Which solution should the solutions architect implement?
Deploy an AWS Storage Gateway file gateway on-premises and associate it with an Amazon S3 bucket.
Back up the databases to an AWS Storage Gateway volume gateway and access it using the Amazon S3 API.
Transfer the database backup files to an Amazon Elastic Block Store (Amazon EBS) volume attached to an Amazon EC2 instance.
Back up the database directly to an AWS Snowball device and use lifecycle rules to move the data to Amazon S3 Glacier Deep Archive.
Explanations:
Deploying an AWS Storage Gateway file gateway on-premises allows seamless integration with an Amazon S3 bucket. This solution provides durable backup storage and allows on-premises applications to access the backups with minimal latency and operational overhead.
Using an AWS Storage Gateway volume gateway would require more management and may not provide direct access to backups for on-premises applications in the same way that a file gateway does. It primarily focuses on block storage and may involve additional complexity.
Transferring database backups to an Amazon EBS volume attached to an EC2 instance does not provide a durable storage solution directly. It requires more operational management and is not as cost-effective or efficient for backups compared to S3. Additionally, EBS volumes are not designed for long-term backup storage.
Backing up directly to an AWS Snowball device is not a suitable solution for on-premises applications that need quick access to backups. Snowball is primarily for data transfer and is not intended for regular, quick-access backup scenarios. Furthermore, the lifecycle rules for moving data to S3 Glacier Deep Archive introduce delays in access.
I have a feeling that the answer is:
Deploy an AWS Storage Gateway file gateway on-premises and associate it with an Amazon S3 bucket.