The correct choice is Zone-redundant storage (ZRS), because it synchronously replicates data across three separate Azure availability zones within a single region, ensuring full protection against a single datacenter outage without needing a secondary region. This meets the requirement for the simplest resilient option, as it avoids the complexity, latency, and cost of geo-replication while still providing high availability. On the AZ-104 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of Azure storage redundancy tiers, and a common trap is selecting Locally-redundant storage (LRS) because it is simpler—but LRS only protects against server rack failures, not a full datacenter outage. Another trap is choosing Geo-redundant storage (GRS) when the question explicitly states no secondary region is needed. To remember: ZRS = Zero worry about a single datacenter going down, because your data lives in three zones.
AZ-104 Implement and Manage Storage Practice Question
This AZ-104 practice question tests your understanding of implement and manage storage. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A healthcare application stores files that must be protected against a single datacenter outage in the region. The team does not need a secondary region for read access, and they want the simplest resilient option. Which storage redundancy should they choose?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Zone-redundant storage (ZRS)
Zone-redundant storage (ZRS) replicates data synchronously across three Azure availability zones within a single region, protecting against a complete datacenter outage without requiring a secondary region. This meets the requirement for the simplest resilient option that guards against a single datacenter failure while avoiding the complexity and cost of geo-replication.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Locally redundant storage (LRS)
Why it's wrong here
LRS is limited to one datacenter, so it does not address a datacenter outage requirement.
✓
Zone-redundant storage (ZRS)
Why this is correct
ZRS stores copies across multiple zones in the region, which helps the data survive a datacenter or zone-level outage without needing another region.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Geo-zone-redundant storage (GZRS)
Why it's wrong here
GZRS adds replication to another region, which is more than the scenario requires.
✗
Read-access geo-redundant storage (RA-GRS)
Why it's wrong here
RA-GRS provides secondary-region read access, but that is unnecessary for a single-region outage requirement.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse 'protecting against a single datacenter outage' with needing geo-redundancy, but ZRS within a region is sufficient and simpler when no secondary region read access is required.
Trap categories for this question
Scenario analysis trap
GZRS adds replication to another region, which is more than the scenario requires.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
ZRS uses synchronous replication across availability zones, each zone being one or more distinct datacenters with independent power, cooling, and networking. This provides a Recovery Point Objective (RPO) of zero and a Recovery Time Objective (RTO) of minutes for a zone failure, without the cross-region latency or cost of geo-replication. In Azure, ZRS is available for block blobs, page blobs (for managed disks), files, and queues, but not for table storage or Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 in all regions.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A startup's cloud architect reviews their monthly bill and notices costs are higher than expected for a long-running batch job. Switching from on-demand instances to Reserved Instances — or using Spot/Preemptible VMs — can reduce compute costs by up to 72 %. Questions like this test whether you understand the tradeoffs between commitment, flexibility, and cost across cloud pricing models.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this AZ-104 question in full detail.
Implement and Manage Storage — This question tests Implement and Manage Storage — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Zone-redundant storage (ZRS) — Zone-redundant storage (ZRS) replicates data synchronously across three Azure availability zones within a single region, protecting against a complete datacenter outage without requiring a secondary region. This meets the requirement for the simplest resilient option that guards against a single datacenter failure while avoiding the complexity and cost of geo-replication.
What should I do if I get this AZ-104 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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