- A
Public cloud
Why wrong: Incorrect because a public cloud deployment model uses only cloud resources hosted by a third-party provider. The firm also uses an on-premises data center, so it is not purely public cloud.
- B
Private cloud
Why wrong: Incorrect because a private cloud deployment model is dedicated to a single organization and usually resides on-premises or in a hosted private environment. The firm also uses public cloud services, so it is not purely private cloud.
- C
Hybrid cloud
Correct. A hybrid cloud combines public cloud and private cloud (on-premises) environments, enabling data and application sharing. This matches the firm's setup of running applications in the public cloud while keeping sensitive data on-premises with secure connectivity.
- D
Community cloud
Why wrong: Incorrect because a community cloud is a collaborative deployment model shared among several organizations with common regulatory or compliance needs. This scenario involves only one firm, not a community.
Quick Answer
The answer is hybrid cloud. This is correct because the scenario combines a public cloud for customer-facing applications with an on-premises private infrastructure for sensitive data, requiring secure connectivity between the two environments—typically via VPN or a dedicated circuit like Azure ExpressRoute—to meet regulatory compliance. On the Microsoft Azure Fundamentals AZ-900 exam, this type of hybrid cloud deployment example tests your understanding of how organizations balance scalability with data sovereignty; a common trap is confusing this with a multi-cloud setup, which involves multiple public clouds rather than a mix of public and on-premises. Remember the key distinction: hybrid cloud always bridges a public cloud with your own on-premises infrastructure. A useful memory tip is to think of the word “hybrid” as a hybrid car that uses both gas (on-premises) and electric (public cloud) power sources, seamlessly switching between them as needed.
AZ-900 Describe cloud concepts Practice Question
This AZ-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe cloud concepts. 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.
A financial services firm uses a hybrid cloud strategy. They run customer-facing applications in a public cloud and store sensitive customer data in an on-premises data center to meet regulatory compliance. The firm wants to allow its applications in the public cloud to securely access the on-premises data when needed. Which cloud deployment model best describes this setup?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue:
"best"Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
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
Hybrid cloud
Option C is correct because the scenario describes a hybrid cloud deployment model, which combines a public cloud (for customer-facing applications) with an on-premises private cloud (for sensitive data storage) and enables secure connectivity between them, typically through VPN or dedicated circuits like Azure ExpressRoute. This allows the firm to meet regulatory compliance by keeping sensitive data on-premises while leveraging public cloud scalability for applications.
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.
- ✗
Public cloud
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect because a public cloud deployment model uses only cloud resources hosted by a third-party provider. The firm also uses an on-premises data center, so it is not purely public cloud.
- ✗
Private cloud
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect because a private cloud deployment model is dedicated to a single organization and usually resides on-premises or in a hosted private environment. The firm also uses public cloud services, so it is not purely private cloud.
- ✓
Hybrid cloud
Why this is correct
Correct. A hybrid cloud combines public cloud and private cloud (on-premises) environments, enabling data and application sharing. This matches the firm's setup of running applications in the public cloud while keeping sensitive data on-premises with secure connectivity.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Community cloud
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect because a community cloud is a collaborative deployment model shared among several organizations with common regulatory or compliance needs. This scenario involves only one firm, not a community.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may confuse 'hybrid cloud' with 'public cloud' because they see the use of a public cloud provider, but the key differentiator is the integration with on-premises infrastructure to meet compliance requirements.
Trap categories for this question
Scenario analysis trap
Incorrect because a community cloud is a collaborative deployment model shared among several organizations with common regulatory or compliance needs. This scenario involves only one firm, not a community.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In a hybrid cloud, connectivity between environments is often established using site-to-site VPN (IPsec) or dedicated private connections like Azure ExpressRoute or AWS Direct Connect, which provide low-latency, secure data transfer. This setup allows the public cloud applications to access on-premises data via private IP addresses, avoiding exposure to the public internet. A common real-world scenario is a financial institution using Azure for web front-ends while keeping SQL Server databases in an on-premises data center, with Azure SQL Managed Instance linked via a virtual network gateway.
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 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.
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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Describe cloud concepts — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this AZ-900 question test?
Describe cloud concepts — This question tests Describe cloud concepts — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Hybrid cloud — Option C is correct because the scenario describes a hybrid cloud deployment model, which combines a public cloud (for customer-facing applications) with an on-premises private cloud (for sensitive data storage) and enables secure connectivity between them, typically through VPN or dedicated circuits like Azure ExpressRoute. This allows the firm to meet regulatory compliance by keeping sensitive data on-premises while leveraging public cloud scalability for applications.
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.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
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 →
Same concept, more angles
1 more ways this is tested on AZ-900
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 of the following is an example of a 'hybrid cloud' deployment?
medium- A.Using only Azure for all company workloads
- ✓ B.Running customer-facing applications on Azure while keeping sensitive HR data on on-premises servers
- C.Using both Azure and AWS for different workloads
- D.Storing data only in the cloud with no on-premises infrastructure
Why B: Option B is correct because a hybrid cloud deployment combines public cloud resources (Azure) with on-premises infrastructure, connected via technologies like VPNs or Azure ExpressRoute. Running customer-facing apps on Azure while keeping sensitive HR data on-premises exemplifies this blend, allowing organizations to maintain compliance or low latency for critical data while leveraging cloud scalability.
Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This AZ-900 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-900 exam.
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