Correct Answer: Option 1

Option 1 is the most cost-effective and appropriate solution. By purchasing Reserved Instances, the company secures a lower, predictable cost for the always-on, baseline level of usage, especially overnight and moderate weekend traffic. For the predictable business-day spikes, Spot Instances are ideal for handling the additional compute load at a significantly reduced price. Because the application is stateless and behind a load balancer, instances can be added or removed dynamically without impacting user experience.

Why the other options are incorrect:

Option 2: Too riskySpot Instances can be interrupted at any time, leading to potential downtime during critical hours.
Option 3: Functional but more expensive than using Reserved Instances for baseline usage.
Option 4: Dedicated Instances are costlier and unnecessary unless compliance or licensing isolation is required.

Why this question is challenging: It evaluates understanding of EC2 pricing models, demand patterns, and combining instance types (Reserved + Spot) to achieve cost efficiency and high availability.

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