Quick Answer
The answer is a metric alert with a static threshold. This is correct because Azure Monitor metric alerts evaluate resource-level performance counters, such as CPU percentage, in near real-time against a defined numeric threshold—in this case, 90%—and trigger only after the condition persists for a specified duration, here 5 minutes. For latency-sensitive applications, metric alerts provide the low-latency, direct evaluation needed without the overhead of log ingestion or complex queries. On the AZ-305 exam, this scenario tests your ability to distinguish between metric alerts and log alerts: a common trap is choosing a log alert because it can also monitor CPU, but log alerts rely on KQL queries against Log Analytics workspaces, introducing delay and cost. Remember the key distinction: if the requirement is a simple numeric threshold on a resource metric with a time window, think metric alert. Memory tip: “Metric for the metric—static threshold on the CPU, no logs needed.”
This AZ-305 practice question tests your understanding of design identity, governance, and monitoring 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.
You are designing a monitoring solution for a critical application hosted on Azure Virtual Machines. The application is latency-sensitive and you need to be alerted when CPU usage exceeds 90% for more than 5 minutes. Which Azure Monitor feature should you use?
Service health alert
Why wrong: Service health alerts notify about Azure service incidents, not VM performance.
Metric alert
Metric alerts monitor numeric values like CPU percentage and can trigger on threshold conditions.
Log alert
Why wrong: Log alerts query log data, which is not optimal for real-time metric monitoring.
Activity log alert
Why wrong: Activity log alerts track changes to Azure resources, not performance metrics.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Metric alert
Metric alerts in Azure Monitor evaluate resource metrics (like CPU percentage) at regular intervals and trigger actions when a threshold is breached for a specified duration. Since the question involves a latency-sensitive application and a numeric threshold (CPU > 90% for 5 minutes), a metric alert is the correct choice because it provides near-real-time, low-latency evaluation directly from the VM's performance counters.
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.
Service health alert
Why it's wrong here
Service health alerts notify about Azure service incidents, not VM performance.
Metric alert
Why this is correct
Metric alerts monitor numeric values like CPU percentage and can trigger on threshold conditions.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Log alert
Why it's wrong here
Log alerts query log data, which is not optimal for real-time metric monitoring.
Activity log alert
Why it's wrong here
Activity log alerts track changes to Azure resources, not performance metrics.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse Log alerts (which are powerful for complex queries) with Metric alerts, forgetting that Log alerts introduce latency from log ingestion and indexing, making them inappropriate for time-sensitive, threshold-based CPU monitoring.
Detailed technical explanation
Metric alerts use a time-series database and evaluate conditions every 1 minute (for most metrics) with a lookback window equal to the aggregation granularity. For CPU metrics, the 'Percentage CPU' metric is collected via the Azure Diagnostics extension or the Azure Monitor agent, and the alert fires only after the condition is met for the specified duration (e.g., 5 minutes) to avoid flapping. In a real-world scenario, if you need sub-minute response, you could combine a metric alert with an autoscale rule or use a custom metric with a 1-minute frequency.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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
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FAQ
Design identity, governance, and monitoring solutions — This question tests Design identity, governance, and monitoring solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Metric alert — Metric alerts in Azure Monitor evaluate resource metrics (like CPU percentage) at regular intervals and trigger actions when a threshold is breached for a specified duration. Since the question involves a latency-sensitive application and a numeric threshold (CPU > 90% for 5 minutes), a metric alert is the correct choice because it provides near-real-time, low-latency evaluation directly from the VM's performance counters.
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 24, 2026
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