Question 1mediummultiple choice
Full question →mediummultiple choiceObjective-mapped
A company has a simple containerized web application that runs in a single container. The application processes a workload for a few minutes every hour and remains idle the rest of the time. The company wants to deploy the container in Azure without managing any virtual machines or container orchestrators. They also want to pay only for the time the container is actually running, with no cost when idle. Which Azure compute service should the company use?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Good practice is not just finding the correct option. The wrong answers often show the exact trap the exam wants you to fall into.
A
Distractor review
Azure App Service
Azure App Service can deploy containers, but it runs continuously and bills per hour (or per plan), not per second of actual runtime. It also requires a plan that is always running, which does not match the requirement to pay only for active processing minutes.
B
Best answer
Azure Container Instances
Azure Container Instances (ACI) is the correct choice. It allows you to run containers directly on Azure without managing VMs or orchestrators. ACI bills per second of container execution and has no active cost when the container is stopped, matching the pay-per-use requirement perfectly.
C
Distractor review
Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets
Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets require you to manage virtual machines (even though they can be patched and scaled automatically). You pay for the underlying VMs regardless of whether the container is actively processing, and you must manage the container runtime environment. This does not meet the no-VM-management or pay-per-second requirements.
D
Distractor review
Azure Kubernetes Service
Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) is a managed Kubernetes orchestrator, but it still requires you to manage worker node VMs (even if Microsoft manages the control plane). You pay for the node VMs continuously, and there is additional operational overhead for the Kubernetes configuration. It is not serverless and does not offer per-second billing for container execution.
Common exam trap
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.
Technical deep dive
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.
Related practice questions
Related AZ-900 practice-question pages
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
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More questions from this exam
Keep practising from the same exam bank, or move into a focused topic page if this question exposed a weak area.
Question 1
A developer is building a serverless application that requires integration with an on-premises SQL Server database for real-time data processing. The on-premises network is connected to Azure via a site-to-site VPN. Which Azure service would allow the function to securely access the on-premises database without exposing it to the public internet?
Question 2
A solutions architect is designing a storage solution for a large media company. The company needs to store video files that are accessed infrequently but must be retained for several years for compliance. Which two Azure storage options meet these requirements? (Select two.)
Question 3
A company deploys a multi-tier application using Azure virtual machines. The web tier VMs must be evenly distributed across two distinct data centers within an Azure region to avoid a single point of failure from an infrastructure outage. Which Azure construct should they use to meet this requirement?
Question 4
A company wants to enforce a set of security policies across all their Azure subscriptions. They have created several individual policy definitions. Which Azure construct should they use to group these policies together and assign them as a single package?
Question 5
A company deploys a line-of-business application on an Azure virtual machine. The IT team wants to ensure the application remains secure. According to the shared responsibility model, which of the following security tasks is the sole responsibility of the customer (the company)?
Question 6
A company develops a web API that runs on Azure App Service. The development team wants to deploy a new version of the API to a staging environment, run integration tests against it, and then gradually shift production traffic to the new version. If any issues are detected, they want to immediately roll back to the previous version without redeploying. Which Azure App Service feature should the team use to meet these requirements?
FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this AZ-900 question test?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Azure Container Instances — Azure Container Instances (ACI) is a serverless container service that runs containers on demand without requiring any underlying virtual machine or orchestration management. It bills per second of container runtime, making it ideal for short-lived, infrequent workloads. Azure App Service supports containers but runs continuously and bills per hour. Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets and Azure Kubernetes Service both require the customer to manage or provision VMs, which does not meet the requirement of no VM management.
What should I do if I get this AZ-900 question wrong?
Then try more questions from the same exam bank and focus on understanding why the wrong options are tempting.
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