The answer is Azure Reserved VM Instances, as they offer the greatest discount—up to 72%—compared to pay-as-you-go pricing for a stable, predictable workload running continuously for one year. This is because Reserved Instances require a one-year or three-year commitment in exchange for a significantly lower hourly rate, effectively rewarding long-term, steady-state usage with maximum savings. On the AZ-900 exam, this concept tests your understanding of how Azure pricing models align with workload patterns; a common trap is confusing the short-term savings of the Azure Hybrid Benefit or Spot VMs with the deeper, guaranteed discount of Reserved Instances. Remember, if the workload is predictable and always on, Reserved Instances are the clear winner. A helpful memory tip: “Reserve for regular, pay-as-you-go for random.”
AZ-900 Describe Azure management and governance Practice Question
This AZ-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe azure management and governance. 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.
Which Azure pricing option offers the GREATEST discount compared to pay-as-you-go pricing for a stable, predictable workload that will run continuously for one year?
Why wrong: Spot VMs offer the largest discounts (up to 90%) but can be evicted at any time — not suitable for stable, predictable workloads that must run continuously.
B
Azure Reserved VM Instances
Reservations offer up to 72% discount for 1 or 3-year commitments, making them the best option for predictable, continuous workloads.
C
Azure Hybrid Benefit
Why wrong: Hybrid Benefit reduces licensing costs for Windows Server/SQL Server — it's a discount layer that can be combined with reservations.
D
Azure Dev/Test pricing
Why wrong: Dev/Test pricing is for non-production workloads and isn't available for all services.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Azure Reserved VM Instances
Azure Reserved VM Instances provide a significant discount (up to 72%) over pay-as-you-go pricing when you commit to a one-year or three-year term. For a stable, predictable workload that runs continuously for one year, this option offers the greatest savings because it is specifically designed for long-term, steady-state usage.
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.
✗
Azure Spot VMs
Why it's wrong here
Spot VMs offer the largest discounts (up to 90%) but can be evicted at any time — not suitable for stable, predictable workloads that must run continuously.
✓
Azure Reserved VM Instances
Why this is correct
Reservations offer up to 72% discount for 1 or 3-year commitments, making them the best option for predictable, continuous workloads.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Azure Hybrid Benefit
Why it's wrong here
Hybrid Benefit reduces licensing costs for Windows Server/SQL Server — it's a discount layer that can be combined with reservations.
✗
Azure Dev/Test pricing
Why it's wrong here
Dev/Test pricing is for non-production workloads and isn't available for all services.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse Azure Hybrid Benefit with a direct discount on compute, but it only reduces software licensing costs, not the underlying VM compute rate, so it does not offer the greatest discount for a continuous workload.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Azure Reserved VM Instances are a billing discount applied to the compute cost of virtual machines, not a separate VM SKU. The discount is applied automatically when you purchase a reservation that matches the VM attributes (region, size, operating system, and term). For example, a one-year reservation for a D2s v3 VM in East US can save approximately 40% compared to pay-as-you-go, while a three-year term can save up to 72%. This pricing model is ideal for baseline workloads like an always-on web server or a database server that requires consistent performance and availability.
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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this AZ-900 question in full detail.
Describe Azure management and governance — This question tests Describe Azure management and governance — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Azure Reserved VM Instances — Azure Reserved VM Instances provide a significant discount (up to 72%) over pay-as-you-go pricing when you commit to a one-year or three-year term. For a stable, predictable workload that runs continuously for one year, this option offers the greatest savings because it is specifically designed for long-term, steady-state usage.
What should I do if I get this AZ-900 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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