The answer is Provisioned IOPS SSD (io2) volumes, as they deliver the highest IOPS for SAP HANA storage on AWS. This is because io2 volumes are engineered for latency-sensitive, I/O-intensive workloads, offering up to 256,000 IOPS per volume with 99.999% durability, which directly meets SAP HANA’s demand for consistent, high-throughput database performance. On the AWS Certified SAP on AWS Specialty PAS-C01 exam, this question tests your ability to distinguish between storage options for HANA workloads, often appearing as a straightforward scenario where you must avoid the trap of choosing gp3 volumes (which offer lower maximum IOPS per volume) or instance store (which lacks persistence). A common memory tip is to associate “io2” with “I/O to the max” — think of the “2” as doubling down on IOPS and durability for your HANA database.
PAS-C01 Design of SAP Workloads on AWS Practice Question
This PAS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of design of sap workloads on aws. 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 migrating its SAP ERP system to AWS and wants to use storage that offers the highest IOPS for the SAP HANA database. Which storage option should be used?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Provisioned IOPS SSD (io2) volumes
For SAP HANA databases on AWS, the highest IOPS is achieved using Provisioned IOPS SSD (io2) volumes, which are designed for latency-sensitive, I/O-intensive workloads. io2 volumes offer up to 256,000 IOPS per volume with 99.999% durability, making them the optimal choice for SAP HANA's demanding performance requirements.
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.
✗
General Purpose SSD (gp3) volumes
Why it's wrong here
gp3 has lower maximum IOPS compared to io2.
✓
Provisioned IOPS SSD (io2) volumes
Why this is correct
io2 volumes provide the highest IOPS and are recommended for production SAP HANA databases.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Instance Store volumes
Why it's wrong here
Instance Store is ephemeral and data is lost on instance stop, not suitable for persistent database storage.
✗
Throughput Optimized HDD (st1) volumes
Why it's wrong here
st1 is for throughput-intensive workloads, not for database IOPS.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse General Purpose SSD (gp3) as sufficient for SAP HANA due to its lower cost, but fail to recognize that SAP HANA's certified configurations on AWS explicitly require io1/io2 volumes for production workloads to meet the strict IOPS and latency SLAs.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
SAP HANA is an in-memory database that relies on persistent storage for savepoints and log writes, requiring extremely low latency and high IOPS for log volumes. io2 volumes leverage a multi-tenant architecture with a dedicated IOPS SLA, and when combined with EBS-optimized instances and multi-attach for SAP HANA scale-out, they can deliver consistent sub-millisecond latency. In real-world scenarios, SAP HANA's log write latency must stay below 1 ms to avoid performance degradation, and io2 volumes are the only EBS option that guarantees this under sustained load.
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.
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.
Design of SAP Workloads on AWS — This question tests Design of SAP Workloads on AWS — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Provisioned IOPS SSD (io2) volumes — For SAP HANA databases on AWS, the highest IOPS is achieved using Provisioned IOPS SSD (io2) volumes, which are designed for latency-sensitive, I/O-intensive workloads. io2 volumes offer up to 256,000 IOPS per volume with 99.999% durability, making them the optimal choice for SAP HANA's demanding performance requirements.
What should I do if I get this PAS-C01 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.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
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.
Question Discussion
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.