Amazon AWS Certified SysOps Administrator - Associate Exam Dumps & Practice Test Questions
Question No 1:
A SysOps administrator manages several Amazon EC2 instances running an application that needs to securely access an Amazon DynamoDB table. The administrator must ensure the application has the correct permissions to interact with the DynamoDB table.
Which of the following methods is the best way to grant the necessary permissions?
A. Create access keys to access the DynamoDB table and assign these keys to the EC2 instance profile.
B. Create an EC2 key pair for accessing the DynamoDB table and assign the key pair to the EC2 instance profile.
C. Create an IAM user for accessing the DynamoDB table and assign this user to the EC2 instance profile.
D. Create an IAM role for accessing the DynamoDB table and assign the role to the EC2 instance profile.
Correct Answer:
D. Create an IAM role for accessing the DynamoDB table and assign the role to the EC2 instance profile.
Explanation:
The most secure and recommended approach is to use an IAM role assigned to the EC2 instance profile. IAM roles are AWS identities with defined permissions and can be assumed by EC2 instances, providing temporary and secure access to services like DynamoDB. This avoids the need to store long-term credentials on the instance, reducing security risks. Access keys (Option A) are static and storing them on an instance can lead to credential leakage. EC2 key pairs (Option B) are only for SSH access and do not provide permissions to AWS services. IAM users (Option C) are designed for human access and require manual credential management, making them unsuitable for EC2 instances. Therefore, IAM roles ensure secure, scalable, and manageable access for EC2 instances to DynamoDB.
Question No 2:
A SysOps administrator needs to protect objects stored in an Amazon S3 bucket from accidental overwrites and deletions. The administrator must also ensure that older versions of objects (noncurrent objects) are retained for at least 90 days before permanent deletion. Additionally, all objects must remain stored within the same AWS Region as the original bucket.
Which solution will satisfy these requirements?
A. Create an Amazon Data Lifecycle Manager (DLM) lifecycle policy for the bucket and add a rule to delete noncurrent objects after 90 days.
B. Create an AWS Backup policy for the bucket and include a lifecycle rule to expire noncurrent objects after 90 days.
C. Enable S3 Cross-Region Replication on the bucket and create an S3 Lifecycle policy to delete noncurrent objects after 90 days.
D. Enable S3 Versioning on the bucket and create an S3 Lifecycle policy to expire noncurrent objects after 90 days.
Correct Answer:
D. Enable S3 Versioning on the bucket and create an S3 Lifecycle policy to expire noncurrent objects after 90 days.
Explanation:
Enabling S3 Versioning protects objects from accidental overwrite or deletion by preserving every version of an object. When versioning is on, overwritten or deleted objects can be recovered by accessing previous versions. Once versioning is enabled, noncurrent (older) versions can be managed via an S3 Lifecycle policy, which can be configured to delete these noncurrent versions after 90 days, meeting the retention requirement. Since versioning and lifecycle policies are applied within the same AWS Region, this meets the requirement to keep objects in the original region. Option A is incorrect because Amazon DLM manages lifecycle for EBS volumes, not S3 objects. Option B is invalid because AWS Backup supports services like EC2 or RDS, but not S3 lifecycle management. Option C is incorrect as Cross-Region Replication moves data to another region, conflicting with the requirement to keep data in the same region. Thus, enabling S3 Versioning combined with a lifecycle policy is the correct solution.
Question No 3:
A company operates a website that allows customers to search for records. The data resides in an Amazon Aurora database cluster. The traffic varies by season and day of the week. Recently, the site has become more popular, causing slower response times during peak periods because the database cluster is overloaded. Logs show that performance issues mostly occur during user searches. These searches are usually unique and rarely repeated.
A SysOps administrator needs to improve application performance while maintaining efficient use of resources.
Which solution best addresses these needs?
A. Set up an Amazon ElastiCache for Redis cluster in front of the database cluster. Update the application to check the cache before querying the database and store query results in the cache.
B. Add an Aurora Replica to the database cluster. Modify the application to direct search queries to the reader endpoint. Enable Aurora Auto Scaling to adjust the number of replicas based on demand.
C. Enable Provisioned IOPS on the database storage volumes to boost performance during peak usage.
D. Upgrade the database cluster instance size to handle peak loads. Use Aurora Auto Scaling to modify the instance size according to traffic.
Correct Answer: A
Explanation:
Because searches consist mostly of unique queries that are seldom repeated, caching results with Amazon ElastiCache for Redis will reduce the number of database queries and improve response times during peak load. Redis stores results in memory, allowing repeated requests for the same data to be served instantly without querying the database.
When a search is performed, the application first checks Redis. If the results are cached, they are returned immediately. If not, the query runs on Aurora, and the results are then cached for future requests.
This reduces the load on the Aurora cluster, decreases latency, and efficiently uses resources. It is also cost-effective because Redis is optimized for fast caching rather than handling full database workloads.
Other options are less suitable:
B: Aurora replicas help scale read traffic but are less efficient with many unique queries because each query still hits the database.
C: Provisioned IOPS improves storage performance but does not reduce query frequency or optimize query handling.
D: Increasing instance size provides more capacity but is more costly and does not directly address the problem of inefficient query handling.
Question No 4:
A company manages multiple AWS accounts using AWS Organizations. Company policy mandates that customer data can only be stored and processed in approved AWS Regions. A SysOps administrator needs to prevent any user from launching Amazon EC2 instances in unauthorized Regions.
What is the most operationally efficient way to enforce this restriction?
A. Enable AWS CloudTrail in all Regions to log API calls. Create EventBridge rules in unauthorized Regions to detect ec2:RunInstances events. Use Lambda to terminate unauthorized EC2 instances after launch.
B. In each account, create a managed IAM policy that denies ec2:RunInstances in unauthorized Regions and attach it to all IAM groups.
C. In each account, apply an IAM permissions boundary policy denying ec2:RunInstances in unauthorized Regions to all IAM users.
D. Create a Service Control Policy (SCP) in AWS Organizations denying ec2:RunInstances in unauthorized Regions and attach it at the root of the organization.
Correct Answer: D
Explanation:
Service Control Policies (SCPs) in AWS Organizations provide a centralized and proactive method to enforce permission restrictions across all accounts. By attaching an SCP at the root level, the restriction applies to every account and user in the organization, preventing EC2 instance launches in unauthorized Regions regardless of individual IAM permissions.
Other options are less operationally efficient:
A: This reactive approach involves monitoring and terminating instances after launch, which adds complexity and delay.
B: Managing IAM policies individually in each account and attaching them to groups requires manual effort and is difficult to scale.
C: Permissions boundaries add complexity by restricting users on a granular level and are harder to maintain across many users and accounts.
Using SCPs is the simplest and most effective way to enforce corporate policy on a large scale.
Question No 5:
A company’s public website is hosted on Amazon S3 in the us-east-1 Region and delivered through an Amazon CloudFront distribution. To protect the website from DDoS attacks, the company wants a solution that lets them control rate limits for DDoS protection. A SysOps administrator needs to implement a solution to ensure the company can manage how rate limits are applied for DDoS defense.
Which solution best satisfies these requirements?
A. Deploy a global AWS WAF web ACL with an allow default action. Set up an AWS WAF rate-based rule to block matching traffic. Attach the web ACL to the CloudFront distribution.
B. Deploy an AWS WAF web ACL with an allow default action in us-east-1. Set up an AWS WAF rate-based rule to block matching traffic. Attach the web ACL to the S3 bucket.
C. Deploy a global AWS WAF web ACL with a block default action. Set up an AWS WAF rate-based rule to allow matching traffic. Attach the web ACL to the CloudFront distribution.
D. Deploy an AWS WAF web ACL with a block default action in us-east-1. Set up an AWS WAF rate-based rule to allow matching traffic. Attach the web ACL to the S3 bucket.
Correct Answer: A
Explanation:
The company needs to protect its public website hosted on Amazon S3 from DDoS attacks while retaining control over rate limiting. AWS WAF is the appropriate service for filtering and protecting web traffic.
The global scope of AWS WAF applies to CloudFront distributions, which is ideal for content delivered globally. CloudFront caches content at edge locations, providing lower latency and efficient traffic management. Therefore, associating a global AWS WAF web ACL with CloudFront is the optimal approach.
By configuring a rate-based rule to block traffic that exceeds a threshold, the company can control incoming request rates and prevent excessive or malicious traffic, which mitigates DDoS attacks.
Attaching the web ACL to CloudFront ensures requests are inspected before reaching the S3 bucket, reducing load on S3 and allowing protection at the network edge.
Why the other options are not suitable:
Option B incorrectly associates the web ACL directly with the S3 bucket, which is not supported for AWS WAF protection.
Option C uses a block default action, which would block all traffic except for allowed rules, potentially blocking legitimate users.
Option D has the same issue as Option B and incorrectly allows traffic in the rate-based rule rather than blocking it, which is not effective for DDoS mitigation.
Overall, Option A provides the best combination of global protection, rate limiting, and correct association with CloudFront.
Question No 6:
A SysOps administrator has developed a Python script that uses the AWS SDK for various maintenance tasks. This script must run automatically every night.
What is the MOST operationally efficient way to meet this requirement?
A. Convert the Python script into an AWS Lambda function. Use an Amazon EventBridge rule to trigger the function nightly.
B. Convert the Python script into an AWS Lambda function. Use AWS CloudTrail to trigger the function nightly.
C. Deploy the Python script on an Amazon EC2 instance. Use Amazon EventBridge to schedule the instance to start and stop nightly.
D. Deploy the Python script on an Amazon EC2 instance. Use AWS Systems Manager to schedule the instance to start and stop nightly.
Correct Answer: A
Explanation:
The most efficient approach is to convert the Python script into an AWS Lambda function and use Amazon EventBridge to schedule its nightly execution.
AWS Lambda is a serverless compute service that automatically runs code in response to events without needing infrastructure management. This reduces operational overhead by eliminating the need to maintain servers or instances.
EventBridge (previously CloudWatch Events) supports cron-like scheduling to invoke Lambda functions at specified times automatically. This approach is scalable, cost-effective (you pay only for execution time), and straightforward to implement.
Why the other options are less efficient:
Option B misuses AWS CloudTrail, which is designed for auditing API calls, not scheduling jobs.
Option C involves managing an EC2 instance, which adds complexity related to instance lifecycle and incurs ongoing costs regardless of usage.
Option D similarly requires EC2 management and introduces additional overhead with Systems Manager, making it less efficient than using Lambda and EventBridge.
Therefore, Option A is the best solution for operational efficiency and automation.
Question No 7:
A SysOps administrator must implement a solution that immediately alerts software developers whenever an AWS Lambda function encounters an error. The aim is to deliver real-time notifications to developers to enable rapid responses and proactive error management.
Which option best satisfies this requirement?
A. Create an Amazon Simple Notification Service (Amazon SNS) topic with an email subscription for each developer. Set up an Amazon CloudWatch alarm using the Errors metric and the Lambda function name as a dimension. Configure the alarm to send notifications to the SNS topic when the alarm state enters ALARM.
B. Create an Amazon Simple Notification Service (Amazon SNS) topic with mobile subscriptions for each developer. Create an Amazon EventBridge (formerly CloudWatch Events) alarm using the LambdaError event pattern and the SNS topic as a resource. Configure the alarm to notify the SNS topic when the alarm state reaches ALARM.
C. Verify each developer's email address in Amazon Simple Email Service (Amazon SES). Create an Amazon CloudWatch rule using the LambdaError metric and developer email addresses as dimensions. Configure the rule to send an email through Amazon SES when the rule state reaches ALARM.
D. Verify each developer's mobile phone number in Amazon Simple Email Service (Amazon SES). Create an Amazon EventBridge rule using Error as the event pattern and the Lambda function name as a resource. Configure the rule to send a push notification through Amazon SES when the rule state reaches ALARM.
Correct Answer:
A. Create an Amazon Simple Notification Service (Amazon SNS) topic with an email subscription for each developer. Set up an Amazon CloudWatch alarm using the Errors metric and the Lambda function name as a dimension. Configure the alarm to send notifications to the SNS topic when the alarm state enters ALARM.
Explanation:
The most effective method to instantly notify developers when an AWS Lambda function records an error is option A. This approach uses Amazon SNS, a highly scalable and versatile notification service, which integrates smoothly with AWS services. By creating an SNS topic with email subscriptions for each developer, notifications can be delivered immediately when an error occurs in the Lambda function.
Amazon CloudWatch plays a crucial role by monitoring the Lambda function's Errors metric. By setting up an alarm tied to the Errors metric and specifying the Lambda function name as a dimension, the system tracks errors specific to that function. When an error happens, the CloudWatch alarm triggers.
This configuration guarantees real-time alerts because the alarm sends notifications once the error threshold is met, allowing developers to respond swiftly to issues, thereby reducing downtime and preventing escalation.
Other options are less suitable for the following reasons:
Option B uses EventBridge, which is well-suited for event-driven systems but adds unnecessary complexity here, where a simple CloudWatch alarm is adequate.
Options C and D rely on Amazon SES for email or push notifications. SES requires verifying email addresses or phone numbers manually and is less straightforward for event-triggered alerts than SNS. SNS provides a simpler, more efficient way to send notifications to multiple recipients.
Overall, Option A offers the most direct, reliable, and scalable solution for notifying developers about Lambda errors immediately.
Question No 8:
What technique does AWS use to reduce the load on running instances during backup processes?
A Perform full backups during times of high activity
B Utilize incremental snapshots that capture only changed data blocks
C Copy the entire data set on every backup without optimization
D Suspend instance operations while backups are taken
Correct Answer: B
Explanation
AWS minimizes the impact of backups on active instances primarily through the use of incremental snapshots. This method captures only the data blocks that have changed since the previous snapshot, which significantly reduces the amount of data that needs to be transferred and stored. These snapshots are taken at the volume level, for example with Amazon Elastic Block Store (EBS), allowing backups to occur quickly and with minimal interference to running workloads.
Incremental snapshots help shorten backup windows and reduce network and storage utilization. Because only the changes are saved, it avoids unnecessary duplication of data, making backup operations more efficient and less disruptive. This efficiency enables frequent backup schedules, ensuring better data protection and disaster recovery readiness without affecting application performance.
Option A is incorrect because conducting full backups during peak periods can cause resource contention and degrade application performance. Option B is the correct answer as it describes AWS’s core method of efficient backup using incremental snapshots. Option C is false because backing up all data every time wastes bandwidth and storage and impacts performance negatively. Option D is inaccurate since AWS does not require suspending instance activity during backups; snapshots are designed to be consistent without downtime.
Beyond snapshot technology, AWS also offers tools such as Amazon Data Lifecycle Manager, which automates snapshot retention and deletion according to policy, helping manage backup storage costs. Monitoring services like Amazon CloudWatch allow administrators to track backup health and performance metrics, facilitating proactive management and optimization of backup strategies.
By using these technologies, AWS ensures that organizations can meet stringent recovery point objectives (RPOs) and recovery time objectives (RTOs), protecting data integrity while maintaining operational efficiency and availability.
Question No 9:
How does AWS Systems Manager assist administrators in automating routine tasks across multiple EC2 instances?
A It only tracks network traffic between instances
B It offers centralized automation for patching, configuration, and operational tasks
C It automatically fixes all system errors without any manual input
D It serves as a data storage service for backups
Correct Answer: B
Explanation
AWS Systems Manager is a powerful management service that enables administrators to automate common maintenance tasks such as patch management, software installation, and configuration updates across large fleets of EC2 instances. It provides a centralized interface to orchestrate these tasks consistently, reducing manual effort and minimizing human error.
Option A is incorrect because Systems Manager does much more than monitoring network traffic; it actively manages and automates operational processes. Option B is correct as it describes the core capabilities of Systems Manager, including automation workflows and centralized management. Option C is inaccurate because although Systems Manager can automate many tasks, it does not completely replace the need for human oversight and intervention in error resolution. Option D is false since Systems Manager is not designed to store backup data; that function belongs to other AWS services.
By leveraging Systems Manager, organizations can ensure compliance with security policies, maintain consistent system configurations, and streamline operational workflows—key factors in maintaining scalable and reliable AWS environments.
Question No 10:
How does Amazon CloudWatch contribute to managing and optimizing AWS infrastructure?
A By providing automated backup solutions for EC2 instances
B By monitoring resource utilization, performance metrics, and setting alarms
C By controlling user access to AWS services and resources
D By encrypting data stored in S3 buckets
Correct Answer: B
Explanation
Amazon CloudWatch is a comprehensive monitoring service designed to help administrators gain insights into their AWS resources and applications. It collects and tracks metrics such as CPU usage, memory consumption, disk I/O, and network traffic across services like EC2, RDS, and Lambda. With CloudWatch, users can visualize performance data through dashboards, set alarms to notify them of anomalies or threshold breaches, and trigger automated actions like scaling or recovery processes.
Option A is incorrect because backup solutions are managed by services like AWS Backup or EBS snapshots, not CloudWatch. Option B is the correct answer since CloudWatch’s primary function is to monitor, analyze, and alert on infrastructure and application health metrics. Option C relates to identity and access management, a task handled by AWS IAM rather than CloudWatch. Option D is inaccurate because encryption of data in storage services such as S3 is handled by AWS KMS or built-in encryption features, not CloudWatch.
By leveraging CloudWatch, organizations can proactively identify performance bottlenecks, optimize resource allocation, and maintain operational stability. The ability to automate responses to specific conditions through alarms and events supports efficient incident management and helps meet service-level agreements. CloudWatch’s integration with other AWS services enables a cohesive monitoring and management ecosystem, crucial for complex, scalable cloud environments.
