- A
AWS Glue with streaming ETL
Why wrong: Glue is for batch and streaming ETL, but not designed to capture changes.
- B
AWS Lambda with database polling
Why wrong: Polling is less efficient and real-time; DMS is better.
- C
Amazon Kinesis Data Streams with a custom producer
Why wrong: Requires custom implementation; DMS is simpler.
- D
AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) with change data capture (CDC)
DMS can capture ongoing changes from RDS.
Question 1,047 of 1,746
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 is designing a solution to capture changes from an Amazon RDS database and stream them to a data lake. Which AWS service should be used to capture database changes in real time?
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
✓
AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) with change data capture (CDC)
AWS DMS with change data capture (CDC) is the correct service because it is specifically designed to capture ongoing changes from source databases (including Amazon RDS) in near real time and replicate them to targets like Amazon S3 (data lake). DMS reads the database transaction logs (e.g., MySQL binlog, PostgreSQL WAL) to capture inserts, updates, and deletes without requiring application-level polling or custom code, making it the most appropriate managed solution for streaming database changes to a data lake.
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.
- ✗
AWS Glue with streaming ETL
Why it's wrong here
Glue is for batch and streaming ETL, but not designed to capture changes.
- ✗
AWS Lambda with database polling
Why it's wrong here
Polling is less efficient and real-time; DMS is better.
- ✗
Amazon Kinesis Data Streams with a custom producer
Why it's wrong here
Requires custom implementation; DMS is simpler.
- ✓
AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) with change data capture (CDC)
Why this is correct
DMS can capture ongoing changes from RDS.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse AWS DMS with other streaming services like Kinesis or Glue, not realizing that DMS is the only AWS service that natively captures database transaction log changes without requiring custom code or polling.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
AWS DMS CDC works by continuously reading the source database's transaction logs (e.g., MySQL binary logs, PostgreSQL write-ahead logs, Oracle redo logs) and applying changes to the target in near real time, with typical latency of seconds. A key subtlety is that DMS CDC requires the source database to have binary logging enabled and the logs retained long enough to prevent data loss during replication interruptions. In real-world scenarios, DMS CDC is often used to migrate live databases with minimal downtime or to feed a data lake for analytics while the source remains operational.
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
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.
Quick reference
AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison
| Storage Class | Min Duration | Retrieval | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3 Standard | None | Immediate | Frequently accessed data |
| S3 Standard-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Infrequent access, rapid retrieval |
| S3 One Zone-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Non-critical infrequent data |
| S3 Intelligent-Tiering | None | Immediate–hours | Unknown or changing access patterns |
| S3 Glacier Instant | 90 days | Milliseconds | Archive with instant retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Flexible | 90 days | Minutes–hours | Archive, flexible retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Deep Archive | 180 days | Hours | Long-term compliance archive |
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: AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) with change data capture (CDC) — AWS DMS with change data capture (CDC) is the correct service because it is specifically designed to capture ongoing changes from source databases (including Amazon RDS) in near real time and replicate them to targets like Amazon S3 (data lake). DMS reads the database transaction logs (e.g., MySQL binlog, PostgreSQL WAL) to capture inserts, updates, and deletes without requiring application-level polling or custom code, making it the most appropriate managed solution for streaming database changes to a data lake.
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.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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