The AWS Solutions Architect – Associate (SAA-C03) exam tests your ability to design secure, scalable, fault-tolerant, and cost-efficient solutions on AWS.
Many candidates fail because they memorize services without understanding architectures. This 90-day plan combines structured learning, hands-on labs, and 50 practice questions to ensure success.
90-Day Study Plan
| Phase | Days | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 1 | 1–30 | Core AWS Services & Foundations |
| Phase 2 | 31–60 | Architecture Design & Exam Scenarios |
| Phase 3 | 61–90 | Practice Exams, Mock Tests & Revision |
Phase 1 (Days 1–30): Learn the Foundations
Study Topics
- AWS Global Infrastructure: Regions, AZs, Edge locations
- IAM: Users, Groups, Roles, Policies, MFA
- Compute: EC2, Lambda, Elastic Beanstalk
- Storage: S3, EBS, EFS, Glacier
- Networking basics: VPC, subnets, Security Groups
Hands-On Tasks
- Launch EC2 and attach EBS
- Create S3 buckets and apply lifecycle policies
- Configure IAM users with least privilege
- Draw your first VPC diagram
Key Tips
- Understand why you use a service, not just what it does
- Start building architecture diagrams
Phase 2 (Days 31–60): Architecture Design & Exam Services
Study Topics
- Compute & Containers: Lambda, ECS, EKS, Auto Scaling, ELB
- Databases: RDS, Aurora, DynamoDB, ElastiCache
- Networking: VPC, subnets, NAT Gateway, Route 53, VPN
- Security: KMS, WAF, Shield, Secrets Manager
- Disaster Recovery & High Availability Patterns
Hands-On Tasks
- Deploy a multi-AZ RDS instance
- Build a 3-tier architecture: ALB + EC2 + RDS
- Configure VPC with public/private subnets and security groups
Key Tips
- Focus on exam-style scenario questions
- Diagram multi-service architectures to understand dependencies
Phase 3 (Days 61–90): Practice & Exam Strategy
What to Do
- Take full-length mock exams
- Identify weak areas and revise
- Focus on scenario-based questions
- Review AWS Well-Architected Framework and cost optimization
Exam Tips
- Look for keywords: cost-effective, highly available, low-latency
- Eliminate overly complicated solutions
- Favor managed services when possible
50 AWS Solutions Architect – Associate Practice Questions
Here are 50 high-yield questions with answers, covering core domains: compute, storage, networking, databases, security, cost optimization, and architecture.
Compute & Serverless (Q1–10)
- Which service provides serverless compute?
A. EC2
B. ECS
C. Lambda
D. Beanstalk
Answer: C - Which service automatically manages EC2 infrastructure?
A. Lambda
B. Elastic Beanstalk
C. S3
D. CloudFront
Answer: B - EC2 instance type for CPU-intensive workloads?
A. T3
B. M5
C. C5
D. R5
Answer: C - Which is best for running containers?
A. EC2
B. ECS
C. S3
D. Lambda
Answer: B - Serverless pricing is based on:
A. Instance hours
B. Storage size
C. Requests & duration
D. Monthly fee
Answer: C - Which service is used for batch processing?
A. Lambda
B. Batch
C. EC2
D. Beanstalk
Answer: B - Elastic Beanstalk handles:
A. Storage
B. Compute provisioning
C. DNS
D. IAM
Answer: B - Which service supports auto scaling for EC2?
A. CloudWatch
B. Auto Scaling Groups
C. Lambda
D. S3
Answer: B - Which service is fully managed serverless?
A. EC2
B. Lambda
C. ECS on EC2
D. Beanstalk
Answer: B - When to use spot instances?
A. Critical workloads
B. Fault-tolerant, flexible workloads
C. Databases
D. Production websites
Answer: B
Storage & Databases (Q11–20)
- Best for long-term archival?
A. S3 Standard
B. Glacier
C. EBS
D. EFS
Answer: B - Shared file storage for EC2?
A. S3
B. EFS
C. Glacier
D. DynamoDB
Answer: B - Managed relational database?
A. RDS
B. DynamoDB
C. EC2 MySQL
D. Aurora Serverless
Answer: A - NoSQL, serverless DB?
A. RDS
B. DynamoDB
C. Aurora
D. Redshift
Answer: B - Which DB supports automatic backups?
A. DynamoDB
B. RDS
C. EC2 MySQL
D. S3
Answer: B - Read replicas in RDS are for:
A. Backup
B. High availability
C. Scaling read workloads
D. Encryption
Answer: C - Multi-AZ in RDS provides:
A. Cost optimization
B. High availability
C. Performance boost
D. Security
Answer: B - DynamoDB pricing is based on:
A. Storage only
B. Read/write capacity
C. Instance hours
D. Monthly subscription
Answer: B - S3 bucket object storage type?
A. Blocks
B. Objects
C. Tables
D. Files
Answer: B - Fastest caching layer?
A. DynamoDB
B. ElastiCache
C. S3
D. RDS
Answer: B
Networking & Content Delivery (Q21–30)
- Which component isolates AWS resources?
A. Region
B. VPC
C. Edge location
D. Availability Zone
Answer: B - Public subnet has?
A. NAT Gateway
B. Internet Gateway
C. Private IP only
D. None
Answer: B - Security groups are:
A. Stateless
B. Stateful
C. Routing rules
D. DNS records
Answer: B - NACLs are:
A. Stateful
B. Stateless
C. Load balancers
D. Encryption
Answer: B - Route 53 provides:
A. Compute
B. DNS
C. Storage
D. Security
Answer: B - VPN connection used for?
A. Connect AWS to on-premises securely
B. Load balancing
C. CDN
D. Serverless compute
Answer: A - PrivateLink allows:
A. Direct VPC-to-service communication
B. Multi-AZ deployment
C. Caching
D. Encryption
Answer: A - CloudFront is used for:
A. Compute
B. DNS
C. Content delivery
D. Security
Answer: C - NAT Gateway used for:
A. Outbound traffic from private subnets
B. Inbound traffic to public subnet
C. Encryption
D. Monitoring
Answer: A - VPC Peering connects:
A. Subnets in the same VPC
B. Two VPCs privately
C. Edge locations
D. CloudFront distributions
Answer: B
Security & Identity (Q31–40)
- Who manages keys in AWS?
A. IAM
B. KMS
C. S3
D. CloudTrail
Answer: B - MFA strengthens:
A. Network security
B. User authentication
C. Storage security
D. Cost optimization
Answer: B - WAF protects against?
A. DDoS
B. SQL injections & web attacks
C. Malware
D. Spam emails
Answer: B - Shield Standard protects?
A. EC2 only
B. All AWS services from DDoS
C. IAM policies
D. S3 buckets
Answer: B - Secrets Manager stores?
A. EC2 keys
B. Database credentials & API keys
C. IAM policies
D. S3 objects
Answer: B - Principle of least privilege ensures:
A. Full access to users
B. Minimal required permissions
C. MFA enforcement
D. Logging only
Answer: B - CloudTrail logs:
A. API activity
B. CPU usage
C. Billing only
D. S3 storage
Answer: A - GuardDuty detects:
A. Threats & suspicious activity
B. DDoS attacks
C. Storage leaks
D. Cost overruns
Answer: A - VPC endpoint avoids:
A. NAT gateway cost
B. Internet exposure for private resources
C. Subnet creation
D. CloudFront usage
Answer: B - KMS encryption can be:
A. At rest only
B. In transit only
C. Both at rest & in transit
D. Optional
Answer: A
Cost Optimization & Architecture (Q41–50)
- Cheapest for flexible, interruptible workloads?
A. On-Demand
B. Reserved
C. Spot
D. Savings Plan
Answer: C - Reserved Instances provide:
A. Cost predictability & savings
B. On-demand scaling
C. Serverless compute
D. Auto Scaling
Answer: A - AWS Cost Explorer used to:
A. Monitor API calls
B. Analyze & optimize costs
C. Deploy EC2
D. Configure VPC
Answer: B - Multi-AZ ensures:
A. High availability
B. Low cost
C. Data backup only
D. Serverless compute
Answer: A - Multi-Region ensures:
A. Fault tolerance across regions
B. Cost savings
C. VPC peering
D. Auto Scaling
Answer: A - Well-Architected Framework pillar focusing on costs?
A. Security
B. Reliability
C. Cost Optimization
D. Performance Efficiency
Answer: C - Managed services help:
A. Reduce operational overhead
B. Increase complexity
C. Increase cost only
D. Replace IAM
Answer: A - Pilot Light DR strategy uses:
A. Full standby environment
B. Minimal core environment with backups
C. Only snapshots
D. Multi-Region auto scaling
Answer: B - CloudWatch monitors:
A. API calls
B. Metrics & alarms
C. Billing only
D. IAM roles
Answer: B - Choosing S3 vs EFS depends on:
A. Object vs file storage needs
B. Instance type
C. VPC configuration
D. IAM policies
Answer: A
Final Tips for the Exam
- Focus on understanding AWS services in real-world scenarios
- Practice drawing architecture diagrams
- Take multiple mock exams and analyze mistakes
- Remember the Well-Architected Framework pillars
- Favor managed services and cost-efficient designs
Conclusion
By following this 90-day roadmap, doing hands-on labs, and practicing with these 50 questions, you’ll be well-prepared to pass the AWS Solutions Architect – Associate (SAA-C03) exam confidently.
Think like an architect, not just a technician and the exam will feel like a review of what you already know.
