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Question

Difficulty: MediumCost-Optimized Storage Tiering and Lifecycle Management

A software development company uses Amazon S3 to store temporary build artifacts generated by their continuous integration (CI) pipeline. The average size of these artifacts is 450 KB450\text{ KB}. These files are frequently accessed during the first 10 days for verification and testing. The company wants to minimize storage costs and must permanently delete the artifacts exactly 25 days after creation. Which of the following lifecycle configurations is the most cost-effective solution?

  1. Store the artifacts in Amazon S3 Standard, and configure an S3 Lifecycle rule to expire the objects after 25 days.Answer
  2. B
    Configure an S3 Lifecycle rule to transition the artifacts to Amazon S3 Standard-Infrequent Access (S3 Standard-IA) after 10 days, and expire the objects after 25 days.
  3. C
    Store the artifacts in Amazon S3 Standard-Infrequent Access (S3 Standard-IA) immediately upon upload, and configure an S3 Lifecycle rule to expire the objects after 25 days.
  4. D
    Configure an S3 Lifecycle rule to transition the artifacts to Amazon S3 Glacier Flexible Retrieval after 10 days, and expire the objects after 25 days.

Answer

Store the artifacts in Amazon S3 Standard, and configure an S3 Lifecycle rule to expire the objects after 25 days.
Storing the artifacts in Amazon S3 Standard for the entire 25 days and then expiring them is the most cost-effective option. Because the artifacts are permanently deleted at day 25, transitioning them to Amazon S3 Standard-Infrequent Access (S3 Standard-IA) at day 10 would result in only 15 days of storage in that tier. Since S3 Standard-IA has a 30-day minimum storage charge, transitioning would result in being billed for 30 days of storage, making it more expensive than keeping the objects in S3 Standard.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the access pattern and retention requirements.
The files are accessed frequently for the first 10 days and must be deleted at day 25. The total lifecycle of the objects is 25 days.
Understanding the timeline is necessary to evaluate the minimum duration requirements of different S3 storage classes.
2
Evaluate S3 Standard-IA and S3 Glacier minimum storage duration constraints.
S3 Standard-IA has a minimum storage duration of 30 days. S3 Glacier Flexible Retrieval has a minimum storage duration of 90 days.
Transitioning objects that will be deleted before these minimum durations will incur prorated charges for the remaining days.
3
Compare the cost of keeping the artifacts in S3 Standard versus transitioning them.
Storing in S3 Standard for 25 days is cheaper than transitioning them to S3 Standard-IA at day 10 (which charges for 30 days of IA storage plus transition fees) or transitioning to Glacier (which charges for 90 days).
This determines the absolute most cost-effective storage strategy.

Key Concept

Understanding minimum storage duration policies for Amazon S3 tiers (Standard-IA and Glacier) when designing cost-optimized lifecycle rules.
Estimated Time:1m 30s
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Topics

Cost-Optimized Storage Tiering and Lifecycle Management