SAP-C02 Continuous Improvement for Existing Solutions Practice Question
A solutions architect notices that an Auto Scaling group's instances are continuously being terminated and replaced. CloudWatch logs show that health checks are failing due to high memory usage. The instances run a memory-intensive application. What should the architect do to improve stability?
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
✓
Create a CloudWatch alarm for memory utilization and attach it to a scaling policy.
Creating a CloudWatch alarm for memory utilization and attaching it to a scaling policy allows the Auto Scaling group to dynamically add instances when memory usage is high, preventing health check failures. Option A is incorrect because switching to memory-optimized instances may help but does not provide automatic scaling based on memory pressure. Option B is incorrect because scheduled scaling is for predictable traffic patterns, not for responding to real-time memory usage. Option C is incorrect because increasing the minimum number of instances does not address the root cause; it only adds more instances but does not adapt to varying memory demand.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Change the instance type to a memory-optimized family like R5.
Why it's wrong here
This reduces per-instance memory pressure but may not be cost-effective; scaling based on memory is more dynamic.
- ✗
Use a scheduled scaling policy to add instances during peak hours.
Why it's wrong here
Scheduled scaling is for predictable patterns, not for reactive scaling to memory usage.
- ✗
Increase the minimum number of instances in the Auto Scaling group.
Why it's wrong here
More instances don't fix memory pressure on each instance.
- ✓
Create a CloudWatch alarm for memory utilization and attach it to a scaling policy.
Why this is correct
Memory alarm triggers scaling before health check failures.
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