The answer is to grant the partner’s AWS account access via a bucket policy. This is the correct approach because a bucket policy is a resource-based policy that explicitly defines which external AWS accounts or IAM principals can perform actions on the S3 bucket, allowing the partner to use their own credentials without needing to share access keys or create an IAM role in the company’s account. On the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Professional SAP-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of cross-account S3 bucket access and the distinction between resource-based policies (bucket policies) and identity-based policies (IAM roles), with a common trap being to default to using a pre-signed URL or IAM role, which would require the partner to assume a role rather than use their own credentials. Remember the key rule: for direct cross-account access where the external user authenticates with their own account, a bucket policy is the simplest and most secure method. Memory tip: “Bucket policy for external identity, IAM role for internal delegation.”
SAP-C02 Design for New Solutions Practice Question
This SAP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of design for new solutions. 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 wants to share a large dataset stored in Amazon S3 with a partner who has their own AWS account. The partner needs to access the data using their own account credentials. Which approach should the company use?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Grant the partner's AWS account access via a bucket policy.
Bucket policies can grant cross-account access to a partner's AWS account. The partner can then access the bucket using their own credentials.
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 S3 cross-region replication.
Why it's wrong here
Replication copies objects, but does not grant access.
✓
Grant the partner's AWS account access via a bucket policy.
Why this is correct
A bucket policy can grant cross-account access to the partner's account.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Create a pre-signed URL for the partner.
Why it's wrong here
Pre-signed URLs are for temporary access, not for using partner's own credentials.
✗
Provide the partner with an IAM user in the company's account.
Why it's wrong here
This would require sharing credentials, not using partner's own account.
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 media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
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.
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: Grant the partner's AWS account access via a bucket policy. — Bucket policies can grant cross-account access to a partner's AWS account. The partner can then access the bucket using their own credentials.
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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