AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate
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A company uses AWS Cost Explorer to monitor its AWS costs. The company notices that Amazon Elastic Block Store (Amazon EBS) storage and snapshot costs increase every month. However, the company does not purchase additional EBS storage every month. The company wants to optimize monthly costs for its current storage usage.
Which solution will meet these requirements with the LEAST operational overhead?
Other
Community
UAnonymous
A
Use logs in Amazon CloudWatch Logs to monitor the storage utilization of Amazon EBS. Use Amazon EBS Elastic Volumes to reduce the size of the EBS volumes.
B
Use a custom script to monitor space usage. Use Amazon EBS Elastic Volumes to reduce the size of the EBS volumes.
C
Delete all expired and unused snapshots to reduce snapshot costs.
D
Delete all nonessential snapshots. Use Amazon Data Lifecycle Manager to create and manage the snapshots according to the company's snapshot policy requirements.
Explanation:
Explanation
Correct Answer: D
Why Option D is correct:
- Addresses both storage and snapshot costs: The problem states that both EBS storage and snapshot costs are increasing monthly, even though no additional EBS storage is purchased. This suggests that snapshot accumulation is likely the primary cost driver.
- Least operational overhead: Amazon Data Lifecycle Manager (DLM) automates snapshot creation, retention, and deletion based on defined policies, eliminating manual intervention.
- Comprehensive solution: Deleting nonessential snapshots provides immediate cost reduction, while DLM ensures ongoing cost optimization through automated lifecycle management.
- AWS-managed service: DLM is a fully managed AWS service that requires minimal operational overhead once configured.
Why other options are incorrect:
Option A: Using CloudWatch Logs to monitor storage utilization and Elastic Volumes to resize volumes:
- Only addresses storage costs, not snapshot costs
- Requires ongoing monitoring and manual intervention
- Higher operational overhead than automated solutions
Option B: Using custom scripts to monitor space usage and Elastic Volumes:
- Similar to Option A, only addresses storage costs
- Custom scripts require development, maintenance, and monitoring
- Highest operational overhead among all options
Option C: Deleting all expired and unused snapshots:
- Provides only temporary relief
- Does not prevent future accumulation of snapshots
- Requires ongoing manual intervention
- Does not address the root cause of automated snapshot management
Key AWS Concepts:
- Amazon Data Lifecycle Manager (DLM): Automates the creation, retention, and deletion of EBS snapshots and EBS-backed AMIs
- EBS Snapshot Costs: Snapshots incur storage costs based on the amount of data stored, and costs accumulate as more snapshots are retained
- Cost Optimization Principle: Automate processes to reduce manual intervention and operational overhead
Best Practice: When dealing with recurring storage costs from snapshots, implement automated lifecycle policies using DLM to ensure only necessary snapshots are retained for appropriate durations.
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