Cloud Digital Leader Lifecycle configuration Practice Question

Exhibit

Refer to the exhibit.

```
$ gsutil lifecycle set lifecycle-config.json gs://my-bucket/

Content of lifecycle-config.json:
{
  "rule": [
    {
      "action": {"type": "SetStorageClass", "storageClass": "NEARLINE"},
      "condition": {
        "age": 30,
        "matchesStorageClass": ["STANDARD"]
      }
    },
    {
      "action": {"type": "Delete"},
      "condition": {
        "age": 365
      }
    }
  ]
}
```

A company uses the lifecycle configuration above for archival data that is rarely accessed. What business benefit does this provide?

⚠ Common exam trap

A common trap is confusing cost optimization with other benefits like security or replication. Focus on the direct effect of lifecycle policies: cost savings through tiering and deletion.

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

✓

Reduced storage costs by transitioning to cheaper tiers and deleting obsolete data

A lifecycle configuration is designed to automatically transition objects to lower-cost storage classes (such as infrequent access or archive tiers) as they age and to expire/delete objects once they are no longer needed, which directly lowers storage spend for rarely accessed archival data. This matches the stated scenario of archival data that is rarely accessed, where the main business benefit is cost optimization rather than performance or security. Option A does not fit because encryption is a security control, not a lifecycle action, and lifecycle rules do not provide encryption. Option B does not fit because lifecycle policies typically move data to slower, cheaper tiers, which can increase retrieval latency rather than speed it up. Option D does not fit because cross-region replication is a separate feature (e.g., S3 Cross-Region Replication) and is not what a lifecycle configuration accomplishes.

Answer analysis

Option-by-option breakdown

For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.

✗
Improved data security through encryption
Why it's wrong here
Lifecycle configurations govern object transitions and deletion, not encryption; Cloud Storage encrypts data at rest by default regardless of lifecycle rules. Encryption is the benefit sought when configuring CMEK, CSEK or customer-managed keys, not when automating archival of rarely accessed data to lower cost.
✗
Faster data retrieval for frequently accessed files
Why it's wrong here
Lifecycle rules transition or delete objects based on age; they do not alter retrieval latency for frequently accessed files, which depends on storage class and access patterns. Faster retrieval is the goal when choosing a warmer class such as Standard or Nearline for hot data, not when archiving rarely accessed objects.
✓
Reduced storage costs by transitioning to cheaper tiers and deleting obsolete data
Why this is correct
Lifecycle rules automatically transition objects to colder, cheaper storage classes as they age, then expire them once obsolete. This eliminates manual intervention and ongoing costs for rarely accessed archival data, directly delivering the reduced storage expenditure the question asks about.
✗
Automatic replication to another region for disaster recovery
Why it's wrong here
Lifecycle rules act on objects within a bucket and cannot replicate them across regions; cross-region copying requires dual-region or multi-region buckets, or Transfer Service. Replication is the correct aim when designing disaster recovery across regions, not when reducing storage cost for rarely accessed archival data.

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

Cloud Digital Leader Lifecycle configuration Practice Question

Exhibit

Why each option matters

Option-by-option breakdown

AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison

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