- A
Premium SSD v2 disks for the database and Azure Files premium tier for the file share.
Premium SSD v2 can achieve 50,000 IOPS with a 320 GiB disk (which gives 4,000 IOPS per GiB, 320*4000=1,280,000? No, let's check: Premium SSD v2 IOPS scales linearly to 80,000 at 1 TiB, but smaller disks can still achieve high IOPS. It is designed for high-performance databases. Azure Files Premium offers low latency and high throughput for file sharing, suitable for a shared file system.
- B
Premium SSD (non-v2) for the database and Azure NetApp Files for the file share.
Why wrong: Premium SSD (v1) has a maximum of 20,000 IOPS per disk (depending on size), which may not consistently achieve 50,000 IOPS unless using disk striping or larger disks. Azure NetApp Files can support high throughput but is more expensive than Azure Files Premium for simple file shares.
- C
Ultra Disk for the database and Azure Files standard tier for the file share.
Why wrong: Ultra Disk can deliver over 100,000 IOPS, but it is significantly more expensive than Premium SSD v2. The standard tier of Azure Files does not meet low-latency requirements due to higher latency and lower throughput.
- D
Standard SSD for the database and Azure Blob Storage for the file share.
Why wrong: Standard SSD provides at most 6,000 IOPS (for largest disks), far below 50,000. Azure Blob Storage is not suitable as a shared file system requiring SMB or NFS protocols without additional configuration (like Azure Files).
Quick Answer
The correct combination is Premium SSD v2 disks for the SQL Server database and Azure Files premium tier for the shared file system. Premium SSD v2 disks can deliver up to 80,000 IOPS per disk, easily exceeding the 50,000 IOPS requirement, while Azure Files premium tier provides SSD-backed, low-latency performance ideal for replacing an on-premises NAS. On the AZ-305 exam, this scenario tests your ability to map legacy SAN and NAS workloads to Azure’s highest-performance block and file storage options—a common trap is choosing Ultra Disk for the database, which is overkill and costlier, or standard Azure Files, which cannot guarantee consistent IOPS. Remember the pairing: high IOPS SQL Server demands Premium SSD v2 for block storage, and shared file shares need Azure Files premium for file storage. A quick memory tip: “50K IOPS? v2 disks. NAS replacement? Premium Files.”
AZ-305 Design data storage solutions Practice Question
This AZ-305 practice question tests your understanding of design data storage 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 legacy application on Azure Virtual Machines. The application uses a SQL Server database that requires 50,000 IOPS consistently. It also uses a shared file system for storing documents. They plan to migrate from on-premises where they used a SAN for block storage and NAS for file shares. Which combination of Azure storage should they use to meet performance requirements?
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
Premium SSD v2 disks for the database and Azure Files premium tier for the file share.
Premium SSD v2 disks can deliver up to 80,000 IOPS per disk, easily meeting the 50,000 IOPS requirement for the SQL Server database. Azure Files premium tier uses SSD-backed storage and provides consistent low-latency performance suitable for a shared file system, replacing the on-premises NAS. This combination directly maps the SAN (block) and NAS (file) workloads to Azure's highest-performance managed disks and file shares.
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.
- ✓
Premium SSD v2 disks for the database and Azure Files premium tier for the file share.
Why this is correct
Premium SSD v2 can achieve 50,000 IOPS with a 320 GiB disk (which gives 4,000 IOPS per GiB, 320*4000=1,280,000? No, let's check: Premium SSD v2 IOPS scales linearly to 80,000 at 1 TiB, but smaller disks can still achieve high IOPS. It is designed for high-performance databases. Azure Files Premium offers low latency and high throughput for file sharing, suitable for a shared file system.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Premium SSD (non-v2) for the database and Azure NetApp Files for the file share.
Why it's wrong here
Premium SSD (v1) has a maximum of 20,000 IOPS per disk (depending on size), which may not consistently achieve 50,000 IOPS unless using disk striping or larger disks. Azure NetApp Files can support high throughput but is more expensive than Azure Files Premium for simple file shares.
- ✗
Ultra Disk for the database and Azure Files standard tier for the file share.
Why it's wrong here
Ultra Disk can deliver over 100,000 IOPS, but it is significantly more expensive than Premium SSD v2. The standard tier of Azure Files does not meet low-latency requirements due to higher latency and lower throughput.
- ✗
Standard SSD for the database and Azure Blob Storage for the file share.
Why it's wrong here
Standard SSD provides at most 6,000 IOPS (for largest disks), far below 50,000. Azure Blob Storage is not suitable as a shared file system requiring SMB or NFS protocols without additional configuration (like Azure Files).
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume Premium SSD (non-v2) or Ultra Disk are the only high-IOPS options, overlooking that Premium SSD v2 is the only managed disk tier that can deliver 50,000 IOPS on a single disk without requiring disk striping or large disk sizes.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Premium SSD v2 disks offer per-disk IOPS up to 80,000 and throughput up to 1,200 MB/s, with the ability to independently scale IOPS and size, unlike older Premium SSD tiers where IOPS is tied to disk size. Azure Files premium tier uses SMB 3.0 protocol with end-to-end encryption and can scale to 100,000 IOPS per share, making it a direct replacement for a NAS. In real-world scenarios, the 50,000 IOPS requirement is typical for high-transaction OLTP databases, and Azure Files premium tier supports Windows and Linux clients via SMB multichannel for aggregated throughput.
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 data storage solutions — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this AZ-305 question test?
Design data storage solutions — This question tests Design data storage solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Premium SSD v2 disks for the database and Azure Files premium tier for the file share. — Premium SSD v2 disks can deliver up to 80,000 IOPS per disk, easily meeting the 50,000 IOPS requirement for the SQL Server database. Azure Files premium tier uses SSD-backed storage and provides consistent low-latency performance suitable for a shared file system, replacing the on-premises NAS. This combination directly maps the SAN (block) and NAS (file) workloads to Azure's highest-performance managed disks and file shares.
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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