PAS-C01 Operations and Maintenance Practice Question
A company runs SAP on AWS and wants to automate the patching of SAP application servers. The servers are in an Auto Scaling group. Which THREE steps should be included in the automation?
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
✓
Update the Auto Scaling group's launch configuration or launch template to use the new AMI.
Options A, B, and D are correct because the recommended approach for patching SAP application servers in an Auto Scaling group is to use immutable updates: create a new AMI with patches (B), update the launch configuration/template to reference the new AMI (A), and then perform an instance refresh to gradually replace instances (D). This minimizes downtime. Option C (using Systems Manager to patch running instances) is not recommended for Auto Scaling groups because it can lead to inconsistent state and doesn't benefit from the rolling update mechanism. Option E (terminating all instances at once) would cause downtime.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Update the Auto Scaling group's launch configuration or launch template to use the new AMI.
Why this is correct
This ensures new instances use the patched AMI.
- ✓
Create a new AMI with the patches applied.
Why this is correct
A patched AMI ensures new instances are up-to-date.
- ✗
Use AWS Systems Manager to apply patches to running instances.
Why it's wrong here
This can cause downtime if instances reboot simultaneously.
- ✓
Perform an instance refresh to gradually replace instances.
Why this is correct
Instance refresh replaces instances in a rolling fashion, maintaining availability.
- ✗
Terminate all existing instances at once.
Why it's wrong here
Terminating all instances causes complete downtime.
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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.