Most Cost-Effective 7-Year Retention for EBS Snapshots?

SAA-C03 By islever Editorial Last updated

Design cost-optimized storage solutions. Determine appropriate data security controls.

Short answer

B Use Amazon EBS Snapshots Archive with a 7-year retention policy to store monthly snapshots cost-effectively with minimal administrative effort.

Question

A company uses Amazon EC2 instances and Amazon Elastic Block Store (Amazon EBS) to run its self-managed database. The company has 350 TB of data spread across all EBS volumes. The company takes daily EBS snapshots and keeps the snapshots for 1 month. The daily change rate is 5% of the EBS volumes. Because of new regulations, the company needs to keep the monthly snapshots for 7 years. The company needs to change its backup strategy to comply with the new regulations and to ensure that data is available with minimal administrative effort. Which solution will meet these requirements MOST cost-effectively?
  1. Keep the daily snapshot in the EBS snapshot standard tier for 1 month. Copy the monthly snapshot to Amazon S3 Glacier Deep Archive with a 7-year retention period.
  2. Continue with the current EBS snapshot policy. Add a new policy to move the monthly snapshot to Amazon EBS Snapshots Archive with a 7-year retention period. Correct Answer
  3. Keep the daily snapshot in the EBS snapshot standard tier for 1 month. Keep the monthly snapshot in the standard tier for 7 years. Use incremental snapshots.
  4. Keep the daily snapshot in the EBS snapshot standard tier. Use EBS direct APIs to take snapshots of all the EBS volumes every month. Store the snapshots in an Amazon S3 bucket in the Infrequent Access tier for 7 years.

Key Takeaways

The question tests cost-optimized long-term backup for EBS volumes, and the trap is assuming S3 Glacier Deep Archive is always cheaper while ignoring the administrative effort and lack of a native EBS-to-Glacier copy.

This scenario tests the most cost-effective way to retain monthly EBS snapshots for 7 years with minimal administrative effort. The analysis shows that Amazon EBS Snapshots Archive (B) is the correct choice because it natively automates long-term snapshot retention, while copying to S3 Glacier Deep Archive requires significant manual effort.

Common mistake: Many candidates choose A because S3 Glacier Deep Archive has a lower storage price per GB, but they overlook that there is no native, low-effort way to copy EBS snapshots to Glacier, and restoring data for a self-managed database would be complex and slow.

Expert Analysis

Why the Answer Is Correct

Option B is correct because Amazon EBS Snapshots Archive is purpose-built for long-term retention of EBS snapshots, supporting retention periods of 90 days or more and automating the archive via Amazon Data Lifecycle Manager (DLM). The monthly snapshots are ideal candidates for archiving, unlike daily incremental snapshots, and DLM can enforce the 7-year compliance requirement with minimal administrative effort. Restoring an archived snapshot recreates a standard EBS snapshot, so the self-managed database data remains available in the native EBS ecosystem. Although S3 Glacier Deep Archive has a lower per-GB storage price, it cannot natively receive EBS snapshots; exporting data to S3 requires creating volumes, attaching them to EC2, and copying files, which violates the minimal administrative effort requirement. Therefore, B delivers the best balance of cost and effort for this regulatory scenario.

Why the Other Options Are Wrong

Option A appears cheaper on paper, but there is no native AWS feature to copy an EBS snapshot directly into S3 Glacier Deep Archive; you must first create volumes from snapshots, attach them to EC2 instances, copy the files to S3, and then apply a Glacier lifecycle, which is far from minimal effort. Option C keeps monthly snapshots in the EBS standard tier for 7 years, which is prohibitively expensive because standard EBS snapshot storage costs about four times more than the archive tier. Option D proposes using EBS direct APIs to take snapshots and store them in S3 Infrequent Access, but EBS direct APIs are for reading snapshot blocks for custom backup tools, not a turnkey backup strategy, and S3 IA is not cost-optimized for 7-year retention. None of these alternatives satisfy both the cost and the minimal-effort requirements as cleanly as B.

Community Comment Notes

Community opinion is split, with a slight majority favoring A, but several comments highlight B's advantages. As Scheldon noted, Glacier looks appealing until you realize "there is no easy way to copy from EBS to Glacier" and the current strategy uses incremental snapshots. Zahran23 points out that archiving is recommended for monthly snapshots, which matches the requirement to archive monthly snapshots for 7 years. Johnoppong101 lists the exact criteria for EBS Snapshot Archive, including regulatory compliance and faster restore times than S3 Glacier. Some voters, like 802c4ff, incorrectly claim that moving from EBS to EBS archive cannot be automated, but Amazon Data Lifecycle Manager supports archive policies that make B the low-effort choice.

Official Reference

These links open the official vendor documentation in a new tab.

Exam Strategy

When a question emphasizes minimal administrative effort alongside cost, prefer native AWS backup features like EBS Snapshots Archive over do-it-yourself exports to S3 Glacier. Always verify whether a direct copy between services exists; if not, hidden operational costs make it a distractor.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is copying monthly EBS snapshots to S3 Glacier Deep Archive not the best answer?

No native copy exists from EBS snapshot to S3 Glacier; you must create volumes from snapshots, attach them to EC2, and copy files, adding significant admin overhead and delays.

Can Amazon Data Lifecycle Manager automate EBS snapshot archiving?

Yes, DLM lifecycle policies automatically move monthly EBS snapshots to the archive tier and can delete them after the 7-year retention period.

More SAA-C03 FAQ →

Community Votes

A
51%
B
49%

51% of anonymous learners picked answer A. Votes are pick records left by other test-takers — they are not the verified answer.

Discussion 25 contributions

Compiled from public community threads and reader submissions, lightly edited for clarity. Handles and vote tallies are shown as recorded, and comments reflect the views of individual contributors.

From public community threads 25

  1. Scheldon 👍 8 Answered B
    AnswerB The problem is that we need to choose best solution which is most cost-effective and have minimal administrative effort. Glacier is the best choice for 1st look, but there is one problem with that solution. From what I know there is no easy way to copy from EBS to Glacier and additionally curent strategy is to make incremental snapshots. To copy file from EBS to (s3) Glacier we would need to run linux to which we will mount EBS and we will need copy everything to S3 and then move to glaceir deep archive. And what is more you will have only incremental snapshot. Hence every solution which will say copy/move to S3 is not minimal administrative effort. Not mentionig that you will not have full snapshot https://repost.aws/questions/QUsaCoBAfbR6WMOz6BH3vqHA/move-ebs-to-glacier
  2. rondelldell 👍 7 Answered A
    How much does EBS snapshots archive cost? Pricing and billing. Archived snapshots are billed at a rate of $0.0125 per GB-month. For example, if you archive a 100 GiB snapshot, you are billed $1.25 (100 GiB * $0.0125) per month. What is the cost of Glacier? Even though uploading data to Amazon S3 Glacier is free, there is a pricing method for upload requests, which is $0.03 per 1,000 requests. Transferring data out of S3 Glacier to the same region is free; however, there is a cost for transferring data to a different region. • $0.0036 per GB / Month
  3. Zahran23 👍 5 Answered A
    Option (B) is incorrect due to the following: Archiving is recommended for monthly, quarterly, or yearly snapshots. Archiving daily incremental snapshots of a single volume can lead to higher costs when compared to keeping them in the standard tier. https://docs.aws.amazon.com/ebs/latest/userguide/snapshot-archive.html
  4. MatAlves 👍 4 Answered B
    If we consider both cost and administrative effort more closely: EBS Snapshots Archive may be easier to manage but could incur higher costs over 7 years compared to S3 Glacier. S3 Glacier, despite its complexity for initial transfers, could end up being more cost-effective in the long run, especially for large data volumes. Ultimately, if minimizing costs is a primary concern and the organization can handle the initial complexity of transferring snapshots, using S3 Glacier (Option A) could still be worth considering. So, while Option B is easier, if cost is a significant factor, Option A might be the better choice despite the additional administrative effort involved. It's a trade-off that depends on the organization's priorities regarding cost and operational simplicity.
  5. dhewa 👍 4 Answered A
    Keyword here is cost. S3 Glacier deep archive is significantly cheaper than keeping snapshots in the EBS snapshot standard tier or even the EBS Snapshots Archive.
Show 20 more comments
  1. 802c4ff 👍 4 Answered A
    it's not possibile to automate the moving from ebs to ebs archive so i'll go with A, that also cost less
  2. Johnoppong101 👍 3 Answered B
    Choose EBS Snapshot Archive when: Data is associated with EBS volumes. You need to maintain point-in-time copies of your EBS volumes. You require faster restore times than S3 Glacier Archive. You need to comply with regulations requiring EBS snapshot retention.
  3. joseantoniopolo 👍 3 Answered B
    Maybe B? https://repost.aws/knowledge-center/ebs-copy-snapshot-data-s3-create-volume
  4. Lin878 👍 3 Answered A
    I would like to vote "A". we have to focus on the cost as per question.
  5. LeonSauveterre 👍 2 Answered A
    A - S3 Glacier Deep Archive is designed for long-term data archiving with a retention period of up to 7 years or more at an extremely low cost (the most cost-effective S3 storage class). B - OK but EBS Snapshots Archive costs more. C - Keep the monthly snapshot in the standard tier for 1 month, OK. For 7 years??? You'll pay so much money for that. The standard EBS snapshot tier is designed for frequent access. D - Storing snapshots directly in Amazon S3 (even in the Infrequent Access tier) is not ideal for EBS snapshots because it doesn't leverage EBS snapshot mechanisms, which are designed for efficient storage and management of EBS backup data.
  6. Awsbeginner87 👍 2 Answered B
    By default, when you create a snapshot, it is stored in the Amazon EBS Snapshot Standard tier (standard tier). Snapshots stored in the standard tier are incremental. This means that only the blocks on the volume that have changed after your most recent snapshot are saved. Some typical use cases include: Archiving the only snapshot of a volume, such as end-of-project snapshots Archiving full, point-in-time incremental snapshots for compliance reasons. Archiving monthly, quarterly, or yearly incremental snapshots. https://docs.aws.amazon.com/ebs/latest/userguide/ snapshot-archive.html
  7. TwinSpark 👍 2 Answered B
    looks like an archivesituation for me https://docs.aws.amazon.com/ebs/latest/userguide/snapshot-archive.html The option A is actually cheaper, but i do not like the word copy, and as far as i know there is no way, without writing custom code, to automate che move of snapshot to glacier and i think that the purposu of this question is to show that you know that there is the snapshot archive option
  8. xBUGx 👍 2 Answered D
    i know S3 Glacier Deep is much cheaper than S3 Standard IA in optionD but A also says Copy, not move. does it mean it will still keep a copy on the snapshot on EBS? i forgot to vote D
  9. xBUGx 👍 2
    i know S3 Glacier Deep is much cheaper than S3 Standard IA in optionD but A also says Copy, not move. does it mean it will still keep a copy on the snapshot on EBS?
  10. Tanidanindo 👍 2 Answered B
    https://docs.aws.amazon.com/ebs/latest/userguide/snapshot-archive.html
  11. kelmryan1 👍 2
    B , there is not admin effort for bringing it back
  12. Arnaud92 👍 1 Answered C
    Daily and Monthly Snapshots: Keeping daily snapshots in the EBS snapshot standard tier for 1 month ensures that recent backups are readily available for quick recovery. Incremental Snapshots: Using incremental snapshots reduces storage costs by only capturing and storing the changes made since the last snapshot. This approach minimizes the amount of data transferred and stored, optimizing costs while ensuring that backup data is up to date. Minimal Administrative Effort: This solution requires minimal administrative effort as it leverages existing EBS snapshot functionality and does not require manual intervention to move snapshots to other storage classes or manage additional backup policies.
  13. Salilgen 👍 1 Answered B
    "EBS Snapshots are stored incrementally." "The snapshots are automatically saved to Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) for long-term retention" "Save up to 75% in snapshot storage costs by using EBS Snapshots Archive for the long-term retention (over 90 days) of seldom-accessed snapshots." Moreover, copy files (option A) requires more administrative effort than automatic policy. https://aws.amazon.com/ebs/snapshots/#:~:text=available%20and%20durable-,Amazon%20EBS%20Snapshots%20are%20a%20convenient%20way%20to%20back%20up,availability%20of%20your%20EBS%20Snapshots.
  14. ARV14 👍 1 Answered B
    https://repost.aws/knowledge-center/ebs-copy-snapshot-data-s3-create-volume. =>I want to copy an Amazon Elastic Block Store (Amazon EBS) snapshot to my Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) bucket. I also want to create Amazon EBS volumes from data that's stored in my S3 bucket. Looks like B Short description When you create an EBS snapshot, it's automatically stored in an Amazon S3 bucket that AWS manages. You can copy snapshots within the same AWS Region, or from one Region to another. However, you can't copy snapshots to S3 buckets that you manage.
  15. tch 👍 1 Answered B
    Amazon EBS Snapshots Archive is a storage tier that you can use for low-cost, long-term storage of your rarely-accessed snapshots that do not need frequent or fast retrieval. Move to S3... more job, so A is not a good idea... Only 5% daily change.. would consider cheaper than S3 for long run... (MOST cost-effectively) I don't think in the exam need to calculate cost per $, how to remember? Just add new policy to move the snapshot to Amazon EBS Snapshots Archive (minimal administrative effort)
  16. NSA_Poker 👍 1 Answered B
    (A) is incorrect. Although S3 Glacier Deep Archive is cheaper, to copy the monthly EBS snapshot to S3 would leave a container filled with incremental snapshots that would need to be first assembled into a full snapshot before it could be available. Amazon EBS Snapshots Archive stores full snapshots ensuring 'that data is available with minimal administrative effort'.
  17. nadeerm 👍 1 Answered B
    Cost Efficiency : Amazon EBS Snapshots Archive is designed to provide a cost-effective option for long-term storage of EBS snapshots. By moving monthly snapshots to the archive tier, you will significantly reduce the cost
  18. Dantecito 👍 1 Answered A
    A or B but I will choose A because Is the MOST cost-effectively and companies will always choose to save money.
  19. gigilla 👍 1 Answered A
    A: Amazon S3 Glacier Deep Archive
  20. Abdullah2004 👍 3 Answered A
    A is correct answer

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