AWS Certified Data Engineer – AssociateData Storage and ManagementMedium
A media company stores large video files in Amazon S3. These files are accessed frequently for the first 30 days after upload, then accessed once every 90 days for content review, and finally archived for regulatory compliance for 5 years with very rare access. The company wants to minimize storage costs while ensuring appropriate access performance. Which S3 storage class transition policy should be implemented?
- ATransition to S3 One Zone-IA after 30 days, then to S3 Standard after 120 days.
- BTransition to S3 Infrequent Access (S3-IA) after 30 days, then to S3 Glacier after 120 days.
- CTransition to S3 Standard after 30 days, then to S3 Glacier Deep Archive after 120 days.
- DTransition to S3 Glacier Deep Archive after 30 days, then to S3 Intelligent-Tiering after 120 days.
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: B. Transition to S3 Infrequent Access (S3-IA) after 30 days, then to S3 Glacier after 120 days.
This policy aligns with the access pattern: S3 Standard (default) for frequent access, S3-IA for infrequent access (every 90 days), and S3 Glacier for archival (very rare access over 5 years), minimizing costs while meeting performance needs.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. S3 One Zone-IA lacks multi-AZ durability, and transitioning back to S3 Standard is illogical for rarely accessed data.
- C. Transitioning to S3 Standard after 30 days is incorrect; S3 Standard is the default for frequent access. Deep Archive is too slow for 'once every 90 days'.
- D. Glacier Deep Archive has high retrieval costs and delays, unsuitable for 'once every 90 days' access. Intelligent-Tiering is for unknown/changing access patterns, not a planned transition.
S3 Lifecycle Policies
S3 Lifecycle policies define rules to automatically transition objects to different S3 storage classes or expire them after a specified time, optimizing storage costs based on access patterns.
- Automate storage class transitions
- Optimizes storage costs
- Based on object age or access patterns
- Can also be used to expire objects
Memory trick: Standard to IA, then to Glacier for cheap, deep archival.