- A
Single-master write region with Strong consistency and multiple read regions
Why wrong: Strong consistency forces all writes to be replicated synchronously across regions, increasing write latency and potentially reducing availability during outages. It is not justified here.
- B
Multi-master write with Eventual consistency and all regions enabled for writes
Why wrong: Multi-master write is unnecessary because writes only come from one region. Eventual consistency may cause users to see stale data within a session, violating the requirement for session consistency.
- C
Single-master write region with Session consistency and multiple read regions
Session consistency provides a consistent view for a user within a session and allows low-latency reads from multiple regions. Writes are performed in one region, minimizing write latency and cost.
- D
Multi-master write with Strong consistency and two regions
Why wrong: This configuration would significantly increase write latency and cost. The strong consistency across multi-master writes is difficult to achieve and unnecessary given the single write location.
Quick Answer
The answer is a single-master write region with Session consistency and multiple read regions. This configuration is correct because Session consistency provides the "read your own writes" guarantee within a single session, ensuring users always see the same data during their session without the latency and cost overhead of Strong consistency. For a read-heavy workload with centralized writes, single-master writes direct all writes to one region, minimizing write latency, while multiple read regions enable global users to achieve sub-10 ms 99th percentile latency by reading from the nearest region. On the AZ-305 exam, this scenario tests your ability to balance consistency, performance, and cost for global read-heavy patterns, often as a trap where candidates mistakenly choose Strong consistency or multi-master writes, which would increase latency and cost unnecessarily. A useful memory tip: "Session for the session, single for the source" — Session consistency for user sessions, single-master for the central write source.
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 global e-commerce company uses Azure Cosmos DB to store its product catalog. The catalog is read-heavy, with users worldwide expecting consistent reads with a 99th percentile latency under 10 ms. Writes to the catalog are performed by a central admin team in one region. The company needs to minimize write latency and cost while ensuring that users always see the same data within a single session. Which Cosmos DB configuration should the company choose?
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.
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
Single-master write region with Session consistency and multiple read regions
Option C is correct because Session consistency provides the required 'read your own writes' guarantee within a single session, which ensures users always see the same data during their session without the latency and cost penalties of Strong consistency. Single-master writes minimize write latency by directing all writes to one region (the central admin team's region), while multiple read regions allow global users to read from the nearest region with sub-10 ms latency. This configuration balances cost, performance, and consistency needs for a read-heavy catalog with centralized writes.
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.
- ✗
Single-master write region with Strong consistency and multiple read regions
Why it's wrong here
Strong consistency forces all writes to be replicated synchronously across regions, increasing write latency and potentially reducing availability during outages. It is not justified here.
- ✗
Multi-master write with Eventual consistency and all regions enabled for writes
Why it's wrong here
Multi-master write is unnecessary because writes only come from one region. Eventual consistency may cause users to see stale data within a session, violating the requirement for session consistency.
- ✓
Single-master write region with Session consistency and multiple read regions
Why this is correct
Session consistency provides a consistent view for a user within a session and allows low-latency reads from multiple regions. Writes are performed in one region, minimizing write latency and cost.
Clue confirmation
The clue words "always", "minimum / minimize" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Multi-master write with Strong consistency and two regions
Why it's wrong here
This configuration would significantly increase write latency and cost. The strong consistency across multi-master writes is difficult to achieve and unnecessary given the single write location.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse 'strong consistency' with 'always correct' and overlook that Session consistency is sufficient for per-session guarantees, while Strong consistency adds unnecessary latency and cost for a read-heavy catalog with centralized writes.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Session consistency in Cosmos DB uses a session token that is passed between the client and server to ensure monotonic reads, monotonic writes, and read-your-writes guarantees within a session. Under the hood, the SDK automatically manages session tokens, and reads from any replica will honor the token to return the latest write visible to that session, even if other replicas are slightly behind. This is ideal for globally distributed read-heavy workloads because it avoids the global clock coordination required by Strong consistency (which uses quorum-based commits) while still providing predictable behavior for individual users.
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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Design data storage solutions practice questions
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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: Single-master write region with Session consistency and multiple read regions — Option C is correct because Session consistency provides the required 'read your own writes' guarantee within a single session, which ensures users always see the same data during their session without the latency and cost penalties of Strong consistency. Single-master writes minimize write latency by directing all writes to one region (the central admin team's region), while multiple read regions allow global users to read from the nearest region with sub-10 ms latency. This configuration balances cost, performance, and consistency needs for a read-heavy catalog with centralized writes.
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", "minimum / minimize". 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.
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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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