- A
Use Amazon Kinesis Data Streams to ingest events, process them in real time with Amazon Kinesis Data Analytics using SQL, and write results to DynamoDB.
Kinesis Data Analytics provides low-latency real-time processing; integrates well with Kinesis Streams and DynamoDB.
- B
Use Amazon Kinesis Data Firehose to ingest events, transform data with Lambda, and deliver to DynamoDB.
Why wrong: Firehose delivers data in batches with some latency (60 seconds minimum), not real-time processing.
- C
Use Amazon Kinesis Data Streams to ingest events, use AWS Lambda to process each event, and write results to DynamoDB.
Why wrong: Lambda may struggle with 100,000 events per second and strict latency requirements; concurrency limits and cold starts could be issues.
- D
Use Amazon MSK (Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka) to ingest events, process them with Apache Spark Streaming on Amazon EMR, and write to DynamoDB.
Why wrong: EMR adds operational overhead; Spark Streaming may not achieve sub-second latency.
Quick Answer
The correct choice is Amazon Kinesis Data Streams paired with Kinesis Data Analytics using SQL, because this combination provides the managed ingestion and sub-second processing needed for real-time streaming analytics with Kinesis Data Analytics. Kinesis Data Streams scales to handle 100,000 events per second through shard-level partitioning, while Kinesis Data Analytics performs low-latency SQL transformations on the stream before writing results directly to DynamoDB, all within the required <1 second latency. On the SAP-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of managed streaming services versus self-managed frameworks like Apache Flink on EMR—a common trap is choosing Kinesis Data Firehose, which lacks sub-second processing and cannot write directly to DynamoDB. Remember the key constraint: the requirement for real-time, sub-second latency eliminates Firehose and Lambda-based solutions. Memory tip: think “Streams for speed, Analytics for SQL, DynamoDB for storage”—the three S’s of real-time recommendations.
SAP-C02 Design for New Solutions Practice Question
This SAP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of design for new solutions. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 global e-commerce company is designing a new recommendation engine on AWS. The engine processes user behavior data (clicks, purchases) from multiple sources in real time and updates recommendations stored in Amazon DynamoDB. The data stream can reach 100,000 events per second. The solution must be highly available and process events with minimal latency (< 1 second). The company wants to use a managed streaming service and a real-time processing framework. Which solution should a Solutions Architect recommend?
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
Use Amazon Kinesis Data Streams to ingest events, process them in real time with Amazon Kinesis Data Analytics using SQL, and write results to DynamoDB.
Amazon Kinesis Data Streams can ingest up to 100,000 events per second with shard-level scaling, and Kinesis Data Analytics (SQL) provides sub-second processing latency for real-time transformations. Writing directly to DynamoDB from the analytics application meets the <1 second latency requirement while maintaining high availability through Kinesis's built-in replication across three Availability Zones.
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.
- ✓
Use Amazon Kinesis Data Streams to ingest events, process them in real time with Amazon Kinesis Data Analytics using SQL, and write results to DynamoDB.
Why this is correct
Kinesis Data Analytics provides low-latency real-time processing; integrates well with Kinesis Streams and DynamoDB.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use Amazon Kinesis Data Firehose to ingest events, transform data with Lambda, and deliver to DynamoDB.
Why it's wrong here
Firehose delivers data in batches with some latency (60 seconds minimum), not real-time processing.
- ✗
Use Amazon Kinesis Data Streams to ingest events, use AWS Lambda to process each event, and write results to DynamoDB.
Why it's wrong here
Lambda may struggle with 100,000 events per second and strict latency requirements; concurrency limits and cold starts could be issues.
- ✗
Use Amazon MSK (Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka) to ingest events, process them with Apache Spark Streaming on Amazon EMR, and write to DynamoDB.
Why it's wrong here
EMR adds operational overhead; Spark Streaming may not achieve sub-second latency.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse Kinesis Data Firehose's near-real-time delivery (60-second buffer) with true real-time streaming, or assume Lambda can handle high-throughput streaming workloads without considering concurrency and latency limitations.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Kinesis Data Analytics SQL uses a continuous query engine that processes data in-memory with millisecond-level checkpointing, enabling real-time aggregations and filtering without the cold-start delays of Lambda or the batch micro-batching of Spark Streaming. The service automatically scales the number of in-application streams (similar to Kinesis shards) based on the incoming data rate, and it integrates directly with DynamoDB via the 'INSERT INTO' SQL statement using the Kinesis Analytics DynamoDB sink connector.
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.
TExam Day Tips
- 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
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
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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Design for New Solutions — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SAP-C02 question test?
Design for New Solutions — This question tests Design for New Solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use Amazon Kinesis Data Streams to ingest events, process them in real time with Amazon Kinesis Data Analytics using SQL, and write results to DynamoDB. — Amazon Kinesis Data Streams can ingest up to 100,000 events per second with shard-level scaling, and Kinesis Data Analytics (SQL) provides sub-second processing latency for real-time transformations. Writing directly to DynamoDB from the analytics application meets the <1 second latency requirement while maintaining high availability through Kinesis's built-in replication across three Availability Zones.
What should I do if I get this SAP-C02 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
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.
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