The answer is to configure a failover group between two Azure SQL Managed Instances in different regions with manual failover. This design meets the required recovery point objective of 15 minutes because the managed instance failover group uses automatic, asynchronous replication that typically keeps data lag under 10 seconds, and the manual failover action completes in minutes, satisfying the recovery time objective of 4 hours. On the Microsoft Azure Solutions Architect Expert AZ-305 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of native Azure disaster recovery options versus legacy methods—a common trap is choosing geo-restore, which has a 12-hour RTO, or auto-failover, which can trigger unwanted failovers during brief regional blips. Remember that log shipping is unsupported on managed instances, so failover groups are the only built-in DR mechanism. Memory tip: “Manual failover gives you control, not chaos—RPO under 15, RTO under 4.”
AZ-305 Design business continuity solutions Practice Question
This AZ-305 practice question tests your understanding of design business continuity 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.
Your company has an on-premises database running SQL Server 2019. You plan to migrate to Azure SQL Managed Instance. The business requires a recovery point objective (RPO) of 15 minutes and a recovery time objective (RTO) of 4 hours for a regional disaster. You need to design the disaster recovery solution. What should you use?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Configure a failover group between two Azure SQL Managed Instances in different regions with manual failover.
Option A is correct because Azure SQL Managed Instance failover group with manual failover meets RPO of 15 minutes (replication delay typically less than 10 seconds) and RTO of 4 hours (manual failover takes minutes). Option B has RTO of 12 hours for geo-restore. Option C auto-failover may cause unwanted failovers. Option D log shipping is not supported in managed instance.
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.
✗
Configure a failover group between two Azure SQL Managed Instances in different regions with automatic failover.
Why it's wrong here
Automatic failover may fail over due to transient issues, causing unnecessary downtime.
✗
Use SQL Server log shipping from on-premises to Azure SQL Managed Instance in a secondary region.
Why it's wrong here
Log shipping is not supported for Azure SQL Managed Instance.
✗
Configure geo-restore of Azure SQL Managed Instance backups to a secondary region.
Why it's wrong here
Geo-restore RTO is 12 hours, exceeding requirement.
✓
Configure a failover group between two Azure SQL Managed Instances in different regions with manual failover.
Why this is correct
Failover groups replicate data synchronously or asynchronously; manual failover ensures control.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
→Underline the problem statement mentally.
→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 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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this AZ-305 question in full detail.
Identify which AZ-305 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Design business continuity solutions — This question tests Design business continuity solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Configure a failover group between two Azure SQL Managed Instances in different regions with manual failover. — Option A is correct because Azure SQL Managed Instance failover group with manual failover meets RPO of 15 minutes (replication delay typically less than 10 seconds) and RTO of 4 hours (manual failover takes minutes). Option B has RTO of 12 hours for geo-restore. Option C auto-failover may cause unwanted failovers. Option D log shipping is not supported in managed instance.
What should I do if I get this AZ-305 question wrong?
Identify which AZ-305 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. Which TWO actions should you take to ensure business continuity for an Azure SQL Managed Instance? (Choose two.)
medium
A.Use Azure Site Recovery to replicate the instance to another region
B.Configure a readable secondary replica in the same region
✓ C.Enable automated backups with a retention period that meets your RPO
✓ D.Configure a failover group with a secondary instance in a different region
E.Enable long-term retention (LTR) for backups
Why C: Options B and D are correct. Azure SQL Managed Instance supports automated backups with point-in-time restore (B) and failover groups for geo-replication (D). Option A is wrong because configuring a readable secondary is not directly supported; failover groups handle that. Option C is wrong because Azure Site Recovery is for VMs, not managed instances. Option E is wrong because long-term retention is for backup storage, not failover.
Last reviewed: Jun 20, 2026
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