- A
Active geo-replication with automatic failover group
Active geo-replication provides a readable secondary with RPO ~5 seconds. Auto-failover groups automate failover (RTO < 1 hour) and the secondary can be used for read-only queries.
- B
Geo-restore
Why wrong: Geo-restore restores a database from geo-replicated backups. RPO is typically 1 hour (backup interval) and RTO can be several hours, not meeting the requirements.
- C
Azure Site Recovery
Why wrong: Azure Site Recovery is designed for replicating Azure VMs, not Azure SQL Database. It does not support active geo-replication of PaaS databases.
- D
Read scale-out with manual regional failover
Why wrong: Read scale-out alone provides a local readable replica in the same region. It does not provide cross-region disaster recovery.
AZ-305 Design business continuity solutions Practice Question
This AZ-305 practice question tests your understanding of design business continuity solutions. 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 company runs a critical OLTP application on Azure SQL Database in the West US region. They need to ensure business continuity if a regional outage occurs. The solution must have a recovery point objective (RPO) of 5 seconds and a recovery time objective (RTO) of less than 1 hour. They also want to use the secondary region for read-only query offloading. Which Azure SQL Database feature should they enable?
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
Active geo-replication with automatic failover group
Active geo-replication with automatic failover groups is the correct choice because it provides continuous asynchronous data replication to a secondary Azure SQL Database in a paired region, achieving an RPO of 5 seconds and an RTO of under 1 hour. The automatic failover group enables coordinated failover of multiple databases and allows the secondary region to be used for read-only query offloading by connecting with ApplicationIntent=ReadOnly.
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.
- ✓
Active geo-replication with automatic failover group
Why this is correct
Active geo-replication provides a readable secondary with RPO ~5 seconds. Auto-failover groups automate failover (RTO < 1 hour) and the secondary can be used for read-only queries.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Geo-restore
Why it's wrong here
Geo-restore restores a database from geo-replicated backups. RPO is typically 1 hour (backup interval) and RTO can be several hours, not meeting the requirements.
- ✗
Azure Site Recovery
Why it's wrong here
Azure Site Recovery is designed for replicating Azure VMs, not Azure SQL Database. It does not support active geo-replication of PaaS databases.
- ✗
Read scale-out with manual regional failover
Why it's wrong here
Read scale-out alone provides a local readable replica in the same region. It does not provide cross-region disaster recovery.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse geo-restore (backup-based) with active geo-replication (continuous replication), or assume read scale-out can span regions, when in fact it only works within the same Azure region.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Active geo-replication uses the Always On availability group technology to asynchronously replicate transaction log records to a secondary database in a different Azure region, with a typical lag of 5 seconds or less. The failover group abstracts the listener endpoint and supports automatic failover based on the grace period (default 1 hour) and health probe interval, but for RTO under 1 hour, you must configure the grace period appropriately. A common real-world scenario is using the secondary region for reporting workloads by setting ApplicationIntent=ReadOnly in the connection string, which routes queries to the readable secondary without impacting the primary's OLTP performance.
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.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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Design business continuity solutions — study guide chapter
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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: Active geo-replication with automatic failover group — Active geo-replication with automatic failover groups is the correct choice because it provides continuous asynchronous data replication to a secondary Azure SQL Database in a paired region, achieving an RPO of 5 seconds and an RTO of under 1 hour. The automatic failover group enables coordinated failover of multiple databases and allows the secondary region to be used for read-only query offloading by connecting with ApplicationIntent=ReadOnly.
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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