- A
Use Hot tier for 30 days, then use Cool tier for 7 years, with a lifecycle rule to delete after 7 years.
Why wrong: Cool tier is more expensive than Archive tier for long-term storage. Archive offers the lowest storage cost, which is better for data that is rarely accessed.
- B
Use Hot tier for 30 days, then use Archive tier for the remaining period, with a lifecycle rule to delete after 7 years.
Hot tier provides low-latency access during the frequent access period. Archive tier provides the lowest storage cost for data that is rarely accessed. A lifecycle policy can automatically move data from Hot to Archive after 30 days and delete it after 7 years.
- C
Use Cool tier for 30 days, then use Archive tier for 7 years, no lifecycle rule needed.
Why wrong: Cool tier is more expensive than Hot tier for frequent access, and without a lifecycle rule the data will not be automatically deleted after 7 years, leading to indefinite storage costs.
- D
Use Archive tier immediately, with a lifecycle rule to delete after 7 years.
Why wrong: Archive tier is not suitable for frequent access; reading data from Archive incurs high costs and latency. The data is accessed frequently for the first 30 days.
Quick Answer
The correct answer is to use the Hot tier for the first 30 days, then move the data to the Archive tier for the remaining period, with a lifecycle rule to delete the blobs after 7 years. This configuration minimizes storage costs by aligning the access pattern—frequent queries during the initial month are served by the low-latency Hot tier, while the rarely accessed long-term retention period leverages the Archive tier’s lowest storage price. The lifecycle management policy automates the transition from Hot to Archive after 30 days and triggers deletion at the 7-year mark, ensuring compliance without manual intervention. On the AZ-305 exam, this scenario tests your ability to map business requirements to Azure Blob Storage tiers and lifecycle rules, often with a trap where candidates choose the Cool tier for the long term, forgetting that Archive is cheaper for data accessed less than once a year. Remember the mnemonic “30 Hot, then Archive, delete at 7” to lock in the sequence.
AZ-305 Design data storage solutions Practice Question
This AZ-305 practice question tests your understanding of design data storage solutions. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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 stores large amounts of log data in Azure Blob Storage. Logs are accessed frequently for the first 30 days, then rarely accessed afterward, but must be retained for 7 years for compliance. The company wants to minimize storage costs. They need to configure automatic data movement and retention policies. Which combination of Azure Blob Storage access tiers and lifecycle management policy should they use?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue:
"first"Why it matters: Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
Clue:
"minimum / minimize"Why it matters: Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.
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
Use Hot tier for 30 days, then use Archive tier for the remaining period, with a lifecycle rule to delete after 7 years.
Option B is correct because it uses the Hot tier for the first 30 days to handle frequent access, then automatically moves data to the Archive tier via a lifecycle management rule to minimize costs for rarely accessed data, and finally deletes the blobs after 7 years to meet compliance retention requirements. The Archive tier offers the lowest storage cost for long-term retention, making it ideal for logs that are rarely accessed after the initial period.
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.
- ✗
Use Hot tier for 30 days, then use Cool tier for 7 years, with a lifecycle rule to delete after 7 years.
Why it's wrong here
Cool tier is more expensive than Archive tier for long-term storage. Archive offers the lowest storage cost, which is better for data that is rarely accessed.
- ✓
Use Hot tier for 30 days, then use Archive tier for the remaining period, with a lifecycle rule to delete after 7 years.
Why this is correct
Hot tier provides low-latency access during the frequent access period. Archive tier provides the lowest storage cost for data that is rarely accessed. A lifecycle policy can automatically move data from Hot to Archive after 30 days and delete it after 7 years.
Clue confirmation
The clue words "first", "minimum / minimize" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use Cool tier for 30 days, then use Archive tier for 7 years, no lifecycle rule needed.
Why it's wrong here
Cool tier is more expensive than Hot tier for frequent access, and without a lifecycle rule the data will not be automatically deleted after 7 years, leading to indefinite storage costs.
- ✗
Use Archive tier immediately, with a lifecycle rule to delete after 7 years.
Why it's wrong here
Archive tier is not suitable for frequent access; reading data from Archive incurs high costs and latency. The data is accessed frequently for the first 30 days.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often choose the Cool tier for long-term retention because they underestimate the cost savings of the Archive tier for data that is rarely accessed over many years, or they forget that a lifecycle rule is necessary to enforce deletion after the compliance period.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Azure Blob Storage lifecycle management policies use rules based on 'last modified' timestamps to transition blobs between tiers (Hot, Cool, Archive) and to delete them. The Archive tier has a 180-day minimum retention period for blobs moved from Hot or Cool, but this does not apply to blobs initially uploaded to Archive; however, the lifecycle rule must account for this to avoid early deletion charges. In practice, logs are often partitioned by date to allow granular tiering and deletion, ensuring compliance with retention policies while optimizing costs.
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 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 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: Use Hot tier for 30 days, then use Archive tier for the remaining period, with a lifecycle rule to delete after 7 years. — Option B is correct because it uses the Hot tier for the first 30 days to handle frequent access, then automatically moves data to the Archive tier via a lifecycle management rule to minimize costs for rarely accessed data, and finally deletes the blobs after 7 years to meet compliance retention requirements. The Archive tier offers the lowest storage cost for long-term retention, making it ideal for logs that are rarely accessed after the initial period.
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: "first", "minimum / minimize". Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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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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