- A
Hot site
Why wrong: Incorrect: Hot sites are fully operational and expensive, may exceed budget for medium organizations.
- B
Warm site
Correct: Warm sites offer a balance of cost and recovery time, with some equipment pre-installed.
- C
Mobile site
Why wrong: Incorrect: Mobile sites are specialized and not typically the primary choice for DR.
- D
Cold site
Why wrong: Incorrect: Cold sites require significant setup time, likely exceeding RTO.
Question 114 of 1,000
CISA Practice Question: Information Systems Operations and Business Resilience
This CISA practice question tests your understanding of information systems operations and business resilience. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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.
An organization is selecting a disaster recovery (DR) site. The primary data center is located in a region prone to earthquakes. The DR site should be at a sufficient distance to avoid the same disaster. Which type of alternate site provides the best balance of cost and recovery time for a medium-sized organization?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue:
"primary"Why it matters: Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
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
✓
Warm site
A warm site is partially configured with some hardware, software, and data synchronization, offering a balance between cost and recovery time. For a medium-sized organization, it provides faster recovery than a cold site while being significantly less expensive than a hot site, making it suitable for a region prone to earthquakes where the DR site must be geographically distant.
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.
- ✗
Hot site
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: Hot sites are fully operational and expensive, may exceed budget for medium organizations.
- ✓
Warm site
Why this is correct
Correct: Warm sites offer a balance of cost and recovery time, with some equipment pre-installed.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "primary" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Mobile site
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: Mobile sites are specialized and not typically the primary choice for DR.
- ✗
Cold site
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: Cold sites require significant setup time, likely exceeding RTO.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse 'warm site' with 'hot site' due to the similar terminology, but the key differentiator is the level of data synchronization and hardware readiness, not just the distance from the primary site.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In practice, a warm site typically includes pre-installed servers, storage, and network equipment but may lack up-to-date data replication, relying instead on periodic backups (e.g., daily or weekly). The recovery time objective (RTO) for a warm site often ranges from hours to a few days, depending on the data synchronization method (e.g., asynchronous replication vs. tape restore). For a medium-sized organization, this trade-off allows a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) while still meeting business continuity requirements in a seismic zone.
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 practitioner preparing for the CISA exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
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.
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Information Systems Operations and Business Resilience — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this CISA question test?
Information Systems Operations and Business Resilience — This question tests Information Systems Operations and Business Resilience — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Warm site — A warm site is partially configured with some hardware, software, and data synchronization, offering a balance between cost and recovery time. For a medium-sized organization, it provides faster recovery than a cold site while being significantly less expensive than a hot site, making it suitable for a region prone to earthquakes where the DR site must be geographically distant.
What should I do if I get this CISA question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "primary". Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
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 CISA practice question is part of Courseiva's free ISACA 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 CISA exam.
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