- A
SQL Server Always On Availability Group with asynchronous commit.
Why wrong: Asynchronous commit ensures no impact on primary performance but can result in data loss if a failover occurs before the secondary is synchronized. This option does not guarantee zero RPO.
- B
SQL Server Always On Availability Group with synchronous commit across regions.
Synchronous commit ensures all transactions are committed on both the primary and secondary replicas before acknowledging the commit to the application. If configured across regions, this provides zero data loss (RPO=0). But network latency can affect write performance.
- C
Azure Site Recovery to another region.
Why wrong: Azure Site Recovery typically provides RPO of a few minutes (asynchronous replication). It cannot guarantee zero data loss because replication is not synchronous.
- D
Deploy the VMs in a different availability zone within the same region.
Why wrong: Availability zones protect against datacenter failures within a region, not against a full regional outage. This does not meet the cross-region requirement.
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 SQL Server database on Azure Virtual Machines in a single region. They need a disaster recovery solution across regions with a recovery point objective (RPO) of zero. The database is update-intensive with frequent writes. Which configuration should they implement?
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
SQL Server Always On Availability Group with synchronous commit across regions.
SQL Server Always On Availability Group with synchronous commit across regions ensures zero data loss because transactions are committed on both the primary and secondary replicas before the primary acknowledges the commit. This meets the RPO of zero, even though it introduces latency due to cross-region synchronization. For an update-intensive workload, synchronous commit is the only option that guarantees no data loss at the cost of increased write latency.
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.
- ✗
SQL Server Always On Availability Group with asynchronous commit.
Why it's wrong here
Asynchronous commit ensures no impact on primary performance but can result in data loss if a failover occurs before the secondary is synchronized. This option does not guarantee zero RPO.
- ✓
SQL Server Always On Availability Group with synchronous commit across regions.
Why this is correct
Synchronous commit ensures all transactions are committed on both the primary and secondary replicas before acknowledging the commit to the application. If configured across regions, this provides zero data loss (RPO=0). But network latency can affect write performance.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Azure Site Recovery to another region.
Why it's wrong here
Azure Site Recovery typically provides RPO of a few minutes (asynchronous replication). It cannot guarantee zero data loss because replication is not synchronous.
- ✗
Deploy the VMs in a different availability zone within the same region.
Why it's wrong here
Availability zones protect against datacenter failures within a region, not against a full regional outage. This does not meet the cross-region requirement.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often choose asynchronous commit (Option A) thinking it is sufficient for DR, but the RPO of zero explicitly requires synchronous commit, despite the performance trade-off.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Synchronous commit in an Always On Availability Group uses the 'SYNCHRONOUS_COMMIT' availability mode, where the primary replica waits for the secondary to harden the log before acknowledging the transaction. This guarantees zero data loss but increases transaction latency proportional to network round-trip time between regions. For update-intensive workloads, this latency can become a bottleneck, so careful capacity planning and network optimization (e.g., ExpressRoute) are critical to avoid application timeouts.
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.
What to study next
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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: SQL Server Always On Availability Group with synchronous commit across regions. — SQL Server Always On Availability Group with synchronous commit across regions ensures zero data loss because transactions are committed on both the primary and secondary replicas before the primary acknowledges the commit. This meets the RPO of zero, even though it introduces latency due to cross-region synchronization. For an update-intensive workload, synchronous commit is the only option that guarantees no data loss at the cost of increased write latency.
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.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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