AWS CCP Study Checklist
Coverage summary
Section titled “Coverage summary”Deep coverage (✓ from Q&A):
- DynamoDB: composite keys (HASH/RANGE), GSI vs LSI, Query vs Scan, table classes, billing modes, consistency, Streams, DAX, IAM access, PITR
- Lambda: Firecracker internals, when to use, decision tree, spike offload, Express comparison, code patterns, triggers
- SNS/SQS: pub/sub vs queue, FIFO, DLQ, visibility timeout, combined pattern
Mentioned briefly (partial):
- S3 storage classes (referenced only)
- EC2 pricing models (not discussed)
- IAM (basic via DynamoDB examples)
- Cost Explorer / TCO calculator (mentioned in Q bank)
Not covered (needs study):
- EC2 instance types, pricing models (on-demand, reserved, spot, savings plans, dedicated hosts)
- Auto Scaling groups, launch templates, scaling policies
- ELB (ALB vs NLB vs GWLB), Route 53 routing policies
- VPC fundamentals (subnets, route tables, IGW, NAT GW, security groups vs NACLs)
- RDS vs Aurora vs DynamoDB decision
- ElastiCache (Redis vs Memcached)
- EFS, FSx, Storage Gateway, Snowball
- AWS global infrastructure (regions, AZs, edge locations, CloudFront)
- Well-Architected Framework 6 pillars
- Shared responsibility model
- Support plans (Basic/Developer/Business/Enterprise — features, prices)
- Security services: KMS, Secrets Manager, WAF, Shield, GuardDuty, Inspector, Macie
- CloudTrail vs CloudWatch
- Trusted Advisor
- TCO calculator
- AWS Organizations, consolidated billing
- Cost allocation tags
High-yield exam topics (priority order)
Section titled “High-yield exam topics (priority order)”| Priority | Topic | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Support plans | Guaranteed 1-2 questions; memorize tier features |
| 2 | EC2 pricing models | Heavy weight; know when to use each |
| 3 | S3 storage classes | Guaranteed 1-2 questions; know trade-offs |
| 4 | Shared responsibility model | At least 2-3 questions |
| 5 | Well-Architected Framework 6 pillars | Definition question |
| 6 | AWS global infrastructure | Regions vs AZs vs edge locations |
| 7 | IAM policy structure | Tested heavily; know JSON structure |
| 8 | RDS vs DynamoDB decision | Tested indirectly in scenario questions |
| 9 | Auto Scaling basics | Common scenario question |
| 10 | VPC basics | Foundational; covered in most scenarios |
Lower priority (know basics only)
Section titled “Lower priority (know basics only)”- Glacier retrieval speeds (3-5 mins / 3-5 hrs / 5-12 hrs)
- All S3 storage class prices (know relative costs, not exact)
- Specific Lambda limits (cold start, max timeout, max memory)
- Detailed IAM condition key syntax
- All security services’ feature lists
Suggested 2-week study plan
Section titled “Suggested 2-week study plan”Week 1: Gaps + practice
Section titled “Week 1: Gaps + practice”| Day | Topic | Time | Resource |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | EC2 pricing + instance types | 2h | AWS Skill Builder free course |
| 2 | S3 storage classes + lifecycle | 2h | AWS docs S3 User Guide |
| 3 | Shared responsibility + Well-Architected | 2h | AWS exam guide PDF |
| 4 | Support plans (memorize tier table) | 1.5h | AWS support plans page |
| 5 | VPC basics (subnets, IGW, NAT, SG vs NACL) | 2h | AWS VPC User Guide |
| 6 | IAM policies + roles | 2h | AWS IAM User Guide |
| 7 | Full practice exam #1 | 1.5h | Tutorials Dojo / Whizlabs |
| 7 | Review missed questions | 1.5h | Same |
Week 2: Polish + exam
Section titled “Week 2: Polish + exam”| Day | Topic | Time | Resource |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | RDS vs DynamoDB decision + RDS basics | 2h | AWS RDS docs |
| 9 | Auto Scaling + ELB + Route 53 routing | 2h | AWS docs |
| 10 | Security services overview (KMS, WAF, GuardDuty) | 2h | AWS security docs |
| 11 | CloudWatch vs CloudTrail + Trusted Advisor | 1.5h | AWS monitoring docs |
| 12 | Full practice exam #2 | 1.5h | Tutorials Dojo |
| 12 | Review missed questions | 1.5h | Same |
| 13 | Full practice exam #3 (timed, no notes) | 1.5h | AWS official sample exam |
| 14 | Light review of weak topics | 1h | Anki / personal notes |
| 14 | Schedule exam | 5min | aws.training |
Practice exam resources (free / cheap)
Section titled “Practice exam resources (free / cheap)”| Resource | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| AWS Skill Builder Cloud Practitioner Essentials | Free | Official AWS course |
| AWS Official Sample Exam | Free | ~20 questions, no scoring |
| Tutorials Dojo practice exams | $15-30 | Best value, explanations |
| Whizlabs practice tests | $10-20 | Good questions |
| Udemy practice exams | $10-15 | Variable quality |
| Exam Pro free quizzes | Free | Lower quality but free |
Exam day checklist
Section titled “Exam day checklist”- Government-issued photo ID ready
- Online proctoring setup tested (if at home): webcam, mic, quiet room, second monitor/keyboard off
- Clear desk/workspace (no notes, books, water bottle near you)
- 90 minutes blocked + 15 min buffer for check-in
- Don’t memorize exact prices — understand relative costs
- Flag hard questions, come back later
- Aim for 65%+ confidence on each; CCP pass score ~70%
Cost optimization reminder
Section titled “Cost optimization reminder”CCP exam itself: $100 USD + ~$50 proctor fee = ~$150 total
- Use AWS Skill Builder free courses first
- If retake needed, 14-day wait + $50 discount coupon from AWS
- Discount codes often available at AWS re:Invent / cloud events
Related
Section titled “Related”- [[aws/index]]
- [[aws/dynamodb-deep-dive/index]]
- [[aws/lambda-usage/index]]
Exam lessons (2026-09-01 quiz, 17/20 = 85%)
Section titled “Exam lessons (2026-09-01 quiz, 17/20 = 85%)”Mental models learned from misses:
CloudWatch = monitors SYSTEM (CPU/memory/health)CloudTrail = monitors USERS/ACTIONS (audit log — who did what)
SNS = notification channel (SMS/push/basic email/fan-out)SES = email SERVICE (HTML templates, bounces, deliverability)
Aurora = AWS-native MySQL/Postgres rewrite → 5× faster, 15 read replicas, 6 copiesRDS = traditional engines as-is → 5 replicasMissed questions (fix):
- Static site global low latency → S3 + CloudFront (EFS is not a website host)
- “Up to 15 read replicas” → Aurora (not RDS)
- “HTML templates + bounce tracking” → SES (not SNS)
- “Records API activity” → CloudTrail (not CloudWatch)
Pass threshold ~70% — scored 85%.
Quiz 2 (2026-09-01, 19/20 = 95%)
Section titled “Quiz 2 (2026-09-01, 19/20 = 95%)”- Only miss: Athena vs Redshift (“SQL directly in S3 without loading” → Athena)
- Previously-missed concepts all recovered: Aurora 15-replica ✓, SES ✓, CloudTrail ✓
Athena memory note: name gives no hint (Greek goddess). Anchor = phrase “SQL on S3” — data stays in files, no loading. Redshift = data LOADED into warehouse first. Same SQL, different data location.
✅ PASSED — AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (2026-09-09)
Section titled “✅ PASSED — AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (2026-09-09)”- Result: PASS — certificate issued same day
- Verification: https://aws.amazon.com/verification — code
a9b98126a7354426a89d171e4b4d904d - Exam: CLF-C02, INIXINDO Jogjakarta test center, 9:00 AM WIB
- Valid: 2026-09-09 → 2029-09-09
- Prep journey: 11447-Q bank drilling + 98+ rnd pages + quiz rounds (85% → 95% → full-page sweeps) + 6-day plan
- Score: not displayed on cert (available on aws.training portal)