Master the AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate exam with our comprehensive Q&A collection. Review questions by topic, understand explanations, and build confidence for exam day.
Strategies to help you tackle AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate exam questions effectively
Allocate roughly 1-2 minutes per question. Flag difficult questions and return to them later.
Pay attention to keywords like 'MOST', 'LEAST', 'NOT', and 'EXCEPT' in questions.
Use elimination to narrow down choices. Often 1-2 options can be quickly ruled out.
Focus on understanding why answers are correct, not just memorizing facts.
Practice with real exam-style questions for AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate
SSE-S3 provides automatic encryption with keys managed entirely by AWS, requiring no additional configuration or key management, making it the option with the least operational overhead. SSE-KMS requires managing KMS keys and has additional costs. Client-side encryption requires implementing encryption logic in the application. SSE-C requires the customer to manage and provide encryption keys with each request, adding significant operational complexity.
Amazon RDS Multi-AZ deployment provides automatic failover to a standby instance in a different Availability Zone with minimal downtime (typically under 2 minutes). Read replicas do not provide automatic failover for the primary database. EC2-based MySQL requires manual intervention for failover. A single Aurora instance does not provide high availability, though Aurora Multi-AZ would be equally valid.
Amazon CloudFront is a content delivery network (CDN) specifically designed to cache and deliver static content from edge locations close to users, providing low latency globally. S3 Transfer Acceleration is for faster uploads to S3, not content delivery. Global Accelerator is for improving availability and performance of applications using static IP addresses and the AWS global network, but CloudFront is better optimized for static content delivery. Route 53 is a DNS service and doesn't cache content.
For variable workloads, using On-Demand Instances for baseline capacity ensures availability, while Spot Instances for additional capacity can reduce costs by up to 90% during traffic spikes. Reserved Instances require commitment and are better when usage patterns are predictable. Using only Spot Instances risks interruption during critical periods. Dedicated Hosts are the most expensive option and not cost-optimized for this scenario.
Using IAM roles with AWS Security Token Service (STS) to generate temporary credentials is the most secure approach. Credentials automatically expire and auditors can assume the role for limited time periods. Creating and deleting IAM users adds operational overhead and permanent credentials could be retained. Making a bucket public exposes data unnecessarily. Sharing root credentials is a critical security violation and should never be done.
Review Q&A organized by exam domains to focus your study
30% of exam • 3 questions
What is the primary purpose of Design Secure Architectures in Cloud Computing?
Design Secure Architectures serves as a fundamental component in Cloud Computing, providing essential capabilities for managing, configuring, and optimizing Amazon Web Services (AWS) solutions. Understanding this domain is crucial for the AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate certification.
Which best practice should be followed when implementing Design Secure Architectures?
When implementing Design Secure Architectures, follow the principle of least privilege, ensure proper documentation, implement monitoring and logging, and regularly review configurations. These practices help maintain security and operational excellence.
How does Design Secure Architectures integrate with other Amazon Web Services (AWS) services?
Design Secure Architectures integrates seamlessly with other Amazon Web Services (AWS) services through APIs, shared authentication, and native connectors. This integration enables comprehensive solutions that leverage multiple services for optimal results.
26% of exam • 3 questions
What is the primary purpose of Design Resilient Architectures in Cloud Computing?
Design Resilient Architectures serves as a fundamental component in Cloud Computing, providing essential capabilities for managing, configuring, and optimizing Amazon Web Services (AWS) solutions. Understanding this domain is crucial for the AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate certification.
Which best practice should be followed when implementing Design Resilient Architectures?
When implementing Design Resilient Architectures, follow the principle of least privilege, ensure proper documentation, implement monitoring and logging, and regularly review configurations. These practices help maintain security and operational excellence.
How does Design Resilient Architectures integrate with other Amazon Web Services (AWS) services?
Design Resilient Architectures integrates seamlessly with other Amazon Web Services (AWS) services through APIs, shared authentication, and native connectors. This integration enables comprehensive solutions that leverage multiple services for optimal results.
24% of exam • 3 questions
What is the primary purpose of Design High-Performing Architectures in Cloud Computing?
Design High-Performing Architectures serves as a fundamental component in Cloud Computing, providing essential capabilities for managing, configuring, and optimizing Amazon Web Services (AWS) solutions. Understanding this domain is crucial for the AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate certification.
Which best practice should be followed when implementing Design High-Performing Architectures?
When implementing Design High-Performing Architectures, follow the principle of least privilege, ensure proper documentation, implement monitoring and logging, and regularly review configurations. These practices help maintain security and operational excellence.
How does Design High-Performing Architectures integrate with other Amazon Web Services (AWS) services?
Design High-Performing Architectures integrates seamlessly with other Amazon Web Services (AWS) services through APIs, shared authentication, and native connectors. This integration enables comprehensive solutions that leverage multiple services for optimal results.
20% of exam • 3 questions
What is the primary purpose of Design Cost-Optimized Architectures in Cloud Computing?
Design Cost-Optimized Architectures serves as a fundamental component in Cloud Computing, providing essential capabilities for managing, configuring, and optimizing Amazon Web Services (AWS) solutions. Understanding this domain is crucial for the AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate certification.
Which best practice should be followed when implementing Design Cost-Optimized Architectures?
When implementing Design Cost-Optimized Architectures, follow the principle of least privilege, ensure proper documentation, implement monitoring and logging, and regularly review configurations. These practices help maintain security and operational excellence.
How does Design Cost-Optimized Architectures integrate with other Amazon Web Services (AWS) services?
Design Cost-Optimized Architectures integrates seamlessly with other Amazon Web Services (AWS) services through APIs, shared authentication, and native connectors. This integration enables comprehensive solutions that leverage multiple services for optimal results.
After reviewing these questions and answers, challenge yourself with our interactive practice exams. Track your progress and identify areas for improvement.
Common questions about the exam format and questions
The AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate exam typically contains 50-65 questions. The exact number may vary, and not all questions may be scored as some are used for statistical purposes.
The exam includes multiple choice (single answer), multiple response (multiple correct answers), and scenario-based questions. Some questions may include diagrams or code snippets that you need to analyze.
Questions are weighted based on the exam domain weights. Topics with higher percentages have more questions. Focus your study time proportionally on domains with higher weights.
Yes, most certification exams allow you to flag questions for review and return to them before submitting. Use this feature strategically for difficult questions.
Practice questions are designed to match the style, difficulty, and topic coverage of the real exam. While exact questions won't appear, the concepts and question formats will be similar.
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