- A
Azure Site Recovery
Site Recovery replicates the VM and can create consistent recovery points every 15 minutes. It supports test failovers that do not impact production, fulfilling the DR drill requirement.
- B
SQL Server log shipping to a VM in the secondary region
Why wrong: Log shipping requires SQL Server configuration and manual failover, and it does not provide automated testing capabilities. The RTO of 1 hour may be difficult to guarantee.
- C
Azure Backup with cross-region restore
Why wrong: Azure Backup provides point-in-time restore but typically has higher RTO (hours to days) and does not support automated failover or non-disruptive drills.
- D
Azure SQL Database geo-replication
Why wrong: Geo-replication is for Azure SQL Database only, not for SQL Server on Azure VMs. The database is on a VM, so this service does not apply.
AZ-305 Design business continuity solutions Practice Question
This AZ-305 practice question tests your understanding of design business continuity solutions. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 mission-critical SQL Server database on an Azure virtual machine using SQL Server Standard Edition. They need a disaster recovery solution that replicates the database to a secondary Azure region with a recovery point objective (RPO) of 15 minutes and a recovery time objective (RTO) of 1 hour. The solution must support non-disruptive disaster recovery drills. The company cannot modify the SQL Server configuration or use Always On features due to licensing constraints. Which Azure service should they use?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue:
"always"Why it matters: Absolute qualifier. An answer using 'always' is only correct if there are genuinely no exceptions — absolute statements are often wrong in networking.
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
Azure Site Recovery
Azure Site Recovery (ASR) replicates the entire VM (including the SQL Server database) to a secondary Azure region, meeting the RPO of 15 minutes and RTO of 1 hour. It supports non-disruptive disaster recovery drills by allowing test failovers in an isolated network without affecting the production environment. ASR does not require any changes to SQL Server configuration or licensing, as it operates at the hypervisor level using continuous replication.
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.
- ✓
Azure Site Recovery
Why this is correct
Site Recovery replicates the VM and can create consistent recovery points every 15 minutes. It supports test failovers that do not impact production, fulfilling the DR drill requirement.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "always" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
SQL Server log shipping to a VM in the secondary region
Why it's wrong here
Log shipping requires SQL Server configuration and manual failover, and it does not provide automated testing capabilities. The RTO of 1 hour may be difficult to guarantee.
- ✗
Azure Backup with cross-region restore
Why it's wrong here
Azure Backup provides point-in-time restore but typically has higher RTO (hours to days) and does not support automated failover or non-disruptive drills.
- ✗
Azure SQL Database geo-replication
Why it's wrong here
Geo-replication is for Azure SQL Database only, not for SQL Server on Azure VMs. The database is on a VM, so this service does not apply.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often choose Azure Backup (Option C) thinking it provides cross-region restore with low RPO, but they overlook that Backup's cross-region restore is designed for long-term retention and compliance, not for sub-hour RPOs, and it does not support non-disruptive drills.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Azure Site Recovery uses continuous replication at the block level (changes are written to a cache storage account and then replicated to the target region) with an RPO as low as 30 seconds for supported workloads, but for SQL Server it typically achieves sub-15-minute RPO. During a test failover, ASR creates a replica VM in an isolated network (using a separate virtual network or subnet) so that production traffic is unaffected, and the drill can be performed without any data loss or impact on the primary site. The RTO of 1 hour is achievable by pre-staging the target VM and using recovery plans to automate startup and database consistency checks.
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: Azure Site Recovery — Azure Site Recovery (ASR) replicates the entire VM (including the SQL Server database) to a secondary Azure region, meeting the RPO of 15 minutes and RTO of 1 hour. It supports non-disruptive disaster recovery drills by allowing test failovers in an isolated network without affecting the production environment. ASR does not require any changes to SQL Server configuration or licensing, as it operates at the hypervisor level using continuous replication.
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.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "always". Absolute qualifier. An answer using 'always' is only correct if there are genuinely no exceptions — absolute statements are often wrong in networking.
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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