DP-300 Configure and manage automation of tasks Practice Question
You are a database administrator for a large e-commerce company that uses Azure SQL Database for its transactional systems. The environment consists of 50 databases across 10 logical servers, each with a mix of General Purpose and Business Critical service tiers. The company has a strict requirement to automatically scale databases based on workload patterns to optimize cost without manual intervention. Specifically, during Black Friday sales, one of the Business Critical databases (DB-Sales) experiences a surge in transactions, and you need to temporarily upgrade it to a higher service objective (S9 instead of S6) for 48 hours. After the sale, it should automatically revert to S6. Additionally, you need to ensure that all databases have automated backups with a 35-day point-in-time restore retention and that backup storage costs are minimized by using geo-redundant storage only for critical databases. You have been asked to design an automation solution using Azure native services. Which approach should you recommend?
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
✓
Use Azure Automation Runbooks scheduled to run before and after Black Friday to change the service objective, and set backup retention policies using Azure Policy.
Azure Automation Runbooks can be scheduled to execute PowerShell scripts that change the service objective of an Azure SQL Database (e.g., Set-AzSqlDatabase with the -RequestedServiceObjectiveName parameter). This allows scheduling a scale-up before Black Friday and a scale-down after 48 hours, meeting the temporary upgrade requirement. Additionally, Azure Policy can enforce backup retention policies (e.g., 35-day PITR) and specify geo-redundant storage only for critical databases, ensuring compliance and cost minimization. Option A is incorrect because Elastic Job agents are for executing T-SQL scripts across many databases, not for scheduling one-off scaling actions, and backup retention via portal is not automated. Option B is incorrect because Azure SQL Database's autoscale feature is only available in the serverless compute tier, not for provisioned service objectives like S6/S9, and it adjusts based on workload automatically, not on a scheduled temporary upgrade basis. Option C is incorrect because SQL Server Agent is not available in Azure SQL Database (it's used in SQL Server on-premises or Azure SQL Managed Instance), and ALTER DATABASE MODIFY SERVICE_OBJECTIVE is not supported in Azure SQL Database; scaling requires Azure PowerShell or REST API.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Use Elastic Job agents to run a script that alters the service objective and configure backup retention using the Azure portal.
Why it's wrong here
Elastic jobs are not designed for scheduling; they run on demand or on a schedule but are better for maintenance scripts.
- ✗
Enable autoscale on the database to automatically adjust service objective based on CPU usage.
Why it's wrong here
Azure SQL Database does not support autoscale.
- ✗
Create a SQL Server Agent job that runs ALTER DATABASE MODIFY (SERVICE_OBJECTIVE = 'S9') and configure backup retention using T-SQL.
Why it's wrong here
SQL Agent cannot change the service objective, and backup retention cannot be set via T-SQL.
- ✓
Use Azure Automation Runbooks scheduled to run before and after Black Friday to change the service objective, and set backup retention policies using Azure Policy.
Why this is correct
Azure Automation Runbooks can be scheduled to change service objectives, and Azure Policy can enforce backup retention.
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 |
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Overview of Azure Data Platform Options
Key term
Azure SQL Managed Instance
Azure SQL Managed Instance is a fully managed cloud database service that gives you nearly all the features of Microsoft SQL Server on your own server, without you having to manage the hardware or operating system.
Key term
Azure SQL Performance Tuning
Azure SQL Performance Tuning is the process of optimizing the speed and efficiency of queries and database operations in Microsoft Azure SQL Database or SQL Managed Instance to reduce latency and improve throughput.
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every DP-300 question from scratch — 906 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This DP-300 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-300 exam.