PAS-C01 Migration Practice Question
A company is migrating an on-premises Oracle database to Amazon RDS for Oracle. The database is 2 TB in size and has a 24-hour migration window. The company has a 1 Gbps dedicated connection to AWS. Which migration approach minimizes downtime?
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 AWS Database Migration Service (AWS DMS) with ongoing replication from the on-premises database to Amazon RDS.
AWS DMS with ongoing replication allows continuous data synchronization, minimizing downtime by enabling a cutover with minimal data loss. Option A is wrong because AWS SCT is for schema conversion, not data migration. Option B is wrong because a native Oracle export/import requires downtime for the export and import operations. Option D is wrong because AWS DataSync is for file-based data, not databases.
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 AWS Schema Conversion Tool (AWS SCT) to convert the schema and AWS DMS for full load only.
Why it's wrong here
AWS SCT converts schema but does not migrate data; full load alone requires downtime.
- ✗
Use native Oracle Data Pump export and import to transfer the database over the dedicated connection.
Why it's wrong here
Native export/import requires significant downtime for both export and import.
- ✓
Use AWS Database Migration Service (AWS DMS) with ongoing replication from the on-premises database to Amazon RDS.
Why this is correct
Ongoing replication minimizes downtime by keeping the target in sync until cutover.
- ✗
Use AWS DataSync to copy the database files to Amazon S3, then restore to Amazon RDS.
Why it's wrong here
AWS DataSync is for file storage, not live database migration; restore from S3 still requires downtime.
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Same concept, more angles
7 more ways this is tested on PAS-C01
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. A company is migrating a critical Oracle database to Amazon RDS for Oracle. They need to minimize downtime and ensure data consistency. Which AWS service should they use to perform an online migration with minimal impact?
easy- A.AWS Direct Connect
- ✓ B.AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
- C.AWS Snowball
- D.Amazon S3 Transfer Acceleration
Why B: AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) supports ongoing replication and can perform live migrations with minimal downtime. AWS Snowball is for offline data transfer. S3 Transfer Acceleration speeds up uploads to S3. Direct Connect establishes dedicated network connections but is not a migration service.
Variation 2. A company is migrating an on-premises Oracle database to Amazon RDS for Oracle. The database size is 500 GB, and the network bandwidth between the on-premises data center and AWS is 100 Mbps. The migration must minimize downtime. Which AWS service should the company use for the initial data load?
easy- ✓ A.AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
- B.AWS Snowball
- C.AWS Direct Connect
- D.AWS S3 Transfer Acceleration
Why A: AWS DMS can perform a full load and then continuously replicate changes to minimize downtime. AWS Snowball is for large offline data transfer, but the network might be sufficient; however, DMS is the recommended migration service for databases. Option A (AWS Database Migration Service) is correct because it supports ongoing replication to reduce downtime. Option B (AWS Snowball) is for offline transfer, not minimal downtime with continuous replication. Option C (AWS S3 Transfer Acceleration) is for file transfers, not database migration. Option D (AWS Direct Connect) improves network but does not perform data migration.
Variation 3. A company is migrating an on-premises Oracle database to Amazon RDS for Oracle. The database is 2 TB and has a 4-hour maintenance window. Which AWS service should be used to minimize downtime during the migration?
easy- ✓ A.AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
- B.AWS Server Migration Service (SMS)
- C.AWS Application Migration Service (MGN)
- D.AWS DataSync
Why A: AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) supports ongoing replication with minimal downtime by using change data capture (CDC) to synchronize source and target databases continuously. Option B, AWS Server Migration Service (SMS), is designed for migrating entire server volumes, not databases. Option C, AWS Application Migration Service (MGN), automates server migration but is not optimized for database replication. Option D, AWS DataSync, is for transferring large file sets to or from AWS storage services, not for live database replication.
Variation 4. A company is migrating an on-premises Oracle database to Amazon RDS for Oracle. The database is 2 TB in size and has a 4-hour maintenance window. Which AWS service should be used to minimize downtime during the migration?
medium- A.AWS Server Migration Service
- ✓ B.AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
- C.AWS Data Pipeline
- D.AWS Snowball
Why B: AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) supports ongoing replication to minimize downtime. Option A (AWS Server Migration Service) is for server-level migrations. Option C (AWS Data Pipeline) is for data processing. Option D (AWS Snowball) is for large data transfers but not minimal downtime.
Variation 5. A company is migrating an on-premises Oracle database to Amazon RDS for Oracle. The database is 2 TB in size and has a 24-hour maintenance window. The migration must minimize downtime and support ongoing replication during the cutover. Which AWS service should be used for the migration?
medium- A.AWS Snowball Edge
- ✓ B.AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
- C.Amazon S3 Transfer Acceleration
- D.AWS Server Migration Service (SMS)
Why B: AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) supports ongoing replication from on-premises to RDS with minimal downtime, using change data capture (CDC) for continuous sync. Option A (AWS Snowball Edge) is for large data transfer but does not support ongoing replication. Option C (Amazon S3 Transfer Acceleration) speeds up uploads to S3 but does not directly migrate databases. Option D (AWS Server Migration Service) is for server-level migrations, not database-specific replication.
Variation 6. A company is migrating an on-premises Oracle database to Amazon RDS for Oracle. The database is 2 TB in size and has a high transaction rate. The migration must have minimal downtime. Which AWS service should be used for the migration?
medium- A.AWS Snowball Edge
- B.AWS Server Migration Service (SMS)
- C.AWS DataSync
- ✓ D.AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
Why D: AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) is the correct choice because it supports ongoing replication from the source Oracle database to Amazon RDS for Oracle, enabling minimal downtime during migration. Option A (AWS Snowball Edge) is incorrect because it is designed for large-scale offline data transfer, not for online replication with minimal downtime. Option B (AWS Server Migration Service) is for migrating on-premises servers to AWS, not databases. Option C (AWS DataSync) is used for file-based data transfers, not database migrations.
Variation 7. A company is migrating a critical Oracle database to Amazon RDS for Oracle. The database is 2 TB in size and has a high transaction rate. The migration must have minimal downtime. Which TWO AWS services or features should be used to achieve this? (Choose two.)
medium- A.AWS DataSync
- ✓ B.AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) with ongoing replication
- C.AWS Snowball
- D.AWS Server Migration Service (SMS)
- ✓ E.AWS Schema Conversion Tool (SCT)
Why B: AWS Database Migration Service (DMS) with ongoing replication (change data capture) is the correct approach for minimal downtime migration. AWS Schema Conversion Tool (SCT) is used for schema conversion, which is necessary when moving to RDS Oracle. Option A (AWS DataSync) is for file/object transfers, not suitable for database migration. Option C (AWS Snowball) is for large offline data transfer, not suitable for minimal downtime. Option D (AWS Server Migration Service) is for server migration, not databases.
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This PAS-C01 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 PAS-C01 exam.