SAA-C03 Question 429
Single answerA company runs a web application that experiences unpredictable spikes in traffic. The application is currently hosted on an On-Demand Amazon EC2 instance, but the company is looking for a more cost-optimized compute solution while maintaining performance during traffic spikes. What should the Solutions Architect recommend?
- A
Use Amazon EC2 Spot Instances to handle the web application traffic.
- B
Migrate the application to AWS Lambda and use Amazon API Gateway to handle requests.
- C
Use EC2 Auto Scaling with a mix of On-Demand and Spot Instances.
- D
Switch to a Reserved Instance for the application.
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
The correct answer is to use EC2 Auto Scaling with a mix of On-Demand and Spot Instances. This approach allows the application to dynamically scale to handle traffic spikes while optimizing costs by utilizing Spot Instances for non-critical tasks and On-Demand Instances for critical, stable workloads. This balances cost and performance, which is ideal for the given scenario.
- A. Incorrect.
Amazon EC2 Spot Instances are cost-effective, but they are not ideal for unpredictable traffic spikes as they can be interrupted at short notice, which could affect application availability.
- B. Incorrect.
Migrating to AWS Lambda and Amazon API Gateway could be a viable solution, but it may require significant re-architecting of the application. The question asks for a cost-optimized solution without specifying a need for a fundamental architectural change.
- C. Correct.
Using EC2 Auto Scaling with a mix of On-Demand and Spot Instances is a cost-optimized solution. Auto Scaling ensures that the application can handle unpredictable traffic spikes, while Spot Instances provide cost savings for non-critical workloads.
- D. Incorrect.
Reserved Instances are best suited for predictable, steady-state workloads rather than applications with unpredictable traffic spikes. They would not provide the flexibility needed in this scenario.