PAS-C01 Operations and Maintenance Practice Question
This PAS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of operations and maintenance. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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.
An SAP administrator is troubleshooting why a user cannot stop a production EC2 instance. The IAM policy attached to the user is shown in the exhibit. Which action is likely causing the failure?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The instance does not have the tag Environment=production.
Option B is correct because the policy explicitly allows StartInstances and StopInstances only when the tag Environment equals production. If the instance is tagged differently (e.g., 'prod' instead of 'production'), the condition will fail. Option A is wrong because the policy allows ec2:Describe* for all resources. Option C is wrong because there is no explicit deny. Option D is wrong because the policy does allow StopInstances with the condition.
Key principle: ACLs process entries top to bottom and stop at the first match. Entry order and interface direction matter as much as the permit or deny statement.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✓
The instance does not have the tag Environment=production.
Why this is correct
The condition requires the tag to be exactly 'production'.
Related concept
Standard ACLs match source addresses.
✗
There is an explicit deny statement in another policy.
Why it's wrong here
No explicit deny is shown.
✗
The policy does not allow the StopInstances action.
Why it's wrong here
StopInstances is allowed with the condition.
✗
The policy does not include ec2:DescribeInstances action.
Why it's wrong here
The policy includes ec2:Describe* which covers DescribeInstances.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: ACLs stop at the first match
ACLs are processed top to bottom. The first matching entry wins, and an implicit deny usually exists at the end.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
No explicit deny is shown.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
ACL questions test precision: source, destination, protocol, port and direction. A generally correct ACL can still fail if it is applied on the wrong interface or in the wrong direction.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Standard ACLs match source addresses.
Extended ACLs can match source, destination, protocol and ports.
The first matching ACL entry is used.
There is usually an implicit deny at the end.
TExam Day Tips
→Check inbound versus outbound direction.
→Read the ACL from top to bottom.
→Look for a broader permit or deny above the intended line.
Key takeaway
ACLs process entries top to bottom and stop at the first match. Entry order and interface direction matter as much as the permit or deny statement.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Review ACL processing order, placement rules (standard near destination, extended near source), and inbound vs outbound direction. Study wildcard masks and implicit deny. Then practise related PAS-C01 ACL questions on filtering logic and placement.
Operations and Maintenance — This question tests Operations and Maintenance — Standard ACLs match source addresses..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The instance does not have the tag Environment=production. — Option B is correct because the policy explicitly allows StartInstances and StopInstances only when the tag Environment equals production. If the instance is tagged differently (e.g., 'prod' instead of 'production'), the condition will fail. Option A is wrong because the policy allows ec2:Describe* for all resources. Option C is wrong because there is no explicit deny. Option D is wrong because the policy does allow StopInstances with the condition.
What should I do if I get this PAS-C01 question wrong?
Review ACL processing order, placement rules (standard near destination, extended near source), and inbound vs outbound direction. Study wildcard masks and implicit deny. Then practise related PAS-C01 ACL questions on filtering logic and placement.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Standard ACLs match source addresses.
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Question Discussion
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