memory, network) and generates rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instances, including instance type changes and downsizing opportunities. It operates without requiring custom scripts, as it leverages existing CloudWatch metrics and optionally the Compute Optimizer agent for enhanced memory and disk metrics.
Key principle: AWS Compute Optimizer provides rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instances.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
AWS DataSync
Why it's wrong here
DataSync transfers data and does not recommend compute sizes.
AWS Shield
Why it's wrong here
Shield protects against DDoS and does not analyse instance sizing.
AWS Artifact
Why it's wrong here
Artifact provides compliance reports and agreements, not rightsizing recommendations.
AWS Compute Optimizer
Why this is correct
Compute Optimizer analyses utilisation metrics and recommends rightsizing for supported resources.
Related concept
AWS Compute Optimizer provides rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instances.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates may confuse AWS Compute Optimizer with AWS Trusted Advisor, which also provides cost optimization checks but does not offer the same granular, ML-driven rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instance types.
Detailed technical explanation
Compute Optimizer ingests CloudWatch metrics at 5-minute granularity (or 1-minute with detailed monitoring) and applies a machine learning model trained on millions of AWS workloads to identify over-provisioned instances. It also supports custom memory and disk metrics via the CloudWatch agent, enabling rightsizing for workloads where memory pressure is a key factor. A real-world scenario is a production web server running a c5.4xlarge with 10% average CPU and 20% memory utilization; Compute Optimizer would recommend downsizing to a c5.xlarge, potentially saving 75% in compute costs.
Key takeaway
AWS Compute Optimizer provides rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instances.
Real-world example
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
What to study next
Review aWS Compute Optimizer provides rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instances., then practise related SAA-C03 questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
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FAQ
Design Cost-Optimized Architectures — This question tests Design Cost-Optimized Architectures — AWS Compute Optimizer provides rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instances..
The correct answer is: AWS Compute Optimizer — AWS Compute Optimizer uses machine learning to analyze historical utilization metrics (CPU, memory, network) and generates rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instances, including instance type changes and downsizing opportunities. It operates without requiring custom scripts, as it leverages existing CloudWatch metrics and optionally the Compute Optimizer agent for enhanced memory and disk metrics.
Review aWS Compute Optimizer provides rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instances., then practise related SAA-C03 questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
AWS Compute Optimizer provides rightsizing recommendations for EC2 instances.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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