- A
Manual scaling
Why wrong: Manual scaling requires human intervention and is not automatic.
- B
Scheduled scaling
Why wrong: Scheduled scaling is for predictable traffic patterns, not sudden spikes.
- C
Target tracking scaling policies
Target tracking automatically adjusts capacity to maintain a target metric value.
- D
Simple scaling policies
Why wrong: Simple scaling requires cooldown periods and may not handle spikes well.
Question 1,247 of 1,746
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 company is designing a new web application that will run on Amazon EC2 instances behind an Application Load Balancer. The application must handle sudden spikes in traffic without manual intervention. Which scaling approach should they use?
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
✓
Target tracking scaling policies
Target tracking scaling policies are the correct choice because they allow Auto Scaling to automatically adjust capacity based on a target value for a specific CloudWatch metric (e.g., average CPU utilization or request count per target). This approach handles sudden traffic spikes without manual intervention by continuously monitoring the metric and adding or removing EC2 instances to maintain the target, making it ideal for unpredictable workloads.
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.
- ✗
Manual scaling
Why it's wrong here
Manual scaling requires human intervention and is not automatic.
- ✗
Scheduled scaling
Why it's wrong here
Scheduled scaling is for predictable traffic patterns, not sudden spikes.
- ✓
Target tracking scaling policies
Why this is correct
Target tracking automatically adjusts capacity to maintain a target metric value.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Simple scaling policies
Why it's wrong here
Simple scaling requires cooldown periods and may not handle spikes well.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse simple scaling policies with target tracking, assuming any policy based on CloudWatch alarms is sufficient, but simple scaling's cooldown period and single-step adjustment make it inadequate for sudden, sustained spikes that require rapid, continuous scaling.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Target tracking scaling policies use a predefined metric (e.g., ALBRequestCountPerTarget) and a target value (e.g., 1000 requests per target) to dynamically adjust the desired capacity. Under the hood, AWS Auto Scaling calculates the required number of instances based on the current metric value and the target, then issues a SetDesiredCapacity call, which can add or remove instances in a single step, avoiding the step-by-step delays of simple scaling. In a real-world scenario, if traffic spikes from 10,000 to 100,000 requests per second, target tracking can add dozens of instances within minutes, while simple scaling would require multiple alarm breaches and cooldown periods, risking application latency or downtime.
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 cloud solutions architect for a retail company is evaluating services for a new workload. The correct answer here reflects best practice for the specific scenario described — not a general cloud recommendation. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Cloud exam questions reward reading the constraint carefully: the same technology can be right or wrong depending on the use case.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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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: Target tracking scaling policies — Target tracking scaling policies are the correct choice because they allow Auto Scaling to automatically adjust capacity based on a target value for a specific CloudWatch metric (e.g., average CPU utilization or request count per target). This approach handles sudden traffic spikes without manual intervention by continuously monitoring the metric and adding or removing EC2 instances to maintain the target, making it ideal for unpredictable workloads.
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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