CV0-004 Deployment Practice Question
A company manages a multi-account AWS environment and wants to deploy consistent infrastructure across several accounts using CloudFormation. The solution must support updates to the infrastructure and detect configuration drift. Which TWO CloudFormation features should be used?
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
✓
StackSets
StackSets (B) is correct because it is the CloudFormation feature designed to deploy and update the same template across multiple AWS accounts and Regions from a single administrator account, which directly satisfies the requirement for consistent infrastructure across several accounts. Drift detection (E) is correct because it lets CloudFormation compare a stack's actual resource configuration against its expected template configuration and report resources that have been modified outside CloudFormation, satisfying the drift-detection requirement. Change sets (A) only preview how proposed changes would affect a single stack before execution, so they do not provide multi-account deployment or drift detection. Outputs (C) merely export values from a stack for cross-stack references and do not deploy or monitor infrastructure. Nested stacks (D) help organize reusable templates within a single account/stack hierarchy but do not natively roll out stacks across multiple accounts or detect drift.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Change sets
Why it's wrong here
Change sets preview how a stack update will alter running resources before execution, but they neither enforce consistent deployment across accounts nor detect drift. It is tempting because they accompany updates, yet drift detection requires Drift Detection and cross-account consistency requires StackSets, which this option does not provide.
- ✓
StackSets
Why this is correct
StackSets deploy a single CloudFormation template across multiple AWS accounts and Regions from one administrator account, satisfying the multi-account consistency requirement. They also support update operations and drift detection on each stack instance, so infrastructure changes propagate and configuration drift is identified per account.
- ✗
Outputs
Why it's wrong here
Outputs merely export values from a stack for other stacks or processes to consume; they neither replicate templates into other accounts nor detect drift. Outputs are tempting because they enable cross-stack references, which is the correct choice when sharing resource identifiers between stacks in one account.
- ✗
Nested stacks
Why it's wrong here
Nested stacks compose a parent template from child templates within one account, so they cannot deploy the same template across separate accounts; that cross-account consistency requires StackSets. Nested stacks are tempting for reusing modular template components inside a single account's deployment.
- ✓
Drift detection
Why this is correct
Drift detection identifies when deployed stack resources diverge from their expected template configuration, satisfying the requirement to detect configuration drift across accounts. It compares actual resource properties against the template's declared state and reports differences, complementing stack updates for maintaining consistent infrastructure.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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