- A
Azure Load Balancer (Standard)
Why wrong: Load Balancer operates at layer-4 and cannot offload SSL termination. It is suitable for non-HTTP(S) traffic or scenarios where SSL is handled elsewhere.
- B
Azure Application Gateway v2
Application Gateway is a layer-7 load balancer that provides SSL termination, health probes, and preserves the client IP address via X-Forwarded-For headers.
- C
Azure Traffic Manager
Why wrong: Traffic Manager is a DNS-based traffic router. It does not handle SSL termination or direct traffic distribution to VMs; it only directs clients to endpoints based on routing methods.
- D
Azure Front Door
Why wrong: Front Door is a global layer-7 load balancer with WAF capabilities. While it can perform SSL termination, it is designed for global distribution and adds unnecessary cost and complexity for a single-region deployment.
Quick Answer
The answer is Azure Application Gateway v2, as it is the only Azure load-balancing service that combines Layer 7 SSL termination, health probes, and client IP preservation through the X-Forwarded-For header. When SSL termination occurs at the gateway, the original client IP is lost in the encrypted traffic, but Application Gateway v2 solves this by injecting the client’s real IP into the HTTP header, allowing backend VMs to log it accurately. On the AZ-305 exam, this scenario tests your ability to distinguish between Layer 4 (Azure Load Balancer) and Layer 7 (Application Gateway) services—a common trap is choosing Azure Load Balancer, which cannot terminate SSL or preserve client IP at the application layer. Remember that for any requirement involving SSL offload, URL-based routing, or client IP logging via headers, Application Gateway v2 is the designated solution. Memory tip: think “Gateway for SSL and headers” — if you need to offload encryption and keep the client’s IP visible, the gateway is your only path.
AZ-305 Design infrastructure solutions Practice Question
This AZ-305 practice question tests your understanding of design infrastructure 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 plans to migrate a legacy web application to Azure. The application runs on multiple Windows virtual machines (VMs) in an availability set. The VMs must be exposed to the internet via a single endpoint that performs SSL termination and health checks. The load-balancing solution must preserve the original client IP address for logging purposes. Which Azure service should the company use?
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 Application Gateway v2
Azure Application Gateway v2 is the correct choice because it is a Layer 7 load balancer that supports SSL termination, health probes, and provides a single public endpoint. It preserves the original client IP address by inserting the X-Forwarded-For header in the HTTP request, which the backend VMs can read for logging. This meets all requirements: single internet-facing endpoint, SSL offload, health checks, and client IP preservation.
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 Load Balancer (Standard)
Why it's wrong here
Load Balancer operates at layer-4 and cannot offload SSL termination. It is suitable for non-HTTP(S) traffic or scenarios where SSL is handled elsewhere.
- ✓
Azure Application Gateway v2
Why this is correct
Application Gateway is a layer-7 load balancer that provides SSL termination, health probes, and preserves the client IP address via X-Forwarded-For headers.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Azure Traffic Manager
- ✗
Azure Front Door
Why it's wrong here
Front Door is a global layer-7 load balancer with WAF capabilities. While it can perform SSL termination, it is designed for global distribution and adds unnecessary cost and complexity for a single-region deployment.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse Azure Load Balancer (Layer 4) with Application Gateway (Layer 7), assuming that any load balancer can terminate SSL and preserve client IP, but only Layer 7 services can inspect HTTP headers and perform SSL offload natively.
Trap categories for this question
Scenario analysis trap
Load Balancer operates at layer-4 and cannot offload SSL termination. It is suitable for non-HTTP(S) traffic or scenarios where SSL is handled elsewhere.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Azure Application Gateway v2 uses a private frontend IP and a public listener to terminate SSL, then forwards decrypted traffic to backend pools over HTTP. The X-Forwarded-For header is automatically added by the gateway, containing the original client IP; this is standardized in RFC 7239. In contrast, Azure Load Balancer at Layer 4 cannot inspect HTTP headers, so it relies on the backend VM to see the source IP of the load balancer (unless DSR is used, which breaks SSL termination). Application Gateway v2 also supports cookie-based session affinity and URL-based routing, which are common in legacy web applications.
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
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
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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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this AZ-305 question test?
Design infrastructure solutions — This question tests Design infrastructure solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Azure Application Gateway v2 — Azure Application Gateway v2 is the correct choice because it is a Layer 7 load balancer that supports SSL termination, health probes, and provides a single public endpoint. It preserves the original client IP address by inserting the X-Forwarded-For header in the HTTP request, which the backend VMs can read for logging. This meets all requirements: single internet-facing endpoint, SSL offload, health checks, and client IP preservation.
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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