The answer is a rehost (lift-and-shift) to Amazon EC2 using AWS Application Migration Service, followed by right-sizing instances and purchasing Reserved Instances. This is the most cost-effective migration strategy for a multi-tier application because it directly addresses the core problem of underutilized on-premises infrastructure: by moving workloads as-is to the cloud and then right-sizing EC2 instances to match actual usage, you eliminate wasted capacity without the high upfront cost and complexity of rearchitecting. On the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Professional SAP-C02 exam, this scenario tests your ability to balance speed, cost, and risk in a migration—the common trap is assuming a full rearchitecture (like containers or serverless) is always cheaper, but for underutilized on-premises systems, lift-and-shift with right-sizing and Reserved Instances delivers immediate savings. Remember the mnemonic: LARS—Lift, Assess, Right-size, Save.
SAP-C02 Practice Question: Accelerate Workload Migration and Modernization
This SAP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of accelerate workload migration and modernization. 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. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. 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 company is migrating a multi-tier application to AWS. The application has a web tier, application tier, and database tier. The company wants to use AWS services to improve scalability and reduce costs. Currently, the on-premises infrastructure is underutilized. What is the most cost-effective migration strategy?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Rehost (lift-and-shift) to Amazon EC2 using AWS Application Migration Service, then right-size instances and purchase Reserved Instances.
Option A is correct because a lift-and-shift with right-sizing and reserved instances is cost-effective. Option B is wrong because rearchitecting is expensive and time-consuming. Option C is wrong because purchasing compute-heavy instances wastes money. Option D is wrong because moving to containers without analysis may not reduce costs.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Refactor the application to run on containers using Amazon EKS with Fargate.
Why it's wrong here
Refactoring is expensive and may not be necessary for cost savings.
✗
Replatform the web tier to AWS Elastic Beanstalk and the database to Amazon RDS.
Why it's wrong here
Replatforming requires code changes and may not be the most cost-effective initially.
✓
Rehost (lift-and-shift) to Amazon EC2 using AWS Application Migration Service, then right-size instances and purchase Reserved Instances.
Why this is correct
Lift-and-shift is fast, and reserved instances reduce costs.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Purchase compute-heavy EC2 instances to handle peak loads and use On-Demand pricing.
Why it's wrong here
Over-provisioning is costly; reserved instances with right-sizing are better.
Common exam traps
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.
Detailed technical explanation
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.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A startup's cloud architect reviews their monthly bill and notices costs are higher than expected for a long-running batch job. Switching from on-demand instances to Reserved Instances — or using Spot/Preemptible VMs — can reduce compute costs by up to 72 %. Questions like this test whether you understand the tradeoffs between commitment, flexibility, and cost across cloud pricing models.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which SAP-C02 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Accelerate Workload Migration and Modernization — This question tests Accelerate Workload Migration and Modernization — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Rehost (lift-and-shift) to Amazon EC2 using AWS Application Migration Service, then right-size instances and purchase Reserved Instances. — Option A is correct because a lift-and-shift with right-sizing and reserved instances is cost-effective. Option B is wrong because rearchitecting is expensive and time-consuming. Option C is wrong because purchasing compute-heavy instances wastes money. Option D is wrong because moving to containers without analysis may not reduce costs.
What should I do if I get this SAP-C02 question wrong?
Identify which SAP-C02 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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