EBS offers several volume types trading performance for cost, and the architect exam asks you to pick based on the workload’s IOPS and throughput needs.
The main types
gp3 / gp2 (General Purpose SSD) — the balanced default for most workloads. io1 / io2 (Provisioned IOPS SSD) — highest, guaranteed IOPS for critical databases. st1 (Throughput HDD) — cheap, high-throughput for big sequential workloads like logs and data warehouses. sc1 (Cold HDD) — cheapest, for infrequently accessed data.
Test yourself
A mission-critical relational database needs guaranteed, very high IOPS. Which EBS volume type?
- gp2 General Purpose SSD
- io2 Provisioned IOPS SSD
- st1 Throughput HDD
- sc1 Cold HDD
👉 Click to reveal the answer & explanation
Correct answer: B. Provisioned IOPS SSD (io1/io2) delivers the highest, guaranteed IOPS for I/O-intensive, critical databases. gp2 (A) is balanced but not guaranteed-high IOPS; st1 (C) and sc1 (D) are HDDs for throughput or cold data, not high IOPS.
Related topics
Amazon EC2 · EBS vs EFS vs S3 · Amazon RDS
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