- A
Set up replication with a 15-minute snapshot frequency and perform test failover for drills.
Correct: ASR allows configuring snapshot frequency (15 minutes meets RPO) and test failover is a built-in feature for drills.
- B
Use Azure Backup for VM replication and perform restore drills.
Why wrong: Incorrect: Azure Backup is not a disaster recovery replication service; it is for backups and does not provide continuous replication or test failover.
- C
Configure a recovery plan with a pre-script to take a snapshot every 15 minutes.
Why wrong: Incorrect: Snapshot frequency is configured at the replication policy level, not in recovery plans. Recovery plans orchestrate failover order, not replication.
- D
Enable multi-VM consistency group with a 15-minute consistency frequency.
Why wrong: Incorrect: While multi-VM consistency groups can be used, they are not required for meeting basic RPO and do not inherently support test failover differently.
AZ-305 Design business continuity solutions Practice Question
This AZ-305 practice question tests your understanding of design business continuity solutions. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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 company runs a critical application on Azure VMs in the West US region. They need to protect against a regional disaster using Azure Site Recovery. The VMs use unmanaged disks. The recovery point objective (RPO) must be 15 minutes and the recovery time objective (RTO) must be 1 hour. Additionally, they must be able to perform quarterly disaster recovery drills that do not affect the production environment. Which configuration should they use in Azure Site Recovery?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Set up replication with a 15-minute snapshot frequency and perform test failover for drills.
Option A is correct because Azure Site Recovery supports replication of Azure VMs with unmanaged disks, and a 15-minute snapshot frequency meets the RPO requirement. Test failover allows quarterly disaster recovery drills without impacting the production environment, as it creates isolated copies of VMs in a separate network for validation.
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.
- ✓
Set up replication with a 15-minute snapshot frequency and perform test failover for drills.
Why this is correct
Correct: ASR allows configuring snapshot frequency (15 minutes meets RPO) and test failover is a built-in feature for drills.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use Azure Backup for VM replication and perform restore drills.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: Azure Backup is not a disaster recovery replication service; it is for backups and does not provide continuous replication or test failover.
- ✗
Configure a recovery plan with a pre-script to take a snapshot every 15 minutes.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: Snapshot frequency is configured at the replication policy level, not in recovery plans. Recovery plans orchestrate failover order, not replication.
- ✗
Enable multi-VM consistency group with a 15-minute consistency frequency.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: While multi-VM consistency groups can be used, they are not required for meeting basic RPO and do not inherently support test failover differently.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is confusing Azure Backup (long-term backup) with Azure Site Recovery (replication for disaster recovery), as both can restore VMs but only Site Recovery supports low RPOs and non-disruptive test failovers.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Azure Site Recovery for Azure VMs uses a replication policy that defines the recovery point retention window and snapshot frequency (e.g., 15 minutes). During a test failover, Site Recovery creates a copy of the replicated VM in an isolated Azure virtual network, ensuring no impact on the production environment. The RTO of 1 hour is achievable by pre-staging network components and using recovery plans with automation scripts.
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 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
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this AZ-305 question test?
Design business continuity solutions — This question tests Design business continuity solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Set up replication with a 15-minute snapshot frequency and perform test failover for drills. — Option A is correct because Azure Site Recovery supports replication of Azure VMs with unmanaged disks, and a 15-minute snapshot frequency meets the RPO requirement. Test failover allows quarterly disaster recovery drills without impacting the production environment, as it creates isolated copies of VMs in a separate network for validation.
What should I do if I get this AZ-305 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.
About these practice questions
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This AZ-305 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-305 exam.
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