- A
Enable S3 Versioning on the bucket.
Retains all versions, enabling recovery.
- B
Enable MFA Delete on the bucket.
Why wrong: Adds authentication but does not prevent overwrites.
- C
Configure S3 Cross-Region Replication.
Why wrong: Replicates objects but does not prevent deletion in source.
- D
Enable S3 Object Lock in compliance mode.
Prevents deletion or overwrite during retention period.
- E
Enable default encryption (SSE-S3) on the bucket.
Why wrong: Encryption does not protect against deletion.
Question 303 of 1,546
SOA-C02 Reliability and Business Continuity Practice Question
This SOA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of reliability and business continuity. 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 designing a backup strategy for its Amazon S3 buckets. Which TWO methods can be used to protect against accidental deletion or overwriting of objects? (Choose two.)
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
✓
Enable S3 Versioning on the bucket.
S3 Versioning preserves every version of an object, including overwrites and deletions. When versioning is enabled, a delete operation only adds a delete marker, and overwrites create a new version without removing the previous one. This allows recovery of previous object states at any time.
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.
- ✓
Enable S3 Versioning on the bucket.
Why this is correct
Retains all versions, enabling recovery.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Enable MFA Delete on the bucket.
Why it's wrong here
Adds authentication but does not prevent overwrites.
- ✗
Configure S3 Cross-Region Replication.
Why it's wrong here
Replicates objects but does not prevent deletion in source.
- ✓
Enable S3 Object Lock in compliance mode.
Why this is correct
Prevents deletion or overwrite during retention period.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Enable default encryption (SSE-S3) on the bucket.
Why it's wrong here
Encryption does not protect against deletion.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse MFA Delete (which only adds an authentication requirement) with actual deletion protection, or they mistakenly think replication or encryption can prevent accidental data loss.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
S3 Versioning creates a unique version ID for each object upload, and when an object is deleted, a delete marker is inserted instead of removing the underlying data. S3 Object Lock in compliance mode provides a write-once-read-many (WORM) model that prevents any user, including the root user, from deleting or overwriting an object until the retention period expires. This is enforced at the object level and overrides bucket policies and IAM permissions.
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.
Quick reference
AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison
| Storage Class | Min Duration | Retrieval | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3 Standard | None | Immediate | Frequently accessed data |
| S3 Standard-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Infrequent access, rapid retrieval |
| S3 One Zone-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Non-critical infrequent data |
| S3 Intelligent-Tiering | None | Immediate–hours | Unknown or changing access patterns |
| S3 Glacier Instant | 90 days | Milliseconds | Archive with instant retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Flexible | 90 days | Minutes–hours | Archive, flexible retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Deep Archive | 180 days | Hours | Long-term compliance archive |
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.
- →
Reliability and Business Continuity — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SOA-C02 question test?
Reliability and Business Continuity — This question tests Reliability and Business Continuity — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Enable S3 Versioning on the bucket. — S3 Versioning preserves every version of an object, including overwrites and deletions. When versioning is enabled, a delete operation only adds a delete marker, and overwrites create a new version without removing the previous one. This allows recovery of previous object states at any time.
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.
About these practice questions
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 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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