SAP-C02 Practice Question: Accelerate Workload Migration and Modernization
A company is migrating a legacy .NET application to AWS. The application uses Windows authentication and has a dependency on a local file system. The company wants to minimize code changes. Which combination of services should be used?
⚠ Common exam trap
SAP-C02 often tests the EFS-vs-FSx distinction — candidates pick EFS because it is the default managed file service, forgetting EFS is NFS-only and cannot serve Windows authentication.
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 EC2 Windows instances with Amazon FSx for Windows File Server
The application uses Windows authentication and depends on a local file system, so the target must support native Windows ACLs and SMB. Amazon EC2 Windows instances provide the Windows OS, and Amazon FSx for Windows File Server provides a fully managed SMB file system with Active Directory integration, preserving Windows authentication and file semantics with minimal code changes.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
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Amazon EC2 Windows instances with Amazon EFS
Why it's wrong here
Amazon EFS is Linux-only NFS; Windows instances cannot mount it natively, so the local file-system dependency remains unmet. EFS suits Linux workloads needing shared POSIX storage; Windows authentication and file shares require FSx for Windows File Server.
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AWS Elastic Beanstalk with Amazon EFS
Why it's wrong here
Elastic Beanstalk with Amazon EFS fails because EFS speaks NFS and cannot serve the Windows file system dependency; Beanstalk also abstracts the Windows authentication configuration. Beanstalk suits Linux or .NET Core web apps needing managed deployment, not legacy Windows authentication with SMB file shares.
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Amazon Lightsail with local instance storage
Why it's wrong here
Lightsail instance storage is ephemeral and instance-bound, so it cannot present a shared Windows file system across instances, and Lightsail lacks domain integration for Windows authentication. Lightsail suits simple, single-instance workloads, not legacy .NET applications requiring persistent SMB storage and Active Directory.
- ✓
Amazon EC2 Windows instances with Amazon FSx for Windows File Server
Why this is correct
EC2 Windows instances preserve Windows authentication (Kerberos/NTLM) unchanged, while Amazon FSx for Windows File Server provides SMB shares with NTFS ACLs, replacing the local file system dependency. Together they satisfy the minimal-code-change constraint because the .NET application sees the same authentication and file path semantics.
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JA
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 SAP-C02 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 SAP-C02 exam.