Quick Answer
The answer is Premium SSD v2, the correct choice for write-heavy applications requiring the highest consistent IOPS and lowest latency. This disk type achieves sub-millisecond latency and delivers up to 80,000 IOPS per disk with 1,200 MB/s throughput, outperforming Standard SSD and HDD by using a per-GB provisioning model that decouples capacity from performance, ensuring predictable, high-speed writes. On the AZ-104 exam, this question tests your ability to match workload demands to disk performance tiers, often appearing in scenario-based questions where a trap is choosing Premium SSD v1 due to its familiarity—but v2 is the only one with sub-millisecond latency and independent IOPS scaling. A common memory tip: think “v2 for very low latency and variable IOPS,” or remember the mnemonic “Pv2 = Peak Write Performance.”
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.
You have an application that writes heavily to Azure-managed disks and requires the highest consistent IOPS and lowest latency. Which disk type should you choose?
Standard HDD
Why wrong: Standard HDD provides the lowest cost but not the required performance.
Standard SSD
Why wrong: Standard SSD offers balanced performance but not the highest consistent IOPS and lowest latency.
Premium SSD v2
Premium SSD v2 is optimized for high IOPS and low latency workloads.
Archive storage
Why wrong: Archive is a blob storage tier and is not used for managed disks.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Premium SSD v2
Premium SSD v2 is the correct choice because it is designed for high-performance workloads, offering sub-millisecond latency and the highest consistent IOPS among Azure managed disks. It supports up to 80,000 IOPS per disk and 1,200 MB/s throughput, making it ideal for write-heavy applications that demand low latency and predictable performance.
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.
Standard HDD
Why it's wrong here
Standard HDD provides the lowest cost but not the required performance.
Standard SSD
Why it's wrong here
Standard SSD offers balanced performance but not the highest consistent IOPS and lowest latency.
Premium SSD v2
Why this is correct
Premium SSD v2 is optimized for high IOPS and low latency workloads.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Archive storage
Why it's wrong here
Archive is a blob storage tier and is not used for managed disks.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse Premium SSD v2 with standard Premium SSD, assuming the older tier provides the same performance, but Premium SSD v2 offers significantly higher IOPS and lower latency due to its independent provisioning model and NVMe support.
Detailed technical explanation
Premium SSD v2 uses a per-disk provisioning model where IOPS and throughput are independently configurable, unlike older Premium SSD where they are tied to disk size. Under the hood, it leverages NVMe over TCP for lower protocol overhead and supports up to 256 TB per disk, enabling massive scale without the need for striping. In a real-world scenario, a high-frequency trading application writing transaction logs would benefit from Premium SSD v2's consistent sub-millisecond latency and ability to sustain 80,000 IOPS without throttling.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
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: Premium SSD v2 — Premium SSD v2 is the correct choice because it is designed for high-performance workloads, offering sub-millisecond latency and the highest consistent IOPS among Azure managed disks. It supports up to 80,000 IOPS per disk and 1,200 MB/s throughput, making it ideal for write-heavy applications that demand low latency and predictable performance.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This AZ-104 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Microsoft certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the AZ-104 exam.
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