The answer is a hot site with synchronous replication, because it delivers an RTO of 1 hour and an RPO near zero, easily meeting the 4-hour recovery requirement. Synchronous replication writes data to both the primary and replica storage simultaneously, so the hot site is fully operational and ready to take over immediately after a hurricane strikes. On the ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity CC exam, this question tests your ability to match disaster recovery site types to specific RTO requirements—a common trap is choosing a warm or cold site to save costs, but those options fail when the RTO is under 4 hours. Remember the memory tip: “Hot is ready now, warm needs a few hours, cold takes days.” For any RTO under 4 hours, always pick a hot site with synchronous replication to ensure zero data loss and instant failover.
ISC2 CC Business Continuity, DR & Incident Response Practice Question
This CC practice question tests your understanding of business continuity, dr & incident response. Compare every option against the stated constraints before choosing — the best answer satisfies all requirements, not just the most obvious one. 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's primary data center is located in a region prone to hurricanes. The IT team is designing a disaster recovery plan to ensure critical applications resume within 4 hours of a declared disaster. Which of the following is the MOST appropriate recovery strategy?
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 the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Hot site with synchronous replication (RTO 1 hour, RPO near zero)
A hot site with synchronous replication is the most appropriate strategy because it provides an RTO of 1 hour (well within the 4-hour requirement) and an RPO near zero, ensuring critical applications resume quickly with minimal data loss. Synchronous replication writes data to both primary and replica storage simultaneously, so in a hurricane scenario, the hot site is fully operational and ready to take over immediately.
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 with synchronous replication (RTO 1 hour, RPO near zero)
Why this is correct
Meets RTO and RPO requirements.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "primary" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Cold site with weekly full backups (RTO 48 hours, RPO 7 days)
Why it's wrong here
RTO and RPO far exceed limits.
✗
Warm site with daily incremental backups (RTO 6 hours, RPO 4 hours)
Why it's wrong here
RTO of 6 hours exceeds the required 4 hours.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
ISC2 often tests the distinction between RTO and RPO, and the trap here is that candidates may choose a warm site (Option D) because its RTO of 6 hours seems close to 4 hours, but they overlook that the RTO must be strictly less than or equal to the requirement, and synchronous replication at a hot site is the only option that meets both the 4-hour RTO and near-zero RPO for critical applications.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Synchronous replication typically uses protocols like iSCSI with immediate acknowledgment or Fibre Channel with write-order consistency, ensuring that a write is committed on both the primary and replica before the application receives a success response. In a real-world hurricane scenario, the hot site must be geographically distant (e.g., 100+ miles) to avoid the same storm, and network latency must be low enough (typically under 5 ms round-trip) to avoid application performance degradation. Cisco's CC exam emphasizes that RTO and RPO are contractual metrics; synchronous replication achieves RPO near zero but requires high-bandwidth, low-latency links, which can be costly.
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 security analyst at a medium-sized enterprise encounters this scenario during an investigation or architecture review. The correct answer reflects best practice for the specific threat or control described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Security exam questions test whether you can match controls to threats in context — not just recall definitions.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this CC question in full detail.
Business Continuity, DR & Incident Response — This question tests Business Continuity, DR & Incident Response — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Hot site with synchronous replication (RTO 1 hour, RPO near zero) — A hot site with synchronous replication is the most appropriate strategy because it provides an RTO of 1 hour (well within the 4-hour requirement) and an RPO near zero, ensuring critical applications resume quickly with minimal data loss. Synchronous replication writes data to both primary and replica storage simultaneously, so in a hurricane scenario, the hot site is fully operational and ready to take over immediately.
What should I do if I get this CC 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.
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