Lowest Cost S3 Storage Class for Rare Access
A company stores a large amount of data that auditors access only twice each year. Which Amazon S3 storage class should the company use to store the data with the LOWEST cost?
Community Votes
65% of anonymous learners picked answer B. Votes are pick records left by other test-takers — they are not the verified answer.
Community Insight
Tests knowledge of S3 storage class pricing models and retrieval speeds, with the common trap being the selection of Intelligent-Tiering due to its automation rather than absolute lowest unit price.
Determines the most cost-effective Amazon S3 storage class for data accessed only twice a year, identifying Glacier Instant Retrieval as the optimal choice among available options.
Selecting Intelligent-Tiering (D) because it is often the default answer for 'unknown access patterns,' but failing to account for retrieval fees that make it more expensive than Glacier Instant Retrieval for strictly infrequent access.
Community Discussion (11 comments)
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Expert Analysis
Why the Answer Is Correct
Amazon S3 Glacier Instant Retrieval is designed for long-lived data stored for at least 90 days that is accessed once a quarter or less frequently. It provides millisecond retrieval times at the lowest storage costs for infrequently accessed data. Since the auditors access the data only twice a year, this aligns perfectly with the use case for Glacier Instant Retrieval, which offers lower storage costs compared to Standard, Intelligent-Tiering, and Outposts.Why the Other Options Are Wrong
S3 Standard (C) is for frequently accessed data and has the highest storage cost. S3 Intelligent-Tiering (D) automatically moves data between tiers, but for data with known, predictable low access (twice a year), the Archive Access Tier incurs retrieval fees ($0.01/GB) that make it more expensive overall than Glacier Instant Retrieval ($0.004/GB storage + $0.03/GB retrieval). S3 Outposts (A) is for on-premises-like environments and is not optimized for lowest cost archival.Community Comment Notes
The majority correctly identified B, noting that Intelligent-Tiering is better for unpredictable access patterns. One commenter calculated costs showing Intelligent-Tiering's retrieval fees add up. Another noted that while Glacier Deep Archive would be cheaper, it wasn't an option, making Glacier Instant Retrieval the best remaining choice for fast retrieval needs.Official Reference
Exam Strategy
When asked for the 'lowest cost' for infrequent access, always compare S3 Glacier Instant Retrieval against S3 Intelligent-Tiering (Archive Access Tier). If the access pattern is known and rare (e.g., quarterly), Glacier Instant Retrieval is typically cheaper due to lower per-GB storage costs, whereas Intelligent-Tiering adds value for unknown patterns.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is Intelligent-Tiering not the cheapest here?
Intelligent-Tiering has retrieval fees for the Archive Access Tier. For known rare access (twice/year), Glacier Instant Retrieval's lower storage rate outweighs these fees.
Is Glacier Deep Archive cheaper?
Yes, Glacier Deep Archive is cheaper for storage, but it has slower retrieval times (minutes to hours). This question implies need for standard access, and Deep Archive wasn't an option.
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