- A
Set up Amazon CloudWatch Synthetics canaries to run from multiple AWS Regions and publish custom metrics. Create a CloudWatch alarm on the p90 latency metric.
CloudWatch Synthetics canaries execute scripts in AWS-managed Lambda functions across Regions, measuring latency and success. They can publish metrics to CloudWatch, and an alarm can be created on a percentile statistic like p90.
- B
Configure VPC Flow Logs on the Application Load Balancer and use Amazon CloudWatch Logs Insights to query for high-latency requests.
Why wrong: VPC Flow Logs capture network metadata (IPs, ports, packets) but not application-level latency or endpoint response times. They cannot measure p90 latency.
- C
Enable Amazon CloudWatch RUM (Real User Monitoring) on the client side and create a CloudWatch alarm on the Duration metric.
Why wrong: CloudWatch RUM captures real user data from web applications, but it requires client-side instrumentation (JavaScript). The requirement specifies monitoring from multiple geographic locations, not real users, and RUM does not run from managed locations.
- D
Use AWS CloudTrail to log API calls and set a CloudWatch alarm on the event count for errors.
Why wrong: CloudTrail records API activity, not endpoint latency or performance. It is not suitable for monitoring API response times.
Quick Answer
The correct approach is to set up Amazon CloudWatch Synthetics canaries from multiple AWS Regions and publish custom metrics, then create a CloudWatch alarm on the p90 latency metric. This works because CloudWatch Synthetics canaries are fully managed Node.js scripts that run on a schedule to monitor API latency from multiple regions without any custom code running on EC2, automatically capturing duration and latency metrics. The canaries can be configured to report p90 latency as a custom metric, and a CloudWatch alarm can then trigger when that value exceeds 2 seconds for two consecutive data points, satisfying the requirement for consecutive checks. On the AWS Certified SysOps Administrator Associate SOA-C02 exam, this question tests your understanding of managed monitoring services versus custom solutions—a common trap is reaching for EC2-based scripts or third-party tools, but Synthetics is the AWS-native answer that avoids any compute overhead. Remember the mnemonic: "Canaries catch latency from everywhere, no EC2 care."
SOA-C02 Monitoring, Logging, and Remediation Practice Question
This SOA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of monitoring, logging, and remediation. 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 runs a REST API on Amazon EC2 instances behind an Application Load Balancer. The SysOps administrator needs to monitor the API endpoint from multiple geographic locations and receive an alarm if the p90 latency exceeds 2 seconds for two consecutive checks. The solution must use AWS managed services and not require custom code running on EC2. Which approach should the administrator use?
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
Set up Amazon CloudWatch Synthetics canaries to run from multiple AWS Regions and publish custom metrics. Create a CloudWatch alarm on the p90 latency metric.
Amazon CloudWatch Synthetics canaries are AWS-managed Node.js scripts that run on a schedule to monitor endpoints from multiple AWS Regions, capturing metrics like duration and latency. By configuring canaries to report p90 latency as a custom metric, you can create a CloudWatch alarm that triggers when p90 exceeds 2 seconds for two consecutive data points, meeting all requirements without custom EC2 code.
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.
- ✓
Set up Amazon CloudWatch Synthetics canaries to run from multiple AWS Regions and publish custom metrics. Create a CloudWatch alarm on the p90 latency metric.
Why this is correct
CloudWatch Synthetics canaries execute scripts in AWS-managed Lambda functions across Regions, measuring latency and success. They can publish metrics to CloudWatch, and an alarm can be created on a percentile statistic like p90.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Configure VPC Flow Logs on the Application Load Balancer and use Amazon CloudWatch Logs Insights to query for high-latency requests.
Why it's wrong here
VPC Flow Logs capture network metadata (IPs, ports, packets) but not application-level latency or endpoint response times. They cannot measure p90 latency.
- ✗
Enable Amazon CloudWatch RUM (Real User Monitoring) on the client side and create a CloudWatch alarm on the Duration metric.
Why it's wrong here
CloudWatch RUM captures real user data from web applications, but it requires client-side instrumentation (JavaScript). The requirement specifies monitoring from multiple geographic locations, not real users, and RUM does not run from managed locations.
- ✗
Use AWS CloudTrail to log API calls and set a CloudWatch alarm on the event count for errors.
Why it's wrong here
CloudTrail records API activity, not endpoint latency or performance. It is not suitable for monitoring API response times.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may confuse VPC Flow Logs or CloudTrail with application-layer monitoring, but neither provides request-level latency metrics; CloudWatch Synthetics is the only AWS-managed service that can synthetically test an HTTP endpoint from multiple geographic locations and publish percentile latency metrics without custom EC2 code.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
CloudWatch Synthetics canaries use Puppeteer or Playwright to execute headless browser scripts that measure end-to-end latency, including DNS resolution, TCP handshake, TLS negotiation, and application response time. The canary publishes custom metrics to CloudWatch under the `CloudWatchSynthetics` namespace, where you can compute percentiles using metric math (e.g., `PERCENTILE(metric, 90)`). In a real-world scenario, deploying canaries in multiple Regions (e.g., us-east-1, eu-west-1, ap-southeast-1) allows you to detect regional latency issues, such as a degraded ALB in one Region, while the alarm's evaluation period of two consecutive checks prevents false positives from transient spikes.
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 healthcare organisation deploys an application with a public-facing web tier and a private database tier. The database subnet has no public IP and only accepts connections from the web tier's security group. Questions like this test whether you can design cloud network isolation using VNets/VPCs, subnets, and security group rules.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SOA-C02 question test?
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: Set up Amazon CloudWatch Synthetics canaries to run from multiple AWS Regions and publish custom metrics. Create a CloudWatch alarm on the p90 latency metric. — Amazon CloudWatch Synthetics canaries are AWS-managed Node.js scripts that run on a schedule to monitor endpoints from multiple AWS Regions, capturing metrics like duration and latency. By configuring canaries to report p90 latency as a custom metric, you can create a CloudWatch alarm that triggers when p90 exceeds 2 seconds for two consecutive data points, meeting all requirements without custom EC2 code.
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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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This SOA-C02 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 SOA-C02 exam.
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