- A
Deploy the API Management, Functions, and Cosmos DB across two Availability Zones in East US. Use zone-redundant services. For Cosmos DB, use multi-region writes within the same region (not possible).
Why wrong: Availability Zones do not protect against a regional outage.
- B
Deploy an active-active architecture in East US and West US. Deploy API Management in both regions and use Azure Front Door with health probes for automatic failover. Deploy Azure Functions in both regions (Premium plan supports multi-region). Configure Cosmos DB with multi-region writes (single write region with automatic failover) and strong consistency. All traffic is active-active, with automatic failover.
Active-active with automatic failover meets RPO=0 and RTO=1 minute.
- C
Deploy a passive standby in West US with a second API Management instance, a second Functions app, and a second Cosmos DB write region (multi-region writes). Use Azure Front Door with health probes to automatically route traffic. Manually failover Cosmos DB during disaster.
Why wrong: Manual failover for Cosmos DB does not meet 1-minute RTO.
- D
Deploy a passive standby in West US using Azure Site Recovery to replicate the Azure Functions and API Management. For Cosmos DB, enable a secondary read region and manual failover. Use Azure Traffic Manager to switch traffic during a disaster.
Why wrong: Passive standby and manual failover cannot achieve 1-minute RTO.
Quick Answer
The correct answer is an active-active multi-region disaster recovery architecture with Cosmos DB multi-region writes, strong consistency, and Azure Front Door. This strategy achieves the required RPO of zero and RTO of one minute because active-active configurations allow all regions to serve traffic simultaneously, eliminating failover delays, while Cosmos DB’s strong consistency with a single write region and automatic failover guarantees no data loss even during a regional outage. On the AZ-305 exam, this scenario tests your ability to distinguish between regional and zonal resilience—a common trap is choosing Availability Zones, which protect only against datacenter failures, not full region outages. The key insight is that for zero RPO, you must use multi-region writes with strong consistency, not asynchronous replication. Memory tip: “Active-active for zero RTO, strong consistency for zero RPO, and Front Door for instant failover.”
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.
Adatum Corporation runs a customer-facing API on Azure API Management (Developer tier) in the East US region. The backend is an Azure Function app (Premium plan) also in East US. The data is stored in Azure Cosmos DB (Core SQL API) with a single write region in East US. The company requires: - RPO: 0 (zero data loss). - RTO: 1 minute for the API to be available after a region failure. - The solution must be fully automated. - Cost is not a primary concern.
What DR strategy should you recommend?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue:
"primary"Why it matters: Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
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
Deploy an active-active architecture in East US and West US. Deploy API Management in both regions and use Azure Front Door with health probes for automatic failover. Deploy Azure Functions in both regions (Premium plan supports multi-region). Configure Cosmos DB with multi-region writes (single write region with automatic failover) and strong consistency. All traffic is active-active, with automatic failover.
Option D is correct because an active-active multi-region architecture with Cosmos DB multi-region writes (strong consistency in single write region with automatic failover) ensures zero data loss and automatic failover. API Management can be deployed in multiple regions with Azure Front Door for global load balancing and automatic failover. Azure Functions Premium plan supports multi-region deployment. Option A is wrong because Azure Site Recovery has higher RTO. Option B is wrong because passive standby has higher RTO due to manual steps. Option C is wrong because Availability Zones do not protect against regional outage.
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.
- ✗
Deploy the API Management, Functions, and Cosmos DB across two Availability Zones in East US. Use zone-redundant services. For Cosmos DB, use multi-region writes within the same region (not possible).
Why it's wrong here
Availability Zones do not protect against a regional outage.
- ✓
Deploy an active-active architecture in East US and West US. Deploy API Management in both regions and use Azure Front Door with health probes for automatic failover. Deploy Azure Functions in both regions (Premium plan supports multi-region). Configure Cosmos DB with multi-region writes (single write region with automatic failover) and strong consistency. All traffic is active-active, with automatic failover.
Why this is correct
Active-active with automatic failover meets RPO=0 and RTO=1 minute.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "primary" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Deploy a passive standby in West US with a second API Management instance, a second Functions app, and a second Cosmos DB write region (multi-region writes). Use Azure Front Door with health probes to automatically route traffic. Manually failover Cosmos DB during disaster.
Why it's wrong here
Manual failover for Cosmos DB does not meet 1-minute RTO.
- ✗
Deploy a passive standby in West US using Azure Site Recovery to replicate the Azure Functions and API Management. For Cosmos DB, enable a secondary read region and manual failover. Use Azure Traffic Manager to switch traffic during a disaster.
Why it's wrong here
Passive standby and manual failover cannot achieve 1-minute RTO.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
- Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
- Underline the problem statement mentally.
- 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
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which AZ-305 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
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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: Deploy an active-active architecture in East US and West US. Deploy API Management in both regions and use Azure Front Door with health probes for automatic failover. Deploy Azure Functions in both regions (Premium plan supports multi-region). Configure Cosmos DB with multi-region writes (single write region with automatic failover) and strong consistency. All traffic is active-active, with automatic failover. — Option D is correct because an active-active multi-region architecture with Cosmos DB multi-region writes (strong consistency in single write region with automatic failover) ensures zero data loss and automatic failover. API Management can be deployed in multiple regions with Azure Front Door for global load balancing and automatic failover. Azure Functions Premium plan supports multi-region deployment. Option A is wrong because Azure Site Recovery has higher RTO. Option B is wrong because passive standby has higher RTO due to manual steps. Option C is wrong because Availability Zones do not protect against regional outage.
What should I do if I get this AZ-305 question wrong?
Identify which AZ-305 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "primary". Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 20, 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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