AWS SOA-C02 Drill: Storage Performance - Cost-Effective High IOPS for Windows Workloads

Jeff’s Note

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Unlike generic exam dumps, ADH analyzes this scenario through the lens of a Real-World Site Reliability Engineer (SRE).

For SOA-C02 candidates, the confusion often lies in balancing high storage performance with cost efficiency without over-provisioning. In production, this is about knowing exactly which EBS volume types or managed file systems provide consistent IOPS at the lowest cost, especially for Windows-compatible workloads. Let’s drill down.

The Certification Drill (Simulated Question)

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Scenario

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TechNova Inc., a company running critical business applications on Windows EC2 instances, requires durable and highly consistent storage performance. Their workload demands a storage volume capable of sustaining 10,000 IOPS to maintain application responsiveness. The operations team is tasked with selecting a storage solution that meets this IOPS requirement but without incurring unnecessary costs from over-provisioned capacity.

The Requirement:

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Choose the most cost-effective AWS storage solution that delivers 10,000 IOPS consistently for a Windows workload without paying for unneeded extra storage capacity.

The Options

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• A) Provision an io1 (Provisioned IOPS SSD) EBS volume with 10,000 provisioned IOPS.
• B) Provision a gp3 (General Purpose SSD) EBS volume configured with 10,000 provisioned IOPS.
• C) Use an Amazon EFS file system configured with Max I/O throughput mode.
• D) Use an Amazon FSx for Windows File Server file system provisioned for 10,000 IOPS.

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Correct Answer

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B

Quick Insight: The SOA-C02 Imperative

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• For an SRE, selecting the right EBS volume is critical for predictable performance and cost control.
• While io1 volumes allow provisioned IOPS, gp3 volumes now support configurable IOPS independently from size, making gp3 the better cost/performance balance for high IOPS needs without over-provisioning capacity.

Content Locked: The Expert Analysis

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You’ve identified the answer. But do you know the implementation details that separate a Junior from a Senior?

The Expert’s Analysis

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Correct Answer

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Option B

The Winning Logic

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Amazon EBS gp3 volumes, introduced as the next generation of general-purpose SSD storage, allow you to provision up to 16,000 IOPS independently of volume size. This means TechNova can request exactly 10,000 IOPS without having to inflate volume storage beyond what is necessary. This eliminates paying for unused capacity just to access higher IOPS, unlike older gp2 volumes or io1 volumes with over-provisioning requirements.

• gp3 supports consistent, single-digit millisecond latency suitable for Windows workloads.
• Compared to io1, gp3 is significantly cheaper per IOPS provisioned.
• Using FSx for Windows is an option but generally has higher minimum throughput and cost profiles.
• EFS in Max I/O mode scales performance but is a network file system—not block storage—and adds latency and complexity; also, Max I/O mode optimizes for throughput, not consistent low-latency IOPS.

The Trap (Distractor Analysis):

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• Option A (io1 with 10,000 IOPS): io1 requires provisioning an EBS volume size proportional to IOPS (minimum provisioned size to sustain 10,000 IOPS may be higher); this often leads to paying for storage you don’t actually need, increasing costs.
• Option C (EFS Max I/O): EFS is a shared file system over NFS, adding complexity and latency; Max I/O mode is optimized for throughput scaling, not consistent single-digit ms IOPS.
• Option D (FSx for Windows File Server): FSx is optimized for Windows file shares but typically has higher baseline throughput and cost; may be overkill and not cost-efficient for this IOPS requirement alone.

The Technical Blueprint

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# CLI command to create a gp3 EBS volume with a provisioned 10,000 IOPS
aws ec2 create-volume \
  --region us-east-1 \
  --availability-zone us-east-1a \
  --size 500 \               # Only size required for data (not inflated for IOPS)
  --volume-type gp3 \
  --iops 10000

The Comparative Analysis

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Real-World Application (Practitioner Insight)

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Exam Rule

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For the exam, always pick gp3 volumes for high IOPS block storage workloads when you want predictable throughput and cost control without over provisioning capacity.

Real World

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In practice, FSx is chosen when Windows-based SMB file system semantics are required (e.g., Active Directory integration), but for raw block storage with IOPS needs on Windows EC2, gp3 offers a leaner cost structure.

(CTA) Stop Guessing, Start Mastering

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Disclaimer

This is a study note based on simulated scenarios for the SOA-C02 exam.