AWS · SAP-C02
AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional (SAP-C02) Practice Tests
Advanced AWS architecture practice covering organizational complexity, new solutions, continuous improvement, and migration and modernization for the retiring SAP-C02 exam.
Exam Details
Practice Questions
592
≈ 9 practice exams
Duration
180 minutes
Passing Score
750/1000
Difficulty
ProfessionalLast Updated
Oct 2026
Topics Covered
Organizational Complexity (26%)New Solutions (29%)Continuous Improvement (25%)Migration and Modernization (20%)
AWS SAP-C02 Solutions Architect Professional Practice Exam
SAP-C02 validates advanced architecture judgment across organizational complexity (26%), new solutions (29%), continuous improvement (25%), and migration and modernization (20%). AWS targets architects with two or more years of hands-on experience designing and implementing AWS solutions; there is no mandatory prerequisite certification.
The exam has 75 questions in 180 minutes, with 65 scored and 10 unscored items, and uses a 100-1,000 scale with 750 required to pass. AWS charges $300 USD and delivers the exam online or at Pearson VUE test centers. The credential remains valid for three years after it is earned.
Timing matters in 2026: AWS lists November 16 as the final day to take SAP-C02. SAP-C03 registration opens October 27 and testing begins November 17, adding agentic and generative AI, post-quantum security, and expanded resilience coverage. Use these 592 questions for the current SAP-C02 outline, and check the version shown in your booking before studying.
Exam Domain Breakdown
Design Solutions for Organizational Complexity26%
Design for New Solutions29%
Continuous Improvement for Existing Solutions25%
Accelerate Workload Migration and Modernization20%
Exam Overview
AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional SAP-C02 validates advanced architecture decisions across complex organizations, new solution design, continuous improvement, and migration and modernization. The current exam is retiring: AWS names November 16, 2026 as the final testing day, with SAP-C03 testing starting November 17 after registration opens October 27. A certification earned on SAP-C02 still remains valid for its normal three-year term.
Who Should Take This Exam
AWS targets solutions architects with at least two years of hands-on experience designing and implementing cloud solutions on AWS. Candidates should be able to evaluate business and technical requirements, compare several viable architectures, and make decisions across accounts, networks, security boundaries, data platforms, resilience targets, migrations, operations, and cost.
Prerequisites
AWS enforces no prerequisite certification. Its target-candidate guidance recommends two or more years of practical AWS architecture experience; an Associate credential can be useful preparation but is not required to register.
Exam Format
SAP-C02 has 75 questions in 180 minutes: 65 scored and 10 unscored items in multiple-choice and multiple-response formats. AWS reports a 100-1,000 scaled score, requires 750 to pass, and charges $300 USD. The exam is delivered by Pearson VUE online or at a test center.
Skills Measured
- 1.Design Solutions for Organizational Complexity (26%): multi-account governance, complex networking, cross-account security, continuity, and cost controls.
- 2.Design for New Solutions (29%): secure, reliable, high-performing, cost-optimized architectures and deployment strategies.
- 3.Continuous Improvement for Existing Solutions (25%): operational excellence, security, reliability, performance, and cost improvements.
- 4.Accelerate Workload Migration and Modernization (20%): migration assessment and execution plus modernization with managed, container, and serverless services.
Study Tips
- Confirm SAP-C02 is the version shown in the booking; its final testing day is November 16, 2026.
- Map every official task statement to a real architecture you have designed or can build in a lab.
- Practise multi-account, hybrid networking, identity, disaster recovery, database, and migration trade-offs together rather than service by service.
- Time full scenario sets because 75 dense questions in 180 minutes leaves limited rereading time.
- Eliminate answers against the stated cost, compliance, recovery, and operational constraints before choosing a service.
Career Benefits
This credential demonstrates professional-level AWS architecture judgment for senior solutions architect, cloud architect, platform lead, and consulting work. Its strongest value is evidence that the holder can balance competing enterprise constraints, not simply recall AWS service features.
Sample Questions
5 sample questions with answers and explanations. The full bank has 592 questions, enough for 9 full-length practice exams.
Preview — answers shown1. A supermarket’s e-commerce site must be fault-tolerant 24 × 7. Which deployment best meets the goal?
ATwo-AZ Auto Scaling group behind ALB and a single Reserved-instance RDS database.
BTwo-AZ Auto Scaling groups and RDS read replicas.
CThree-AZ Auto Scaling group behind ALB and RDS Multi-AZ deployment.
DThree-AZ Auto Scaling group behind an ALB plus RDS with read replicas.
Explanation
D spreads compute across three AZs and uses RDS Multi-AZ, which provides automatic failover, ensuring continuous availability even if an AZ fails. Read replicas (A, B) do not offer automatic failover. C relies on a single-AZ database.
2. A social app must show new comments instantly. Today the backend is Lambda + API Gateway + DynamoDB with simple REST paths. How can you deliver real-time comment updates to users?
APoll GET /comments/[id] every 3 seconds from the client.
BCache API responses in CloudFront with edge-optimised endpoints.
CRaise Lambda concurrency limits.
DSwitch to AWS AppSync with GraphQL and WebSocket subscriptions so comments push in real time.
Explanation
AppSync with GraphQL and WebSocket subscriptions is the correct solution because it supports real-time data delivery by pushing updates to clients as they occur, eliminating the need for polling.\n\nCaching API responses in CloudFront or implementing client-side polling of REST endpoints won't provide true real-time delivery. Caching introduces staleness, and polling creates latency between when comments are posted and when users see them, regardless of polling frequency.\n\nIncreasing Lambda concurrency limits only improves the function's ability to handle more simultaneous requests but doesn't change the fundamental pull-based request-response model. Real-time updates require a push mechanism, which WebSocket subscriptions provide through persistent connections that allow the server to send data to clients immediately when changes occur.
3. A media site currently runs on one EC2 instance bought as a Reserved Instance and bursts to On-Demand at 90 % CPU during peaks. What is the cheapest high-availability design that recovers quickly from an AZ outage?
AAuto Scaling Spot instances across AZs behind an ALB.
BAuto Scaling On-Demand instances across AZs behind an ALB.
CSpot Fleet of Spot instances across AZs behind an ALB.
DSpot Fleet mixing On-Demand and Spot instances across AZs behind an ALB.
Explanation
D blends low-cost Spot capacity with a baseline of On-Demand instances, spreads them across multiple AZs, and uses an ALB for health-based routing—minimising spend while maintaining resilience. A risks all capacity reclaimed. B is reliable but more expensive. C lacks guaranteed baseline capacity for steady load.
4. A retailer must process large catalog batches on demand, retry failed jobs, and run many batches at once. Which service should manage each workflow’s state and retries?
AUse AWS Step Functions to coordinate the batch steps and monitor progress in the console.
BOrchestrate with AWS Config rules and Step Functions, then visualise history in QuickSight.
CPoll an RDS table with Lambda and track status in SQL.
DBuild a custom scheduler around Amazon MQ and worker Lambdas.
Explanation
AWS Step Functions is the correct solution because it provides native state management, built-in retry logic, and parallel execution capabilities while offering a visual console to track every workflow's progress and history. The AWS Config approach is incorrect because Config is designed for compliance monitoring and resource configuration tracking, not workflow orchestration. Using Config rules for batch processing orchestration misapplies the service's intended purpose. The RDS polling solution is incorrect because it requires manually re-implementing orchestration logic that Step Functions provides out of the box. Building custom state tracking in SQL tables and polling with Lambda functions creates unnecessary complexity and maintenance overhead. The Amazon MQ approach is incorrect because MQ is a messaging service designed for application integration and message queuing, not a workflow orchestration engine. While MQ can facilitate communication between components, it lacks the state management, visual monitoring, and built-in retry capabilities needed for complex batch workflow coordination.
5. A VMware vCenter environment must migrate its VMs to AWS to produce EC2 AMIs. Which two steps form the core of the migration plan? (Select TWO.)
Multiple correct answersAUse AWS SAM to port VMs into an ECS cluster.
BProvision Direct Connect and manage migration with AWS Service Catalog.
CMirror the environment in CloudFormation templates.
DInstall the AWS Replication Agent on each on-premises VM host.
EUse AWS Application Migration Service (MGN) to replicate and launch the VMs as EC2 instances.
Explanation
D installs the agent needed for block-level replication. E uses MGN to automate VM replication, conversion, and AMI creation, giving a straightforward path to EC2. A, B, and C do not relate directly to VM replication.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does SAP-C02 retire?
AWS lists November 16, 2026 as the final testing day. SAP-C03 registration opens October 27 and SAP-C03 testing starts November 17.
How many questions are on SAP-C02?
The exam has 75 questions in 180 minutes. AWS identifies 65 as scored and 10 as unscored, but does not mark which items are unscored.
What score passes SAP-C02?
AWS uses a scaled score from 100 to 1,000 and requires 750 to pass. It uses compensatory scoring across the whole exam.
What are the SAP-C02 domain weights?
Organizational Complexity is 26%, New Solutions 29%, Continuous Improvement 25%, and Migration and Modernization 20%.
Does SAP-C02 require another AWS certification?
No. AWS has no mandatory certification prerequisite, although it targets candidates with at least two years of hands-on AWS architecture experience.
Will an SAP-C02 credential remain valid after SAP-C03 launches?
Yes. AWS certifications are valid for three years from the date earned; a version change does not shorten an existing credential.
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