Question #1205
A company is deploying a Windows-based application on AWS that requires a shared file system accessible by multiple Amazon EC2 Windows instances distributed across multiple Availability Zones. What should a solutions architect implement to satisfy this requirement?
Deploy AWS Storage Gateway in file gateway mode. Configure the gateway to provide SMB access and mount the shared file system on each Windows instance.
Configure Amazon FSx for Windows File Server with Multi-AZ deployment. Mount the Amazon FSx file system to each Windows instance using the SMB protocol.
Create an Amazon Elastic File System (EFS) and enable the EFS mount helper. Mount the file system to each Windows instance using the NFS protocol.
Provision an Amazon Elastic Block Store (EBS) volume in each Availability Zone. Attach the respective volume to instances in each AZ and configure a distributed file system.
Explanation
The correct answer is B because:
- Amazon FSx for Windows File Server is specifically designed for Windows-based applications, offering native support for the SMB protocol, which is required for Windows instances.
- Multi-AZ deployment ensures high availability and automatic failover across Availability Zones, meeting the requirement for cross-AZ accessibility.
- Other options are incorrect:
- A: AWS Storage Gateway (file gateway) is primarily for hybrid cloud setups (on-premises-to-AWS) and does not natively support Multi-AZ deployments.
- C: Amazon EFS uses the NFS protocol, which is incompatible with Windows instances.
- D: EBS volumes are single-AZ and require manual configuration of a distributed file system, which is complex and not fully managed.
Key Points:
- Use Amazon FSx for Windows for SMB-based shared file systems in Windows environments.
- Multi-AZ deployment ensures high availability across Availability Zones.
- Avoid NFS-based services (e.g., EFS) for Windows workloads.
Answer
The correct answer is: B