- A
Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling
Why wrong: EC2 Auto Scaling is for horizontal scaling, not vertical scaling of a single HANA instance.
- B
AWS Lambda
Why wrong: Lambda is serverless compute; it cannot directly monitor memory or auto-scale EC2 instances.
- C
AWS Systems Manager
Why wrong: Systems Manager is for patch management, automation, not monitoring memory or auto-scaling.
- D
Amazon CloudWatch and AWS Auto Scaling
CloudWatch monitors memory (via agent) and Auto Scaling can adjust instance type or add instances.
Question 974 of 1,733
PAS-C01 Operations and Maintenance Practice Question
This PAS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of operations and maintenance. 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 running SAP HANA on AWS. The system administrator notices that the SAP HANA database is frequently running out of memory, causing performance degradation. Which AWS service should the administrator use to set up memory usage alarms and automate scaling of the SAP HANA instance?
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
✓
Amazon CloudWatch and AWS Auto Scaling
The correct answer is D: Amazon CloudWatch and AWS Auto Scaling. Amazon CloudWatch can monitor SAP HANA memory usage via custom metrics (e.g., by installing the CloudWatch agent on the EC2 instance and reporting memory utilization). When memory usage exceeds a threshold, CloudWatch triggers an alarm that invokes AWS Auto Scaling to perform a vertical scale-up action, such as changing the instance type to one with more memory. Option A (Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling) is incorrect because it typically operates at the instance group level for horizontal scaling, not for vertical scaling of a single SAP HANA instance. Option B (AWS Lambda) is a serverless compute service and not designed for monitoring or auto-scaling instances. Option C (AWS Systems Manager) is a management and automation service but lacks native capability to automatically scale EC2 instances based on memory metrics.
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.
- ✗
Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling
Why it's wrong here
EC2 Auto Scaling is for horizontal scaling, not vertical scaling of a single HANA instance.
- ✗
AWS Lambda
Why it's wrong here
Lambda is serverless compute; it cannot directly monitor memory or auto-scale EC2 instances.
- ✗
AWS Systems Manager
Why it's wrong here
Systems Manager is for patch management, automation, not monitoring memory or auto-scaling.
- ✓
Amazon CloudWatch and AWS Auto Scaling
Why this is correct
CloudWatch monitors memory (via agent) and Auto Scaling can adjust instance type or add instances.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
- Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
- Underline the problem statement mentally.
- 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
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
Quick reference
Cloud Service Model Comparison
| Model | You Manage | Provider Manages | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| IaaS | OS, runtime, apps, data | Hardware, hypervisor, networking | EC2, Azure VMs, GCP Compute Engine |
| PaaS | Apps and data | OS, runtime, middleware, hardware | Elastic Beanstalk, Azure App Service |
| SaaS | Data and settings only | Everything else | Microsoft 365, Salesforce, Workday |
| FaaS / Serverless | Function code only | Infra, scaling, runtime | Lambda, Azure Functions, Cloud Run |
| CaaS | Containers and apps | Kubernetes, OS, hardware | EKS, AKS, GKE |
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which PAS-C01 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
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Operations and Maintenance — study guide chapter
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Operations and Maintenance practice questions
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this PAS-C01 question test?
Operations and Maintenance — This question tests Operations and Maintenance — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Amazon CloudWatch and AWS Auto Scaling — The correct answer is D: Amazon CloudWatch and AWS Auto Scaling. Amazon CloudWatch can monitor SAP HANA memory usage via custom metrics (e.g., by installing the CloudWatch agent on the EC2 instance and reporting memory utilization). When memory usage exceeds a threshold, CloudWatch triggers an alarm that invokes AWS Auto Scaling to perform a vertical scale-up action, such as changing the instance type to one with more memory. Option A (Amazon EC2 Auto Scaling) is incorrect because it typically operates at the instance group level for horizontal scaling, not for vertical scaling of a single SAP HANA instance. Option B (AWS Lambda) is a serverless compute service and not designed for monitoring or auto-scaling instances. Option C (AWS Systems Manager) is a management and automation service but lacks native capability to automatically scale EC2 instances based on memory metrics.
What should I do if I get this PAS-C01 question wrong?
Identify which PAS-C01 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
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 →
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Last reviewed: Jun 20, 2026
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