S3 lifecycle rules in AWS - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

❓ service_behavior

intermediate

What happens when an S3 lifecycle rule transitions objects to Glacier after 30 days?

You have an S3 bucket with a lifecycle rule that moves objects to Glacier storage class after 30 days. What is the expected behavior for objects older than 30 days?

A Objects older than 30 days are immediately deleted from S3 and only stored in Glacier.

B Objects older than 30 days are transitioned to Glacier storage class but remain accessible with a retrieval delay.

C Objects older than 30 days remain in S3 Standard storage and are not moved.

D Objects older than 30 days are copied to Glacier but also remain in S3 Standard storage.

💡 Hint

Think about how S3 lifecycle transitions work with Glacier storage class.

Lifecycle rules transition objects to Glacier storage class after the specified days. Objects remain in Glacier and are not immediately deleted. Accessing them requires a retrieval process that can take time.

❓ Configuration

intermediate

Which lifecycle rule configuration deletes objects after 365 days?

Choose the correct JSON snippet for an S3 lifecycle rule that deletes objects 365 days after creation.

A { "Rules": [{ "ID": "DeleteAfter365", "Status": "Enabled", "Expiration": { "Days": 365 } }] }

B { "Rules": [{ "ID": "DeleteAfter365", "Status": "Enabled", "Transition": { "Days": 365, "StorageClass": "GLACIER" } }] }

C { "Rules": [{ "ID": "DeleteAfter365", "Status": "Enabled", "AbortIncompleteMultipartUpload": { "DaysAfterInitiation": 365 } }] }

D { "Rules": [{ "ID": "DeleteAfter365", "Status": "Enabled", "Expiration": { "Date": "365" } }] }

💡 Hint

Expiration rules use the 'Days' field to specify deletion timing.

The 'Expiration' property with 'Days' set to 365 correctly deletes objects 365 days after creation. Transition moves storage class, not deletion.

❓ security

advanced

What is the security risk of enabling lifecycle rules that permanently delete objects without versioning?

You enable lifecycle rules that permanently delete objects after 30 days on a bucket without versioning. What is the main security risk?

A Lifecycle rules automatically encrypt deleted objects, preventing data leaks.

B Objects can be recovered after deletion using versioning snapshots.

C Objects are archived to Glacier before deletion, so no data is lost.

D Deleted objects cannot be recovered, risking accidental data loss.

💡 Hint

Consider what happens when versioning is not enabled and objects are deleted.

Without versioning, deleted objects are permanently lost. This can cause accidental data loss if lifecycle rules delete objects automatically.

❓ Architecture

advanced

How to design lifecycle rules for cost optimization with frequent access and archival?

You have a bucket with objects accessed frequently for 60 days, then rarely accessed for 180 days, then archived. Which lifecycle rule sequence optimizes cost?

A Transition to GLACIER after 60 days, then to STANDARD_IA after 180 days, then delete after 365 days.

B Delete after 60 days, transition to GLACIER after 180 days, then to STANDARD_IA after 365 days.

C Transition to STANDARD_IA after 60 days, then to GLACIER after 180 days, then delete after 365 days.

D Keep all objects in STANDARD storage for 365 days, then delete.

💡 Hint

Think about storage classes for frequent and infrequent access and cost savings.

STANDARD_IA is cheaper for infrequent access after 60 days, GLACIER is cheaper for archival after 180 days, and deleting after 365 days saves storage costs.

✅ Best Practice

expert

What is the best practice to prevent accidental deletion with lifecycle rules on a versioned bucket?

You have enabled versioning on an S3 bucket and lifecycle rules that delete objects after 30 days. What is the best practice to avoid accidental permanent deletion?

A Configure lifecycle rules to delete only non-current versions after 30 days and keep current versions.

B Disable versioning to simplify lifecycle rule management.

C Set lifecycle rules to delete all versions immediately after 30 days.

D Use lifecycle rules to transition all versions to GLACIER instead of deleting.

💡 Hint

Consider how versioning interacts with lifecycle expiration of current and non-current versions.

Deleting only non-current versions preserves the latest object versions and prevents accidental permanent loss. Disabling versioning or deleting all versions immediately risks data loss.