AWS (Amazon Web Services) Certification Practice Exam

What is a major characteristic of EBS Volumes in AWS?

1. They cannot be attached to EC2 instances

2. They provide temporary data storage

3. They allow for persistent storage of data

4. They are used solely for backups

The correct answer is: They allow for persistent storage of data

EBS (Elastic Block Store) Volumes are a critical component of AWS's storage solutions, specifically designed to provide persistent storage for data that is attached to EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) instances. This characteristic means that the data stored in EBS Volumes remains intact, even when the associated EC2 instance is stopped or terminated. By leveraging EBS, users can store and manage data that requires durability and availability over time, making it suitable for applications like databases, file systems, and enterprise applications where data needs to be reliably retained. This persistence is essential for any applications that require long-term data storage, as compared to temporary storage solutions like EC2 instance store, which lose data when instances are terminated. The other options relate to characteristics that do not accurately represent the functionality of EBS. For instance, EBS Volumes can indeed be attached to EC2 instances, which clarifies their purpose in the cloud architecture. They are not solely designed for backing up data; rather, they are primary storage solutions that may also be utilized for backup purposes depending on the architecture and strategy used. Thus, the defining trait of EBS Volumes is their ability to provide persistent storage that supports various applications and use cases within the AWS ecosystem.