DP-203 Design and implement data storage Practice Question
You are designing a data storage solution for a retail company that needs to store semi-structured IoT sensor data from thousands of devices. The data is ingested in near real-time, and queries will involve filtering by device ID and timestamp. The solution must minimize storage costs while supporting interactive queries. Which TWO Azure data storage options are most appropriate?
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to choose Azure Cosmos DB for its low-latency querying capabilities, overlooking that the question emphasizes minimizing storage costs for large volumes of semi-structured IoT data, where object storage (Blob/Data Lake) is far cheaper and still supports interactive queries via analytics engines.
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
✓
Azure Blob Storage
Azure Blob Storage (C) is correct because it provides a cost-effective, scalable object store for semi-structured IoT data, supporting near real-time ingestion via REST APIs or SDKs and enabling interactive queries through Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2's hierarchical namespace and integration with query engines like Azure Synapse Serverless SQL or PolyBase. Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 (D) is correct as it builds on Blob Storage with a hierarchical namespace, optimized for analytics workloads and interactive queries using tools like Azure Synapse or Databricks, while minimizing costs through tiered storage and lifecycle management.
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 Table Storage
Why it's wrong here
Suited for structured key-value data.
- ✗
Azure Cosmos DB
Why it's wrong here
Optimized for low-latency NoSQL access, not cost-effective bulk storage.
- ✓
Azure Blob Storage
Why this is correct
Cost-effective for large volumes of semi-structured data.
- ✓
Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2
Why this is correct
Optimized for analytics and interactive queries.
- ✗
Azure SQL Database
Why it's wrong here
Relational, not ideal for semi-structured IoT data at scale.
Quick reference
Azure Blob Storage Tier Comparison
| Tier | Storage Cost | Retrieval Cost | Latency | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hot | Highest | Lowest | Immediate | Active data, frequent reads |
| Cool | Lower | Higher | Immediate | Data accessed < once / month |
| Cold | Lower still | Higher | Immediate | Data accessed < once / quarter |
| Archive | Lowest | Highest + rehydration delay | Hours | Long-term compliance retention |
Go deeper
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This DP-203 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 DP-203 exam.