RDS supported engines in AWS - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What is Amazon RDS?

Amazon RDS is a cloud service that makes it easy to set up, operate, and scale a relational database in the cloud.

beginner

Name three database engines supported by Amazon RDS.

Amazon RDS supports engines like MySQL, PostgreSQL, and Oracle Database.

beginner

Which Amazon RDS engine is fully managed and compatible with Microsoft SQL Server?

Amazon RDS supports Microsoft SQL Server as a fully managed engine.

intermediate

What is Amazon Aurora in the context of RDS?

Amazon Aurora is a high-performance, fully managed relational database engine compatible with MySQL and PostgreSQL.

intermediate

Can Amazon RDS support multiple database engines simultaneously?

Yes, Amazon RDS supports multiple engines, but each RDS instance runs only one engine at a time.

Which of the following is NOT a supported Amazon RDS engine?

A MySQL

B Oracle Database

C PostgreSQL

D MongoDB

Amazon RDS does not support MongoDB, which is a NoSQL database. RDS supports relational engines like MySQL, PostgreSQL, and Oracle.

Amazon Aurora is compatible with which database engines?

A MySQL and PostgreSQL

B Oracle and SQL Server

C MongoDB and Cassandra

D SQLite and MariaDB

Aurora is designed to be compatible with MySQL and PostgreSQL engines.

Which Amazon RDS engine would you choose for a fully managed Microsoft SQL Server database?

A Aurora

B SQL Server

C MySQL

D PostgreSQL

Amazon RDS supports Microsoft SQL Server as a fully managed engine.

Can a single Amazon RDS instance run multiple database engines at the same time?

A No, it runs only one engine per instance.

B Only for MySQL and PostgreSQL.

C Only if using Aurora.

D Yes, it can run multiple engines simultaneously.

Each RDS instance runs only one database engine at a time.

Which of these is a key benefit of using Amazon Aurora?

A Runs on local servers only

B Supports NoSQL queries

C High performance and scalability

D Requires manual backups

Aurora offers high performance and scalability as a fully managed relational database.

List all the database engines supported by Amazon RDS and describe one key feature of each.

Think about popular relational databases and Amazon's own engine.

Explain why you might choose Amazon Aurora over standard MySQL or PostgreSQL on RDS.

Consider speed and cloud optimization.

Practice

1. Which of the following database engines is supported by AWS RDS?

easy

A. MySQL

B. MongoDB

C. Cassandra

D. Redis

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall AWS RDS supported engines

   AWS RDS supports popular relational database engines like MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, SQL Server, and Aurora.

2. Step 2: Identify which option matches supported engines

   Among the options, only MySQL is a supported RDS engine. MongoDB, Cassandra, and Redis are not supported by RDS but by other AWS services.

3. Final Answer:

   MySQL -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   RDS supports MySQL = A [OK]

Hint: Remember RDS supports relational engines like MySQL, not NoSQL [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing NoSQL databases as RDS engines
• Assuming Redis is supported by RDS
• Thinking Cassandra is supported by RDS

2. Which of the following is the correct way to specify the engine when creating an RDS instance using AWS CLI?

easy

A. --engine mongodb

B. --engine mysql

C. --engine redis

D. --engine cassandra

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand AWS CLI engine parameter

   The AWS CLI uses the parameter --engine to specify the database engine when creating an RDS instance.

2. Step 2: Identify valid engine names

   Valid engine names include mysql, postgres, oracle, sqlserver, aurora. MongoDB, Redis, and Cassandra are not valid for RDS engine parameter.

3. Final Answer:

   --engine mysql -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Correct engine name for MySQL is mysql [OK]

Hint: Use lowercase engine names like mysql, not unsupported ones [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using unsupported engines like mongodb or redis
• Capitalizing engine names incorrectly
• Confusing engine parameter with instance type

3. Given the following AWS CLI command to create an RDS instance:

aws rds create-db-instance --db-instance-identifier mydb --engine postgres --allocated-storage 20 --db-instance-class db.t3.micro --master-username admin --master-user-password secret123

What database engine will this RDS instance use?

medium

A. SQL Server

B. MySQL

C. Oracle

D. PostgreSQL

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze the --engine parameter in the command

   The command specifies --engine postgres, which corresponds to PostgreSQL.

2. Step 2: Match engine parameter to database engine

   Postgres is the short name for PostgreSQL, a supported RDS engine.

3. Final Answer:

   PostgreSQL -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   --engine postgres means PostgreSQL [OK]

Hint: Look for --engine value to identify the database engine [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing postgres with MySQL
• Assuming default engine is MySQL
• Ignoring the --engine parameter

4. You tried to create an RDS instance with the command:

aws rds create-db-instance --db-instance-identifier testdb --engine mongo --allocated-storage 20 --db-instance-class db.t3.micro --master-username admin --master-user-password secret123

But it failed. What is the most likely reason?

medium

A. The master username is missing

B. The allocated storage is too low

C. The engine name 'mongo' is not supported by RDS

D. The instance class db.t3.micro is invalid

Solution

1. Step 1: Check the engine parameter validity

   The engine parameter is set to 'mongo', which is not a supported RDS engine. MongoDB is not supported by RDS.

2. Step 2: Verify other parameters

   Allocated storage of 20 GB and instance class db.t3.micro are valid. Master username is provided.

3. Final Answer:

   The engine name 'mongo' is not supported by RDS -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Unsupported engine name causes failure [OK]

Hint: Check engine names carefully; unsupported names cause errors [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming MongoDB is supported by RDS
• Blaming storage size or instance class incorrectly
• Overlooking the exact error message

5. You want to migrate an on-premises Oracle database to AWS RDS. Which RDS engine should you choose to ensure compatibility and minimal changes?

hard

A. Oracle

B. PostgreSQL

C. Aurora MySQL

D. SQL Server

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the source database engine

   The source is an on-premises Oracle database, so compatibility is key.

2. Step 2: Choose the matching RDS engine

   AWS RDS supports Oracle as a managed engine, which ensures compatibility and minimal changes during migration.

3. Step 3: Consider other options

   Aurora MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQL Server are different engines and would require significant changes.

4. Final Answer:

   Oracle -> Option A

5. Quick Check:

   Match source engine to RDS engine for smooth migration [OK]

Hint: Pick the same engine type for easy migration [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Choosing Aurora MySQL for Oracle migration
• Assuming PostgreSQL is compatible with Oracle
• Ignoring migration compatibility