DP-203 Design and implement data storage Practice Question
You are responsible for securing an Azure Synapse Analytics workspace. The workspace contains dedicated SQL pools and serverless SQL pools. You need to ensure that only users with specific Microsoft Entra ID roles can query serverless SQL pools, while dedicated SQL pools use SQL authentication. What should you do?
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to assume SQL logins can be created for serverless SQL pools (Option A) or that managed identities can be used to control user access (Option C), when in fact serverless pools only support Microsoft Entra ID authentication and managed identities are for service principals, not user permissions.
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
✓
Configure serverless SQL pools to use Microsoft Entra ID authentication only, and dedicated SQL pools to allow SQL authentication.
Serverless SQL pools in Azure Synapse Analytics natively support Microsoft Entra ID authentication, allowing you to restrict access to specific Entra ID roles by disabling SQL authentication for those pools. Dedicated SQL pools can independently be configured to allow SQL authentication, enabling coexistence of both authentication methods as required. This separation ensures that only users with the designated Entra ID roles can query serverless SQL pools, while dedicated SQL pools remain accessible via SQL logins.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Create SQL logins for serverless SQL pools and assign permissions to Microsoft Entra ID groups.
Why it's wrong here
Serverless SQL pools do not support SQL logins.
- ✓
Configure serverless SQL pools to use Microsoft Entra ID authentication only, and dedicated SQL pools to allow SQL authentication.
Why this is correct
Serverless SQL pools support only Entra ID; dedicated SQL pools can use both.
- ✗
Use a managed identity for serverless SQL pools and assign it to Microsoft Entra ID roles.
Why it's wrong here
Managed identities are for services, not for user authentication.
- ✗
Disable SQL authentication for all pools and enforce Microsoft Entra ID authentication only.
Why it's wrong here
Dedicated SQL pools may need SQL authentication for legacy applications.
Quick reference
Cloud Service Model Comparison
| Model | You Manage | Provider Manages | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| IaaS | OS, runtime, apps, data | Hardware, hypervisor, networking | EC2, Azure VMs, GCP Compute Engine |
| PaaS | Apps and data | OS, runtime, middleware, hardware | Elastic Beanstalk, Azure App Service |
| SaaS | Data and settings only | Everything else | Microsoft 365, Salesforce, Workday |
| FaaS / Serverless | Function code only | Infra, scaling, runtime | Lambda, Azure Functions, Cloud Run |
| CaaS | Containers and apps | Kubernetes, OS, hardware | EKS, AKS, GKE |
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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.