This AZ-104 practice question tests your understanding of deploy and manage azure compute. 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 reporting application needs an Azure VM with at least 8 vCPUs and 64 GiB of RAM. The workload is memory-heavy, and the team wants a reasonable starting point. Which VM family should the administrator choose?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "least"
Why it matters: You want the option with minimum overhead, fewest steps, or lowest impact — not the most feature-rich or comprehensive answer.
B-series
Why wrong: B-series is designed for burstable workloads, not sustained memory-heavy servers.
D-series
Why wrong: D-series is general purpose and may not provide the best memory-to-CPU ratio.
E-series
E-series is memory optimized and is a strong fit for workloads that need higher RAM per vCPU.
F-series
Why wrong: F-series is compute optimized and favors CPU performance over large memory allocations.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
E-series
The E-series (memory-optimized) VM family is designed for memory-intensive workloads, offering a high memory-to-CPU ratio. With a requirement of at least 8 vCPUs and 64 GiB of RAM, the E-series provides the necessary memory capacity (e.g., E8s_v3 offers 8 vCPUs and 64 GiB RAM) as a reasonable starting point for a memory-heavy reporting application.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
B-series
Why it's wrong here
B-series is designed for burstable workloads, not sustained memory-heavy servers.
D-series
Why it's wrong here
D-series is general purpose and may not provide the best memory-to-CPU ratio.
E-series
Why this is correct
E-series is memory optimized and is a strong fit for workloads that need higher RAM per vCPU.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "least" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
F-series
Why it's wrong here
F-series is compute optimized and favors CPU performance over large memory allocations.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse 'general purpose' (D-series) as sufficient for all workloads, overlooking the specific memory requirement of 64 GiB, which D-series cannot meet at 8 vCPUs.
Detailed technical explanation
Azure VM families are categorized by workload optimization: E-series uses Intel Xeon processors with a higher memory-to-CPU ratio (up to 8 GiB per vCPU in some SKUs), achieved through larger DIMM configurations and memory bandwidth. For reporting applications that cache large datasets in RAM, the E-series reduces disk I/O by keeping more data in memory, directly improving query performance. The specific SKU E8s_v3 (8 vCPUs, 64 GiB RAM) is a common starting point, but administrators should monitor memory pressure and consider scaling to E16s_v3 if needed.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
What to study next
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FAQ
Deploy and Manage Azure Compute — This question tests Deploy and Manage Azure Compute — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: E-series — The E-series (memory-optimized) VM family is designed for memory-intensive workloads, offering a high memory-to-CPU ratio. With a requirement of at least 8 vCPUs and 64 GiB of RAM, the E-series provides the necessary memory capacity (e.g., E8s_v3 offers 8 vCPUs and 64 GiB RAM) as a reasonable starting point for a memory-heavy reporting application.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Yes — watch for: "least". You want the option with minimum overhead, fewest steps, or lowest impact — not the most feature-rich or comprehensive answer.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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