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Question 917 of 1,733

Technology →hardMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped

PAS-C01 Technology Practice Question

This PAS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of technology. 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.

An SAP application on EC2 is experiencing high CPU utilization. The instance is part of an Auto Scaling group. The CPU metric shows spikes every hour. Which scaling policy should be used to preemptively scale out before the spike?

A
Simple scaling policy based on CPU > 80%
Why wrong: Simple scaling reacts after the threshold is breached, not before.
B
Step scaling policy with multiple thresholds
Why wrong: Step scaling also reacts to alarms, not preemptively.
C
Target tracking scaling policy with CPU target 75%
Why wrong: Target tracking adjusts based on current load, not predictive.
D
Scheduled scaling policy to add capacity just before the spike
Scheduled scaling can anticipate predictable patterns.

Full breakdown with real-world context →

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

✓

Scheduled scaling policy to add capacity just before the spike

Option D is correct because the CPU spikes are predictable (every hour), making a scheduled scaling policy the ideal choice to preemptively add capacity just before the spike occurs. Scheduled scaling allows you to define a specific time to increase the desired capacity of the Auto Scaling group, ensuring resources are available before the load increases, rather than reacting after the spike has started.

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.

✗
Simple scaling policy based on CPU > 80%
Why it's wrong here
Simple scaling reacts after the threshold is breached, not before.
✗
Step scaling policy with multiple thresholds
Why it's wrong here
Step scaling also reacts to alarms, not preemptively.
✗
Target tracking scaling policy with CPU target 75%
Why it's wrong here
Target tracking adjusts based on current load, not predictive.
✓
Scheduled scaling policy to add capacity just before the spike
Why this is correct
Scheduled scaling can anticipate predictable patterns.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.

Common exam traps

Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword

The trap here is that candidates often choose reactive policies (like target tracking or step scaling) because they focus on CPU thresholds, missing the key requirement for preemptive scaling based on a predictable, time-based pattern.

Detailed technical explanation

How to think about this question

Scheduled scaling policies are defined using cron expressions or specific recurrence patterns (e.g., every hour at :55) to modify the Auto Scaling group's desired capacity, min size, or max size. Under the hood, AWS CloudWatch Events triggers the scaling action at the specified time, allowing the EC2 instances to launch and become ready (e.g., pass health checks) before the CPU spike hits. This is particularly useful for predictable workloads like SAP batch jobs or end-of-hour reporting, where the lead time for instance initialization must be accounted for in the schedule.

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

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.

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.

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FAQ

Questions learners often ask

What does this PAS-C01 question test?

Technology — This question tests Technology — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..

What is the correct answer to this question?

The correct answer is: Scheduled scaling policy to add capacity just before the spike — Option D is correct because the CPU spikes are predictable (every hour), making a scheduled scaling policy the ideal choice to preemptively add capacity just before the spike occurs. Scheduled scaling allows you to define a specific time to increase the desired capacity of the Auto Scaling group, ensuring resources are available before the load increases, rather than reacting after the spike has started.

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.

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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.