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.
An enterprise data platform must store petabytes of raw files for analytics and support fine-grained access control through Microsoft Entra ID. Which storage solution should be selected?
Azure Queue Storage
Why wrong: Queue Storage is for messaging, not analytical file storage.
Azure Disk Storage attached to one VM
Why wrong: Managed disks are not appropriate for shared petabyte-scale analytics storage.
Azure Cache for Redis
Why wrong: Redis is an in-memory cache and not a petabyte-scale data lake.
Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2
ADLS Gen2 combines Blob Storage scalability with hierarchical namespace and Entra ID-based ACLs.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2
Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 (ADLS Gen2) combines a hierarchical namespace with Azure Blob Storage, enabling petabyte-scale storage for raw files and fine-grained access control via POSIX-like ACLs integrated with Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD). This makes it the ideal solution for enterprise analytics requiring both massive capacity and granular security.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
Azure Queue Storage
Why it's wrong here
Queue Storage is for messaging, not analytical file storage.
Azure Disk Storage attached to one VM
Why it's wrong here
Managed disks are not appropriate for shared petabyte-scale analytics storage.
Azure Cache for Redis
Why it's wrong here
Redis is an in-memory cache and not a petabyte-scale data lake.
Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2
Why this is correct
ADLS Gen2 combines Blob Storage scalability with hierarchical namespace and Entra ID-based ACLs.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates may confuse Azure Blob Storage (which lacks a hierarchical namespace and fine-grained ACLs) with ADLS Gen2, or assume that any Azure storage service can handle petabyte-scale analytics, ignoring the specific requirements for Entra ID integration and granular permissions.
Detailed technical explanation
ADLS Gen2 uses a hierarchical namespace that organizes files into directories, enabling efficient rename and delete operations without scanning all blobs, and supports POSIX-compliant ACLs (read, write, execute) at both directory and file levels. Under the hood, it leverages Azure Blob Storage's scale and durability while adding a metadata layer for the namespace, allowing integration with analytics engines like Azure Synapse and Databricks for parallel processing. A real-world scenario is a data lake storing IoT sensor data where different teams need read/write access to specific folders, enforced via Entra ID security groups and ACLs.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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
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FAQ
Design data storage solutions — This question tests Design data storage solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 — Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 (ADLS Gen2) combines a hierarchical namespace with Azure Blob Storage, enabling petabyte-scale storage for raw files and fine-grained access control via POSIX-like ACLs integrated with Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD). This makes it the ideal solution for enterprise analytics requiring both massive capacity and granular security.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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