Pass the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate Certification SAA-C03-(Episode 15: AWS Storage Extras)

📌 Notice

Welcome to the series of blog in my AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate (SAA-C03) exam preparation series! If you’re looking to pass this challenging yet rewarding certification, you’re in the right place.

Throughout this blog series, you’ll master core AWS architecture concepts — from IAM security fundamentals to advanced VPC networking, cost-optimized EC2 deployments, serverless patterns with Lambda, and multi-region disaster recovery strategies. We’ll break down all key services (S3, RDS, CloudFront etc.) through real-world solution architectures and exam-focused scenarios. Each post will include hands-on walkthroughs, pro tips for the SAA-C03 exam, and best practices used by AWS professionals. Get ready to transform from AWS beginner to certified Solutions Architect!

Note : The blog will be updated with the extra questions and CDK Implementation in a timely manner

🌟 Introduction

In today’s cloud-powered world, organizations often need to move vast amounts of data, bridge on-premises systems with the cloud, and support hybrid workflows with flexibility and speed. AWS offers a comprehensive suite of services to meet these needs. Whether you’re physically migrating petabytes of data using AWS Snowball, running high-performance file systems via Amazon FSx, building hybrid cloud storage with AWS Storage Gateway, securely transferring files with AWS Transfer Family, or automating large-scale transfers through AWS DataSync — each service is designed to streamline your data movement, synchronization, and access across environments. This blog explores how these tools work together to support scalable, secure, and efficient cloud storage strategies.

AWS Snowball

• Highly-secure, portable devices to collect and process data at the
  edge, and migrate data into and out of AWS
• Helps migrate up to Petabytes of data

Data Migrations with Snowball

Diagrams

Direct upload to S3

With Snowball

What is Edge Computing?

• Process data while it’s being created on an edge location
  • A truck on the road, a ship on the sea, a mining station underground

• These locations may have limited internet and no access to computing power
• We setup a Snowball Edge device to do edge computing
  • Snowball Edge Compute Optimized (dedicated for that use case) & Storage Optimized
  • Run EC2 Instances or Lambda functions at the edge

Use cases: preprocess data, machine learning, transcoding media

Solution Architecture: Snowball into Glacier

• Snowball cannot import to Glacier directly
• You must use Amazon S3 first, in combination with an S3 lifecycle policy

Amazon FSx

AWS doesn’t just stop at block and object storage — it also gives you the power to launch fully managed, high-performance file systems using Amazon FSx. These services are ideal for running enterprise-grade applications, migrating on-prem NAS workloads, or powering compute-intensive workloads like ML and HPC.

Let’s break down each FSx offering:

1. Amazon FSx for Windows (File Server)

If you’re looking for fully managed Windows-native file storage, this is your go-to service.

Key Features:

• Supports SMB protocol and NTFS file system
• Deep Active Directory integration, access control lists (ACLs), and user quotas
• Compatible with Microsoft DFS Namespaces for unifying distributed shares
• Can be mounted by Windows and Linux EC2 instances
• Access from on-premises using VPN or AWS Direct Connect
• Daily automated backups to Amazon S3
• Multi-AZ deployments available for high availability

Storage Options:

• SSD — Great for low-latency, IOPS-intensive workloads like databases, analytics, and media
• HDD — Cost-effective for home directories, CMS, and broad workloads

2. Amazon FSx for Lustre

Lustre is a parallel file system designed for high-performance computing (HPC) and big data use cases.

Ideal For:

• Machine learning
• Video rendering & processing
• Financial simulations
• Scientific workloads (EDA, genomics, etc.)

Why Use It?

• Sub-millisecond latencies, 100s of GB/s throughput, and millions of IOPS
• Integrates directly with Amazon S3
• You can mount an S3 bucket as a Lustre file system
• Computation results can be written back to S3

Storage Options:

• SSD — For small, random file ops and IOPS-heavy workloads
• HDD — For large, sequential data (e.g., video encoding)

FSx Lustre — File System Deployment Options

Scratch File System

• Temporary storage
• Data is not replicated (doesn’t persist if file server fails)
• High burst (6x faster, 200MBps per TiB)

Usage: short-term processing, optimize costs

Persistent File System

• Long-term storage
• Data is replicated within same AZ
• Replace failed files within minutes

Usage: long-term processing, sensitive data

Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP

Want to lift-and-shift workloads from a NetApp NAS system?

FSx for NetApp ONTAP offers enterprise-grade features with familiar protocols.

Highlights:

• Supports NFS, SMB, iSCSI
• Works with Linux, Windows, macOS, VMware, and all AWS compute services
• Automatic capacity scaling, efficient storage via:

1. Compression
2. Deduplication
3. Instantaneous Snapshots
4. Point-in-time cloning for dev/test environments

It’s perfect for enterprises with existing ONTAP infrastructure that want to modernize without re-architecting.

Amazon FSx for OpenZFS

Built For:

• Developers and enterprises using OpenZFS on-prem
• Lift-and-shift of Linux/Unix ZFS workloads into AWS

Features:

• NFS support (v3 — v4.2)
• High performance: <0.5 ms latency, up to 1 million IOPS
• Advanced data protection via:

1. Snapshots
2. Compression
3. Instant cloning for dev/test workflows

Supports: Linux, Windows, macOS, VMware, EC2, EKS, and more.

Summary Table — FSx Offerings

Hybrid Cloud for Storage

As organizations continue to shift workloads to the cloud, hybrid storage solutions have become essential to ensure seamless integration between on-premises infrastructure and the cloud. AWS Storage Gateway is a powerful hybrid cloud storage service that acts as a bridge between on-premises applications and cloud-based storage.

Whether you’re dealing with legacy backup workflows, tiered storage, or disaster recovery, AWS Storage Gateway offers flexible solutions tailored to your needs. Let’s explore the different types of storage gateways and how they can help modernize your storage strategy.

AWS Storage Cloud Native Options

What is AWS Storage Gateway?

AWS Storage Gateway enables secure integration between on-premises environments and AWS cloud storage. It allows you to use cloud-backed storage for files, volumes, or tapes while maintaining low-latency access to frequently used data via local caching.

Use Cases Include:

• Backup & restore
• Disaster recovery
• Hybrid cloud workloads
• On-premises caching
• Cloud-tiered storage

Types of AWS Storage Gateway

1. Amazon S3 File Gateway

Amazon S3 File Gateway allows on-premises systems to access S3 buckets via standard NFS or SMB protocols. It caches frequently accessed files locally for low-latency performance and supports:

• S3 storage classes (Standard, IA, One Zone-IA, Intelligent Tiering)
• Lifecycle policies to move data to S3 Glacier
• IAM-based bucket access
• SMB integration with Active Directory

This is ideal for teams needing access to cloud storage using familiar file-sharing protocols.

2. Amazon FSx File Gateway

This gateway provides native, low-latency access to Amazon FSx for Windows File Server. It supports Windows-native features like:

• NTFS file systems
• SMB protocol
• Active Directory authentication

Perfect for organizations with Windows-based environments, this gateway is well-suited for group file shares and home directories.

*Note: Amazon FSx Gateway will dis continued and don’t need to focus on exam after June 2025

3. Volume Gateway

Volume Gateway provides iSCSI block storage, backed by Amazon S3 and EBS snapshots. There are two modes:

• Cached volumes: Most data in the cloud, with frequently accessed data cached locally
• Stored volumes: Entire dataset stored locally, with scheduled backups to AWS

This is a great fit for organizations requiring block-level access while gradually moving data to the cloud.

4. Tape Gateway

Tape Gateway is designed for businesses still using tape-based backup workflows. It offers a Virtual Tape Library (VTL) compatible with popular backup software, using:

• S3 for short-term storage
• S3 Glacier or Glacier Deep Archive for long-term retention

It allows you to preserve legacy processes while transitioning away from physical tape infrastructure.

AWS Storage Gateway Comparison Table

Storage Gateway — Hardware appliance

Traditionally, AWS Storage Gateway requires a virtual machine to run on-premises. But if your organization lacks virtualization infrastructure or prefers a turnkey solution, you can purchase a Storage Gateway Hardware Appliance directly from Amazon.com.

Key Benefits:

• Preconfigured with the required CPU, memory, SSD cache, and network performance
• Supports File Gateway, Volume Gateway, and Tape Gateway
• Ideal for small data centers or daily NFS backups without virtual environments

It provides a streamlined experience for companies wanting hybrid cloud functionality without managing VM infrastructure.

AWS Transfer Family

Need to transfer files securely using familiar protocols like FTP, SFTP, or FTPS?

The AWS Transfer Family is a fully managed service that integrates directly with Amazon S3 or Amazon EFS, supporting external partners, customers, or internal teams.

Supported Protocols:

• FTP (File Transfer Protocol)
• FTPS (FTP over SSL)
• SFTP (Secure FTP)

Key Features:

• Highly available, scalable, and managed infrastructure (multi-AZ)
• Pay-as-you-go pricing based on provisioned endpoints and data transferred
• Credential management built-in or via integration (AD, LDAP, Okta, Cognito)
• Commonly used for sharing files, ERP/CRM data, and public datasets

With AWS Transfer Family, you can replace legacy FTP servers without disrupting existing workflows.

AWS DataSync

AWS DataSync is a high-speed, automated data transfer service that enables you to move large datasets between on-premises, other clouds, and AWS storage services.

Use Cases:

• On-premises to AWS (e.g., NFS, SMB, HDFS to S3, EFS, FSx)
• AWS to AWS transfers (e.g., S3 to FSx), no agent required

Key Capabilities:

• Transfer to Amazon S3 (any class, even Glacier), EFS, FSx
• Scheduled syncs: hourly, daily, or weekly
• Preserves file metadata and permissions (POSIX/Samba)
• A single agent can utilize up to 10 Gbps, with bandwidth throttling options

AWS DataSync is ideal for migration, backup, or ongoing synchronization of data between environments.

AWS DataSync — NFS / SMB to AWS (S3, EFS, FSx…)

AWS DataSync — Transfer between AWS storage services

Storage Comparison

Quick Decision Guide

1. Object Storage? → S3 (hot) or Glacier (cold).
2. Block Storage? → EBS (persistent) or Instance Store (temp).
3. Shared File Storage?

• Linux → EFS or FSx Lustre (HPC).
• Windows → FSx for Windows.
• Enterprise → FSx ONTAP/OpenZFS.

4. Hybrid/On-Prem? → Storage Gateway or Snow Family

5. Database? → RDS, DynamoDB, etc.

Quiz

Question 1:

You need to move hundreds of Terabytes into Amazon S3, then process the data using a fleet of EC2 instances. You have a 1 Gbit/s broadband. You would like to move the data faster and possibly processing it while in transit. What do you recommend?

Correct Answer: (4) It offers the ability to pre-process your data during the transfer to Amazon S3, which is essential for handling large volumes efficiently while utilizing your existing network bandwidth effectively. This ensures faster data transfer and processing, aligning perfectly with your needs.

Question 2:

You want to expose virtually infinite storage for your tape backups. You want to keep the same software you’re using and want an iSCSI compatible interface. What do you use?

Correct Answer: (2) It provides a virtual tape library solution that integrates with existing backup applications via an iSCSI interface, allowing you to manage virtually infinite storage for your tape backups seamlessly. This aligns perfectly with your requirement to maintain the same software while expanding your storage capacity.

Question 3:

Your EC2 Windows Servers need to share some data by having a Network File System mounted on them which respects the Windows security mechanisms and has integration with Microsoft Active Directory. What do you recommend?

Correct Answer: (1) It is specifically designed to provide a fully managed Windows file system that supports Windows-based applications and integrates seamlessly with Active Directory, thus meeting your requirements for data sharing among EC2 Windows Servers with Windows security mechanisms.

Question 4:

You have hundreds of Terabytes that you want to migrate to AWS S3 as soon as possible. You tried to use your network bandwidth and it will take around 3 weeks to complete the upload process. What is the recommended approach to using in this situation?

Correct Answer: (3) It facilitates the rapid transfer of large data volumes to Amazon S3, enabling you to bypass limitations of your existing network bandwidth. By using this service, you can efficiently manage the migration of hundreds of terabytes, significantly reducing the time required compared to standard uploads.

Question 5:

You have a large dataset stored in S3 that you want to access from on-premises servers using the NFS or SMB protocol. Also, you want to authenticate access to these files through on-premises Microsoft AD. What would you use?

Correct Answer: (2) It effectively allows on-premises access to Amazon S3 using the NFS or SMB protocols, while also supporting authentication through on-premises Microsoft Active Directory. This aligns perfectly with your requirement to access a large dataset stored in S3 in a familiar file-sharing manner.

Question 6:

You are planning to migrate your company’s infrastructure from on-premises to AWS Cloud. You have an on-premises Microsoft Windows File Server that you want to migrate. What is the most suitable AWS service you can use?

Correct Answer: (1) It is specifically designed to migrate Windows File Servers to the cloud, providing a fully managed Windows file system that integrates with your existing Microsoft Active Directory. This ensures a smooth transition while maintaining familiar tools and permissions for your applications and users.

Question 7:

You would like to have a distributed POSIX compliant file system that will allow you to maximize the IOPS in order to perform some High-Performance Computing (HPC) and genomics computational research. This file system has to easily scale to millions of IOPS. What do you recommend?

Correct Answer: (2) It is specifically designed for high-performance workloads, providing a POSIX-compliant distributed file system that can scale to millions of IOPS, making it ideal for HPC and genomics computational research. This choice aligns perfectly with your requirements for performance and scalability.

Question 8:

Which deployment option in the FSx file system provides you with long-term storage that’s replicated within AZ?

Correct Answer: (2) It is designed for long-term storage, ensuring that your data is replicated within the same Availability Zone (AZ). This feature provides added protection against data loss, allowing for quick recovery of failed files, which aligns with the goal of maintaining data integrity over time.

Question 9:

Which of the following protocols is NOT supported by AWS Transfer Family?

Correct Answer: (3) It is not supported by the AWS Transfer Family, which primarily uses FTP and its variations for file transfers. Understanding this distinction helps clarify the types of protocols used in AWS services for secure data transfer, aligning with your learning objectives around AWS transfer services.

Question 10:

A company uses a lot of files and data which is stored in an FSx for Windows File Server storage on AWS. Those files are currently used by the resources hosted on AWS. There’s a requirement for those files to be accessed on-premises with low latency. Which AWS service can help you achieve this?

Correct Answer: (3) It enables on-premises access to files stored in Amazon FSx for Windows File Server with low latency, allowing you to integrate cloud storage seamlessly into your existing workflows. This choice effectively meets your requirement for accessing frequently used files on-premises while benefiting from the scalability of AWS.

Question 11:

A Solutions Architect is working on planning the migration of a startup company from on-premises to AWS. Currently, their infrastructure consists of many servers and 30 TB of data hosted on a shared NFS storage. He has decided to use Amazon S3 to host the data. Which AWS service can efficiently migrate the data from on-premises to S3?

Correct Answer: (4) It is specifically designed for transferring large amounts of data from on-premises storage to AWS services like Amazon S3 efficiently and securely. This aligns perfectly with the learning objective of understanding the appropriate AWS services for data migration tasks.

Question 12:

Which AWS service is best suited to migrate a large amount of data from an S3 bucket to an EFS file system?

Correct Answer: (2) It is optimized for transferring large datasets between AWS storage services, making it the ideal choice for migrating data from S3 to EFS efficiently and securely. This reinforces your understanding of how to effectively manage data transfers within AWS.

Question 13:

A Machine Learning company is working on a set of datasets that are hosted on S3 buckets. The company decided to release those datasets to the public to be useful for others in their research, but they don’t want to configure the S3 bucket to be public. And those datasets should be exposed over the FTP protocol. What can they do to do the requirement efficiently and with the least effort?

Correct Answer: (1) It allows you to expose your datasets in S3 over the FTP protocol without making the S3 bucket public, facilitating secure access with minimal configuration. This choice aligns well with your objective of efficiently sharing data while maintaining control over access.

Question 14:

Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP is compatible with the following protocols, EXCEPT…….

Correct Answer: (3) Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP does not support the FTP protocol, while it is compatible with NFS, SMB, and iSCSI. This reinforces your understanding of the compatibility of AWS services with different protocols, which is essential for effective data management solutions.

Question 15:

A company is running Amazon S3 File Gateway to host their data on S3 buckets and is able to mount them on-premises using SMB. The data currently is hosted on S3 Standard storage class and there is a requirement to reduce the costs for S3. So, they have decided to migrate some of those data to S3 Glacier. What is the most efficient way they can use to move the data to S3 Glacier automatically?

Correct Answer: (3) It allows for automated management of your S3 storage class transitions, efficiently moving data from S3 Standard to S3 Glacier based on specified rules. This choice aligns with the objective of reducing costs while ensuring data is managed effectively over time.

Question 16:

You have on-premises sensitive files and documents that you want to regularly synchronize to AWS to keep another copy. Which AWS service can help you with that?

Correct Answer: (3) It is specifically designed to automate and accelerate the transfer of data between on-premises storage and AWS, making it ideal for regularly synchronizing sensitive files and documents. This aligns with your learning by highlighting how to effectively utilize AWS services for data management.

Question 17:

AWS DataSync supports the following locations, EXCEPT ………………..

Correct Answer: (2) AWS DataSync does not support this service for direct data transfers; it primarily interfaces with S3, EFS, FSx for Windows File Server, making your choice accurate. Understanding this distinction reinforces your knowledge of AWS service capabilities and their specific use cases.

SAA-C03 Sample Questions

Question 1

Domain: Design High-Performing Architectures

A company is in the process of migrating its on-premises SMB file shares to AWS so the company can get out of the business of managing multiple file servers across dozens of offices. The company has 200 terabytes of data in its file servers. The existing on-premises applications and native Windows workloads should continue to have low latency access to this data which needs to be stored on a file system service without any disruptions after the migration. The company also wants any new applications deployed on AWS to have access to this migrated data.

Which of the following is the best solution to meet this requirement?

Overall explanation

✅ Correct option:

Use Amazon FSx File Gateway to provide low-latency, on-premises access to fully managed file shares in Amazon FSx for Windows File Server. The applications deployed on AWS can access this data directly from Amazon FSx in AWS

For user or team file shares, and file-based application migrations, Amazon FSx File Gateway provides low-latency, on-premises access to fully managed file shares in Amazon FSx for Windows File Server. For applications deployed on AWS, you may access your file shares directly from Amazon FSx in AWS.

For your native Windows workloads and users, or your SMB clients, Amazon FSx for Windows File Server provides all of the benefits of a native Windows SMB environment that is fully managed and secured and scaled like any other AWS service. You get detailed reporting, replication, backup, failover, and support for native Windows tools like DFS and Active Directory.

❌ Incorrect options:

Use Amazon Storage Gateway’s File Gateway to provide low-latency, on-premises access to fully managed file shares in Amazon FSx for Windows File Server. The applications deployed on AWS can access this data directly from Amazon FSx in AWS — When you need to access S3 using a file system protocol, you should use File Gateway. You get a local cache in the gateway that provides high throughput and low latency over SMB.

AWS Storage Gateway’s File Gateway does not support file shares in Amazon FSx for Windows File Server, so this option is incorrect.

AWS Storage Gateway’s File Gateway:

Use AWS Storage Gateway’s File Gateway to provide low-latency, on-premises access to fully managed file shares in Amazon S3. The applications deployed on AWS can access this data directly from Amazon S3 — When you need to access S3 using a file system protocol, you should use File Gateway. You get a local cache in the gateway that provides high throughput and low latency over SMB.

The given use case requires low latency access to data which needs to be stored on a file system service after migration. Since S3 is an object storage service, so this option is incorrect.

Use Amazon FSx File Gateway to provide low-latency, on-premises access to fully managed file shares in Amazon EFS. The applications deployed on AWS can access this data directly from Amazon EFS — Amazon FSx File Gateway provides access to fully managed file shares in Amazon FSx for Windows File Server and it does not support EFS. You should also note that EFS uses the Network File System version 4 (NFS v4) protocol and it does not support SMB protocol. Therefore this option is incorrect for the given use case.

References:
https://aws.amazon.com/storagegateway/file/fsx/
https://aws.amazon.com/storagegateway/faqs/
https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/storage/aws-reinvent-recap-choosing-storage-for-on-premises-file-based-workloads/

Question 2

Domain: Design High-Performing Architectures

An Electronic Design Automation (EDA) application produces massive volumes of data that can be divided into two categories. The ‘hot data’ needs to be both processed and stored quickly in a parallel and distributed fashion. The ‘cold data’ needs to be kept for reference with quick access for reads and updates at a low cost.

Which of the following AWS services is BEST suited to accelerate the aforementioned chip design process?

Overall explanation

✅ Correct option:

Amazon FSx for Lustre

Amazon FSx for Lustre makes it easy and cost-effective to launch and run the world’s most popular high-performance file system. It is used for workloads such as machine learning, high-performance computing (HPC), video processing, and financial modeling. The open-source Lustre file system is designed for applications that require fast storage — where you want your storage to keep up with your compute. FSx for Lustre integrates with Amazon S3, making it easy to process data sets with the Lustre file system. When linked to an S3 bucket, an FSx for Lustre file system transparently presents S3 objects as files and allows you to write changed data back to S3.

FSx for Lustre provides the ability to both process the ‘hot data’ in a parallel and distributed fashion as well as easily store the ‘cold data’ on Amazon S3. Therefore this option is the BEST fit for the given problem statement.

❌ Incorrect options:

Amazon FSx for Windows File Server — Amazon FSx for Windows File Server provides fully managed, highly reliable file storage that is accessible over the industry-standard Service Message Block (SMB) protocol. It is built on Windows Server, delivering a wide range of administrative features such as user quotas, end-user file restore, and Microsoft Active Directory (AD) integration. FSx for Windows does not allow you to present S3 objects as files and does not allow you to write changed data back to S3. Therefore you cannot reference the “cold data” with quick access for reads and updates at low cost. Hence this option is not correct.

Amazon EMR — Amazon EMR is the industry-leading cloud big data platform for processing vast amounts of data using open source tools such as Apache Spark, Apache Hive, Apache HBase, Apache Flink, Apache Hudi, and Presto. Amazon EMR uses Hadoop, an open-source framework, to distribute your data and processing across a resizable cluster of Amazon EC2 instances. EMR does not offer the same storage and processing speed as FSx for Lustre. So it is not the right fit for the given high-performance workflow scenario.

AWS Glue — AWS Glue is a fully managed extract, transform, and load (ETL) service that makes it easy for customers to prepare and load their data for analytics. AWS Glue job is meant to be used for batch ETL data processing. AWS Glue does not offer the same storage and processing speed as FSx for Lustre. So it is not the right fit for the given high-performance workflow scenario.

References:
https://aws.amazon.com/fsx/lustre/
https://aws.amazon.com/fsx/windows/faqs/

Question 3:

Domain: Design Cost-Optimized Architectures

As part of a pilot program, a biotechnology company wants to integrate data files from its on-premises analytical application with AWS Cloud via an NFS interface.

Which of the following AWS service is the MOST efficient solution for the given use-case?

Overall explanation

✅ Correct option:

AWS Storage Gateway — File Gateway

AWS Storage Gateway is a hybrid cloud storage service that gives you on-premises access to virtually unlimited cloud storage. The service provides three different types of gateways — Tape Gateway, File Gateway, and Volume Gateway — that seamlessly connect on-premises applications to cloud storage, caching data locally for low-latency access.

AWS Storage Gateway’s file interface, or file gateway, offers you a seamless way to connect to the cloud in order to store application data files and backup images as durable objects on Amazon S3 cloud storage. File gateway offers SMB or NFS-based access to data in Amazon S3 with local caching. As the company wants to integrate data files from its analytical instruments into AWS via an NFS interface, therefore AWS Storage Gateway — File Gateway is the correct answer.

❌ Incorrect options:

AWS Storage Gateway — Volume Gateway — You can configure the AWS Storage Gateway service as a Volume Gateway to present cloud-based iSCSI block storage volumes to your on-premises applications. Volume Gateway does not support NFS interface, so this option is not correct.

AWS Storage Gateway — Tape Gateway — AWS Storage Gateway — Tape Gateway allows moving tape backups to the cloud. Tape Gateway does not support NFS interface, so this option is not correct.

AWS Site-to-Site VPN — AWS Site-to-Site VPN enables you to securely connect your on-premises network or branch office site to your Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (Amazon VPC). You can securely extend your data center or branch office network to the cloud with an AWS Site-to-Site VPN (Site-to-Site VPN) connection. It uses internet protocol security (IPSec) communications to create encrypted VPN tunnels between two locations. You cannot use AWS Site-to-Site VPN to integrate data files via the NFS interface, so this option is not correct.

References:
https://aws.amazon.com/storagegateway/
https://aws.amazon.com/storagegateway/volume/
https://aws.amazon.com/storagegateway/file/
https://aws.amazon.com/storagegateway/vtl/

Question 4:

Domain: Design High-Performing Architectures

A large financial institution operates an on-premises data center with hundreds of petabytes of data managed on Microsoft’s Distributed File System (DFS). The CTO wants the organization to transition into a hybrid cloud environment and run data-intensive analytics workloads that support DFS.

Which of the following AWS services can facilitate the migration of these workloads?

Overall explanation

✅ Correct option:

Amazon FSx for Windows File Server

Amazon FSx for Windows File Server provides fully managed, highly reliable file storage that is accessible over the industry-standard Service Message Block (SMB) protocol. It is built on Windows Server, delivering a wide range of administrative features such as user quotas, end-user file restore, and Microsoft Active Directory (AD) integration. Amazon FSx supports the use of Microsoft’s Distributed File System (DFS) to organize shares into a single folder structure up to hundreds of PB in size. So this option is correct.

How Amazon FSx for Windows File Server Works:

❌ Incorrect options:

Amazon FSx for Lustre

Amazon FSx for Lustre makes it easy and cost-effective to launch and run the world’s most popular high-performance file system. It is used for workloads such as machine learning, high-performance computing (HPC), video processing, and financial modeling. Amazon FSx enables you to use Lustre file systems for any workload where storage speed matters. FSx for Lustre does not support Microsoft’s Distributed File System (DFS), so this option is incorrect.

AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory (AWS Managed Microsoft AD)

AWS Directory Service for Microsoft Active Directory, also known as AWS Managed Microsoft AD, enables your directory-aware workloads and AWS resources to use managed Active Directory in the AWS Cloud. AWS Managed Microsoft AD is built on the actual Microsoft Active Directory and does not require you to synchronize or replicate data from your existing Active Directory to the cloud. AWS Managed Microsoft AD does not support Microsoft’s Distributed File System (DFS), so this option is incorrect.

Microsoft SQL Server on AWS

Microsoft SQL Server on AWS offers you the flexibility to run Microsoft SQL Server database on AWS Cloud. Microsoft SQL Server on AWS does not support Microsoft’s Distributed File System (DFS), so this option is incorrect.

References : https://aws.amazon.com/fsx/windows/

🧾 Conclusion

Together, AWS Snowball, Amazon FSx, Storage Gateway, Transfer Family, and DataSync form a powerful toolkit for managing modern data workflows — whether you’re transferring massive datasets, building hybrid cloud environments, or deploying high-speed file systems. These services not only simplify data migration and storage but also enhance security, scalability, and performance across both cloud and on-premises environments. By choosing the right combination of these tools, organizations can accelerate cloud adoption, modernize IT infrastructure, and future-proof their data strategies.

Next Episode : “Pass the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate Certification SAA-C03! (Episode 16: Decoupling Applications )”

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