The correct combination is to create a metric filter on the log group to count occurrences of the error pattern, then set a CloudWatch alarm on that metric to trigger an SNS notification. This works because a metric filter scans incoming log events for a specified pattern—such as a particular error string—and increments a custom metric each time the pattern is found. The CloudWatch alarm then monitors that metric against a defined threshold (e.g., greater than zero for one evaluation period) and, when breached, publishes a message to an SNS topic, which delivers the alert via email, SMS, or other endpoints. On the AWS Certified SysOps Administrator Associate SOA-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of the CloudWatch Logs-to-alarm pipeline, often appearing as a two-step process where candidates mistakenly try to set an alarm directly on a log group or use CloudWatch Logs Insights instead of a metric filter. A common trap is forgetting that metric filters must be created before the alarm can reference the resulting metric. Memory tip: think "Filter, then Alarm" — you cannot alarm on raw logs, only on the metrics they produce.
SOA-C02 Monitoring, Logging, and Remediation Practice Question
This SOA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of monitoring, logging, and remediation. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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 has an application running on EC2 instances that sends logs to CloudWatch Logs. The operations team wants to receive a notification when a specific error pattern appears in the logs. Which combination of steps should the team take? (Select TWO.)
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Create a CloudWatch alarm on the metric to trigger an SNS notification.
Option A is correct because a CloudWatch alarm can be configured to trigger an SNS notification when a metric crosses a defined threshold. In this scenario, the metric is derived from a metric filter that counts occurrences of the specific error pattern in the log group. The alarm monitors that metric and sends an SNS notification to subscribed endpoints, such as the operations team's email addresses, providing the required alert.
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.
✓
Create a CloudWatch alarm on the metric to trigger an SNS notification.
Why this is correct
An alarm on the metric can send notifications via SNS.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Enable CloudTrail to capture the log events and send to S3.
Why it's wrong here
CloudTrail records API calls, not application log patterns.
✗
Create an SNS topic and subscribe the operations team's email addresses.
Why it's wrong here
SNS topic alone does not trigger on log patterns; it needs an alarm.
✗
Create a subscription filter to send logs to Lambda for analysis.
Why it's wrong here
Subscription filters are for real-time processing, not for CloudWatch alarms.
✓
Create a metric filter on the log group to count occurrences of the error pattern.
Why this is correct
A metric filter extracts metric data from log events.
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 select Option D (subscription filter to Lambda) thinking it is necessary for custom processing, but the combination of a metric filter and CloudWatch alarm directly provides the notification without additional compute resources.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
CloudWatch Logs metric filters are evaluated in near real-time as log events are ingested, and they emit a metric to CloudWatch Metrics. A CloudWatch alarm can then monitor that metric with a static threshold (e.g., > 0 for one evaluation period) and transition to ALARM state, triggering an SNS action. This pattern is commonly used for operational alerting, such as detecting 'ERROR' or 'FATAL' strings in application logs, and avoids the latency and complexity of a Lambda-based solution.
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.
Monitoring, Logging, and Remediation — This question tests Monitoring, Logging, and Remediation — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Create a CloudWatch alarm on the metric to trigger an SNS notification. — Option A is correct because a CloudWatch alarm can be configured to trigger an SNS notification when a metric crosses a defined threshold. In this scenario, the metric is derived from a metric filter that counts occurrences of the specific error pattern in the log group. The alarm monitors that metric and sends an SNS notification to subscribed endpoints, such as the operations team's email addresses, providing the required alert.
What should I do if I get this SOA-C02 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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Question Discussion
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