AWS Certified Database - Specialty (DBS-C01) Certification Guide

Kate Gawron

• Publisher: Packt Publishing
• Year: 2022
• eBook ISBN: 9781803240053
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Computer Science
• Subtopic: Certification Guides in Computer Science
• Index: Computer Science

Pass the AWS Certified Database- Specialty Certification exam with the help of practice tests Key Features• Understand different AWS database technologies and when to use them• Master the management and administration of AWS databases using both the console and command line• Complete, up-to-date coverage of DBS-C01 exam objectives to pass it on the first attemptBook DescriptionThe AWS Certified Database – Specialty certification is one of the most challenging AWS certifications. It validates your comprehensive understanding of databases, including the concepts of design, migration, deployment, access, maintenance, automation, monitoring, security, and troubleshooting. With this guide, you'll understand how to use various AWS databases, such as Aurora Serverless and Global Database, and even services such as Redshift and Neptune. You'll start with an introduction to the AWS databases, and then delve into workload-specific database design. As you advance through the chapters, you'll learn about migrating and deploying the databases, along with database security techniques such as encryption, auditing, and access controls. This AWS book will also cover monitoring, troubleshooting, and disaster recovery techniques, before testing all the knowledge you've gained throughout the book with the help of mock tests. By the end of this book, you'll have covered everything you need to pass the DBS-C01 AWS certification exam and have a handy, on-the-job desk reference guide.What you will learn• Become familiar with the AWS Certified Database – Specialty exam format• Explore AWS database services and key terminology• Work with the AWS console and command line used for managing the databases• Test and refine performance metrics to make key decisions and reduce cost• Understand how to handle security risks and make decisions about database infrastructure and deployment• Enhance your understanding of the topics you've learned using real-world hands-on examples• Identify and resolve common RDS, Aurora, and DynamoDB issuesWho this book is forThis AWS certification book is for database administrators and IT professionals who perform complex big data analysis as well as students looking to get AWS Database Specialty certified. A solid understanding of cloud computing, specifically AWS services, is a must. Knowledge of basic administration tasks such as logging in and running SQL queries will be helpful.

Part 1: Introduction to Databases on AWS

This section provides an overview of the AWS Database Specialty exam. It also introduces database fundamentals and ensures you have a good base level of database knowledge before delving deeper into AWS-specific concepts.

This section includes the following chapters:

• Chapter 1, AWS Certified Database – Specialty Exam Overview
• Chapter 2, Understanding Database Fundamentals
• Chapter 3, Understanding AWS Infrastructure

Chapter 1: AWS Certified Database – Specialty Overview

The AWS certifications are some of the most prized in the IT industry. The specialty level exams demonstrate a high level of knowledge about the chosen subject, and obtaining such as certification can lead to increased salaries, better career options, and recognition. The first step on this path is to begin learning all the skills and techniques that will be covered in the exam and this book aims to be a comprehensive guide that will aid you greatly during your preparation.

Before we start studying the technical areas covered in the exam, it is worthwhile discussing the exam format and what types of questions will be asked. You can use this information to aid your learning as you progress through this book. You will learn how the exam works, how long you have to complete it, and how many questions there will be. You'll then learn the specific domains in the exam and the likely number of questions on each domain before learning some useful exam tips to guide you in your approach during the exam to maximize your marks.

In this chapter, we are going to cover the following topics:

• Exam format
• Exam domains
• Database security
• Exam tips

First, let's look at the exam format itself so you know what to expect when you book the AWS Certified Database – Specialty exam to when you earn that pass!

Exam format

All AWS exams are taken electronically either at a test center or remotely via an online proctoring session.

The exam lasts 180 minutes and there will be 65 questions.

The pass mark will vary slightly between each exam, but the minimum will always be 750 out of 1000. This variation is due to some questions being rated as more or less difficult than the default, so they are weighted for fairness. As a rough guide, a pass would be obtained by answering 50 questions correctly.

You are not penalized for incorrect answers, so you should attempt to answer all questions even if you do not know the answer.

The exam starts with a short opening section where you need to confirm your details, the exam you are taking, and the copyright that you may not share the exam questions. Once this is done, you will be given a brief overview of the exam and how to navigate through the screens.

The majority of the questions are situational style, requiring you to be able to interpret the question to work out the correct answer.

The questions are all multiple choice with two different styles:

• Multiple choice: Has one correct answer and three incorrect answers.
• Multiple answer: Has two or more correct answers out of five or more options. The question will state how many answers are expected.

You can mark each question for review at the end.

At the end of the exam, there is a survey about the exam and your preparation for it. You must complete this before receiving your exam result.

You will receive your pass or fail result immediately once you complete the survey, but you will not receive your full results and the score achieved until it has been verified. This verification normally takes 3 working days. Once the verification has been completed, you will receive an email to your registered address and you will be able to obtain your full score report, showing how well you performed on each domain. This is especially useful if you do not meet the passing grade as you will be given areas to focus your studies on for the next attempt.

Now that you understand what happens after you book and take the exam, let's look at what you'll need to know to obtain a passing grade. In the next section, we are going to look at the exam domains or areas that will need to be covered.

Exam domains

The AWS Certified Database – Specialty (DBS-C01) exam is split into five high-level topics covering a wide range of subjects. These are broken down as follows:

Figure 1.1 – Table showing the percentage weighting for the five domains in the exam

The percentage refers to the most likely number of questions that will be asked in the exam. You can expect a breakdown similar to the following:

Figure 1.2 – Table showing the approximate number of questions for each domain in the exam

AWS offers a high-level description of each domain, but it doesn't fully explain all the technologies, solutions, and services you'll need to know in order to pass the exam. In the next few sections, we are going to look in more depth at what each domain really means and the key topics within it. This can be used to help guide you while you study and prepare for the exam. Let's now look at each domain in detail.

Workload-specific database design

Workload-specific database design can also sometimes be referred to as purpose-built databases. It means that before choosing which database to use, you look closely at the type of data that will be stored and how the application or users access it.

To succeed in this domain, you will need to know how to build a scalable and resilient database using the right database engine for the use case and to understand how to use AWS infrastructure to protect it from failures.

In order to succeed in this domain, you will need to:

• Know how to build a scalable and resilient database using the right database engine for the use case and to understand how to use AWS infrastructure to protect it from failures.
• Know the features that can be used to increase the perf...

Table of contents

• AWS Certified Database – Specialty (DBS-C01) Certification Guide
• Contributors
• Preface
• Part 1: Introduction to Databases on AWS
• Chapter 1: AWS Certified Database – Specialty Overview
• Chapter 2: Understanding Database Fundamentals
• Chapter 3: Understanding AWS Infrastructure
• Part 2: Workload-Specific Database Design
• Chapter 4: Relational Database Service
• Chapter 5: Amazon Aurora
• Chapter 6: Amazon DynamoDB
• Chapter 7: Redshift and DocumentDB
• Chapter 8: Neptune, Quantum Ledger Database, and Timestream
• Chapter 9: Amazon ElastiCache
• Part 3: Deployment and Migration and Database Security
• Chapter 10: The AWS Schema Conversion Tool and AWS Database Migration Service
• Chapter 11: Database Task Automation
• Chapter 12: AWS Database Security
• Part 4: Monitoring and Optimization
• Chapter 13: CloudWatch and Logging
• Chapter 14: Backup and Restore
• Chapter 15: Troubleshooting Tools and Techniques
• Part 5: Assessment
• Chapter 16: Exam Practice
• Chapter 17: Answers
• Other Books You May Enjoy