- A
Deploy an Azure Load Balancer in the secondary region with health probes to automatically route traffic after failover.
Load balancer with health probes can redirect traffic to healthy backend VMs in the secondary region.
- B
Use Azure Backup to take hourly backups of the VMs and restore them in the secondary region.
Why wrong: Azure Backup does not provide automated failover; restore is manual and slower.
- C
Configure a read-only replica of the application tier in the secondary region using Availability Zones.
Why wrong: Read-only replicas do not support write operations; not suitable for failover.
- D
Deploy Azure Front Door with a backend pool containing both primary and secondary regions.
Why wrong: Front Door is for global traffic management, but it does not replicate VMs or handle failover automatically.
- E
Configure Azure Site Recovery replication for all application VMs from primary to secondary region.
ASR replicates VMs and supports automated failover with the required RPO/RTO.
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 is designing a disaster recovery solution for a three-tier application hosted on Azure VMs. The solution must meet the following requirements: - RPO: 1 hour - RTO: 4 hours - Automated failover to a secondary region - Cost optimization is a priority Which TWO actions should you include in the design?
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
Deploy an Azure Load Balancer in the secondary region with health probes to automatically route traffic after failover.
Options A and C are correct. Azure Site Recovery provides replication and automated failover for VMs, meeting RPO and RTO. Using an Azure Load Balancer with health probes allows traffic to be redirected to the secondary region after failover. Option B is wrong because Azure Backup is not designed for automated failover and has higher RTO. Option D is wrong because read-only replicas are for read scaling, not failover. Option E is wrong because Azure Front Door is for global load balancing, not regional failover for VMs.
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.
- ✓
Deploy an Azure Load Balancer in the secondary region with health probes to automatically route traffic after failover.
Why this is correct
Load balancer with health probes can redirect traffic to healthy backend VMs in the secondary region.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use Azure Backup to take hourly backups of the VMs and restore them in the secondary region.
Why it's wrong here
Azure Backup does not provide automated failover; restore is manual and slower.
- ✗
Configure a read-only replica of the application tier in the secondary region using Availability Zones.
Why it's wrong here
Read-only replicas do not support write operations; not suitable for failover.
- ✗
Deploy Azure Front Door with a backend pool containing both primary and secondary regions.
Why it's wrong here
Front Door is for global traffic management, but it does not replicate VMs or handle failover automatically.
- ✓
Configure Azure Site Recovery replication for all application VMs from primary to secondary region.
Why this is correct
ASR replicates VMs and supports automated failover with the required RPO/RTO.
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 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 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.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this AZ-305 question test?
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: Deploy an Azure Load Balancer in the secondary region with health probes to automatically route traffic after failover. — Options A and C are correct. Azure Site Recovery provides replication and automated failover for VMs, meeting RPO and RTO. Using an Azure Load Balancer with health probes allows traffic to be redirected to the secondary region after failover. Option B is wrong because Azure Backup is not designed for automated failover and has higher RTO. Option D is wrong because read-only replicas are for read scaling, not failover. Option E is wrong because Azure Front Door is for global load balancing, not regional failover for VMs.
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
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Last reviewed: Jun 21, 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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