← SOA-C02·Amazon Web Services

Question 640 of 1,546

Cost and Performance Optimization →hardMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped

SOA-C02 Cost and Performance Optimization Practice Question

This SOA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of cost and performance optimization. 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.

A SysOps administrator is investigating a cost increase in a production AWS account. They notice that an EC2 instance with a Reservation has been running continuously for months. The instance type is m5.large in us-east-1. The administrator sees that the instance is using a Standard Reserved Instance (RI) that was purchased 6 months ago for a 1-year term. However, the current utilization shows that the instance is only used for 4 hours per day. What should the administrator do to optimize costs without affecting availability?

A
Stop the instance during off-hours using Instance Scheduler, but keep the RI as-is.
Why wrong: RI benefit applies to running instances; stopping the instance wastes the RI payment for those hours.
B
Sell the current RI on the Reserved Instance Marketplace and purchase a new Convertible RI for a smaller instance type.
Why wrong: Selling the RI may incur loss and does not optimize the current usage pattern.
C
Modify the existing RI to a smaller instance size (e.g., m5.large to m5.xlarge? no, smaller: e.g., t3.medium) and use Auto Scaling with a schedule to start/stop the instance during business hours.
Modifying RI to a smaller size matches usage; scheduled stop reduces running hours.
D
Convert the RI to a Convertible RI and exchange it for a larger instance family to get more compute per hour.
Why wrong: Larger instance would increase cost, not decrease.

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

✓

Modify the existing RI to a smaller instance size (e.g., m5.large to m5.xlarge? no, smaller: e.g., t3.medium) and use Auto Scaling with a schedule to start/stop the instance during business hours.

Option C is correct. By modifying the existing Standard RI to a smaller instance size (e.g., within the same family or by converting to a Convertible RI to allow family changes), the administrator can better match the actual low utilization pattern. Additionally, using Auto Scaling with a scheduled scaling policy to start and stop the instance during business hours ensures availability during needed times and reduces waste. Option A is incorrect because stopping the instance does not stop the RI charges; Reserved Instance benefits are applied only to running instances, so the RI would be wasted during off-hours. Option B is incorrect because selling the RI on the Reserved Instance Marketplace typically incurs a loss of the upfront payment and does not directly address the over-provisioning issue. Option D is incorrect because converting to a larger instance family would increase compute capacity per hour, leading to higher costs and even more waste given the low utilization.

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.

✗
Stop the instance during off-hours using Instance Scheduler, but keep the RI as-is.
Why it's wrong here
RI benefit applies to running instances; stopping the instance wastes the RI payment for those hours.
✗
Sell the current RI on the Reserved Instance Marketplace and purchase a new Convertible RI for a smaller instance type.
Why it's wrong here
Selling the RI may incur loss and does not optimize the current usage pattern.
✓
Modify the existing RI to a smaller instance size (e.g., m5.large to m5.xlarge? no, smaller: e.g., t3.medium) and use Auto Scaling with a schedule to start/stop the instance during business hours.
Why this is correct
Modifying RI to a smaller size matches usage; scheduled stop reduces running hours.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Convert the RI to a Convertible RI and exchange it for a larger instance family to get more compute per hour.
Why it's wrong here
Larger instance would increase cost, not decrease.

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

A startup's cloud architect reviews their monthly bill and notices costs are higher than expected for a long-running batch job. Switching from on-demand instances to Reserved Instances — or using Spot/Preemptible VMs — can reduce compute costs by up to 72 %. Questions like this test whether you understand the tradeoffs between commitment, flexibility, and cost across cloud pricing models.

What to study next

Got this wrong? Here's your next step.

Identify which SOA-C02 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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FAQ

Questions learners often ask

What does this SOA-C02 question test?

Cost and Performance Optimization — This question tests Cost and Performance Optimization — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..

What is the correct answer to this question?

The correct answer is: Modify the existing RI to a smaller instance size (e.g., m5.large to m5.xlarge? no, smaller: e.g., t3.medium) and use Auto Scaling with a schedule to start/stop the instance during business hours. — Option C is correct. By modifying the existing Standard RI to a smaller instance size (e.g., within the same family or by converting to a Convertible RI to allow family changes), the administrator can better match the actual low utilization pattern. Additionally, using Auto Scaling with a scheduled scaling policy to start and stop the instance during business hours ensures availability during needed times and reduces waste. Option A is incorrect because stopping the instance does not stop the RI charges; Reserved Instance benefits are applied only to running instances, so the RI would be wasted during off-hours. Option B is incorrect because selling the RI on the Reserved Instance Marketplace typically incurs a loss of the upfront payment and does not directly address the over-provisioning issue. Option D is incorrect because converting to a larger instance family would increase compute capacity per hour, leading to higher costs and even more waste given the low utilization.

What should I do if I get this SOA-C02 question wrong?

What is the key concept behind this question?

Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.

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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.