Collect remote experiment data with Snowcone and an FTP server on edge compute

SAP-C02 By islever Editorial Last updated

Determine the optimal migration approach for existing workloads. Architect network connectivity strategies. Select existing workloads and processes for potential migration.

Short answer

C Use a Snowcone device, launch an EC2 instance on it, install an FTP server for the sensors, then return it for loading into S3.

Question

A company needs to gather data from an experiment in a remote location that does not have internet connectivity. During the experiment, sensors that are connected to a local network will generate 6 TB of data in a proprietary format over the course of 1 week. The sensors can be configured to upload their data files to an FTP server periodically, but the sensors do not have their own FTP server. The sensors also do not support other protocols. The company needs to collect the data centrally and move the data to object storage in the AWS Cloud as soon as possible after the experiment. Which solution will meet these requirements?
  1. Order an AWS Snowball Edge Compute Optimized device. Connect the device to the local network. Configure AWS DataSync with a target bucket name, and unload the data over NFS to the device. After the experiment, return the device to AWS so that the data can be loaded into Amazon S3.
  2. Order an AWS Snowcone device, including an Amazon Linux 2 AMI. Connect the device to the local network. Launch an Amazon EC2 instance on the device. Create a shell script that periodically downloads data from each sensor. After the experiment, return the device to AWS so that the data can be loaded as an Amazon Elastic Block Store (Amazon EBS) volume.
  3. Order an AWS Snowcone device, including an Amazon Linux 2 AMI. Connect the device to the local network. Launch an Amazon EC2 instance on the device. Install and configure an FTP server on the EC2 instance. Configure the sensors to upload data to the EC2 instance. After the experiment, return the device to AWS so that the data can be loaded into Amazon S3. Correct Answer
  4. Order an AWS Snowcone device. Connect the device to the local network. Configure the device to use Amazon FSx. Configure the sensors to upload data to the device. Configure AWS DataSync on the device to synchronize the uploaded data with an Amazon S3 bucket. Return the device to AWS so that the data can be loaded as an Amazon Elastic Block Store (Amazon EBS) volume.

Key Takeaways

Snowcone is a portable edge device that brings EC2 compute to the remote location, so an EC2 instance on the device can run the FTP server the sensors require, and the device is then returned to AWS so the data can be loaded into S3.

Sensors on a local network with no internet connectivity will generate 6 TB of proprietary-format data over one week, and the sensors can upload to an FTP server but have no FTP server of their own and support no other protocol. The data must be collected centrally and moved to S3 as soon as the experiment ends.

Common mistake: Using Snowball Edge with DataSync over NFS. The sensors cannot write to NFS, they can only upload over FTP, so there is no way to get the data onto the device's NFS export in the first place. Choosing Snowcone over Snowball Edge matters because Snowcone is the portable compute-optimized device for short-duration edge workloads.

Expert Analysis

Why the Answer Is Correct

The hard constraint is that the sensors speak only FTP and have no server, so something on the remote network must terminate FTP. AWS Snowcone is a portable edge computing device that includes an Amazon Linux 2 AMI, and an EC2 instance launched on the device sits on the same local network as the sensors, so an FTP server installed on that instance becomes the destination the sensors upload to. This keeps the sensors unchanged and works with no internet connectivity, because the devices only need local network reachability. After the week-long experiment, the device is returned to AWS so the 6 TB can be loaded into Amazon S3, and Snowcone is designed for precisely this pattern of short-duration portable edge compute with a modest data volume.

Why the Other Options Are Wrong

A: Snowball Edge Compute Optimized is designed for edge workloads with higher local compute needs and longer deployments, and critically the sensors cannot write to NFS, so unloading data to the device over NFS as described is not something the sensors can do. B: The option returns the data as an Amazon EBS volume rather than loading it into S3, so it does not meet the object storage requirement, and it also invents a shell script pulling from each sensor when the sensors push to an FTP server. D: Snowcone does not provide Amazon FSx, and DataSync is not preinstalled on the device in the way described, so the configuration in the option does not exist. Even if it did, the sensors still need an FTP server to upload to, which the option never provides.

Community Comment Notes

The community voted 100 to 0 for C, and the deciding argument repeated across several top comments is that the sensors support only FTP, so an FTP server must be installed on an EC2 instance on the Snowcone device. One dissenting comment favoured D for its DataSync automation, but it does not address the FTP requirement that every other answer turns on.

Official Reference

https://docs.aws.amazon.com/snowball/latest/ug/snowball-edge-compute.html

This link opens the official vendor documentation in a new tab.

Community Votes

C
100%

100% of anonymous learners picked answer C. Votes are pick records left by other test-takers — they are not the verified answer.

Discussion 9 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 9

  1. trungtd 👍 2 Answered C
    Since the sensors only support FTP for data upload, installing and configuring an FTP server on the EC2 instance is essential. This setup allows the sensors to periodically upload their data files to the Snowcone device.
  2. CMMC 👍 2 Answered C
    Sensors only support FTP protocol. Leverage the native capabilities of Snowcone and EC2, providing an efficient method for collecting data.
  3. sarlos 👍 2
    Snowcone is specialized for huge data migration.
  4. VerRi 👍 2 Answered C
    Snowcone edge computing + FTP data transfer
  5. djangoUnchained 👍 2 Answered C
    C is the only one which uses FTP
Show 4 more comments
  1. AzureDP900 👍 1
    D sounds good to me.Option D proposes using an AWS Snowcone device: Configuring it to use Amazon FSx. Configuring the sensors to upload data to the device. Setting up AWS DataSync on the device to synchronize the uploaded data with an Amazon S3 bucket. This approach allows for seamless data collection, synchronization, and loading into Amazon S3 without requiring additional configuration or latency introduced by EC2 instances or shell scripts. Therefore, Option D is the most suitable choice given the requirements.
  2. pangchn 👍 1 Answered C
    agree on C, since need FTP server which is the only supported method. AWS snowball seems support EC2 too, but not in any answer
  3. VerRi 👍 2 Answered C
    C, because of FTP
  4. Dgix 👍 1 Answered C
    C, for FTP.

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