Key points

• Step Functions models serverless pipeline steps, branches, parallel work, retries, and failure paths.
• Each integration still needs an execution role and an explicit contract for retryable, terminal, and compensating actions.

Best-known use cases

• Coordinate Lambda, Glue, EMR, and other data-processing steps.
• Model pipeline branching, retries, parallel work, and failure handling.

What candidates often confuse it with

• Step Functions uses AWS state machines; MWAA uses Airflow DAGs and EventBridge only routes triggering events.

Key takeaway

Choose Step Functions for AWS-integrated workflows that need explicit state and failure handling.

Relevant exam tasks

• D1.3 — Task 1.3: Orchestrate data pipelines
• 1.3.1 — Use orchestration services to build workflows for data ETL pipelines (for example, Lambda, EventBridge, Amazon Managed Workflows for Apache Airflow [Amazon MWAA], AWS Step Functions, AWS Glue workflows).
• 1.3.3 — Implement and maintain serverless workflows.
• D1.4 — Task 1.4: Apply programming concepts
• 1.4.6 — Use AWS SAM to package and deploy serverless data pipelines (for example, Lambda functions, Step Functions, DynamoDB tables).
• D3.1 — Task 3.1: Automate data processing by using AWS services
• 3.1.1 — Orchestrate data pipelines (for example, Amazon Managed Workflows for Apache Airflow [Amazon MWAA], AWS Step Functions).

Learn more

• DEA-C01 in-scope services
• DEA-C01 Domain 1: Data Ingestion and Transformation
• DEA-C01 Domain 3: Data Operations and Support