CV0-004 Operations and Support Practice Question
A cloud architect is designing a disaster recovery plan for a critical application with an RTO of 15 minutes and an RPO of 1 minute. The application runs on AWS EC2 instances with data stored on EBS volumes. Which replication strategy best meets these requirements?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap is matching backup frequency to RPO loosely — candidates pick 'hourly snapshots' thinking it's frequent enough, but a 1-minute RPO demands continuous block-level replication, not scheduled snapshots.
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
✓
Continuous replication using AWS Elastic Disaster Recovery
An RPO of 1 minute requires near-continuous data replication, which AWS Elastic Disaster Recovery (DRS) provides by continuously replicating block-level changes from source EC2/EBS to a staging area in the target region. Snapshots every hour (RPO up to 60 min) and daily AMIs (RPO up to 24 h) cannot meet a 1-minute RPO. S3 CRR is irrelevant because the data lives on EBS, not S3.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
EBS snapshots replicated to another region every hour
Why it's wrong here
Hourly EBS snapshot replication yields an RPO of up to 60 minutes, breaching the one-minute requirement, and snapshot restoration typically exceeds the 15-minute RTO. It is tempting because snapshots are native and cross-region capable, but they suit less aggressive recovery objectives.
- ✓
Continuous replication using AWS Elastic Disaster Recovery
Why this is correct
AWS Elastic Disaster Recovery replicates block-level changes continuously from source EC2 instances and EBS volumes to a staging area, giving sub-second RPO and rapid recovery. This satisfies the 1-minute RPO and 15-minute RTO, unlike snapshot-based or scheduled replication, which cannot meet such tight recovery targets.
- ✗
Daily AMI backups stored in a different region
Why it's wrong here
Daily AMI backups give an RPO of up to 24 hours, far exceeding the one-minute requirement, and restoring instances plus EBS data cannot reliably meet a 15-minute RTO. It is tempting because AMIs capture full instance state, but they suit low-frequency recovery rather than near-continuous replication.
- ✗
Cross-region replication of S3 buckets
Why it's wrong here
S3 cross-region replication protects object data only; the application's EBS volumes and EC2 instances are not replicated, so neither the one-minute RPO nor 15-minute RTO is met. It is tempting because it provides cross-region durability, but it suits S3-hosted data, not EBS-backed compute.
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 |
Go deeper
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CompTIA exam blueprint
This CV0-004 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA 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 CV0-004 exam.