DP-300 Azure SQL Database Long-Term Retention (LTR) Practice Question
You are tasked with automating the backups of multiple Azure SQL Databases to ensure long-term retention. Which ONE Azure service can be used to achieve automated backups with retention beyond the default 7-35 days?
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 SQL Database long-term retention (LTR) backup policy
Only Azure SQL Database long-term retention (LTR) backup policy provides automated long-term backup retention for Azure SQL Database (PaaS), allowing retention beyond the default 7-35 days up to 10 years. Option C (Azure Backup for SQL Server in Azure VMs) is for SQL Server on Azure VMs (IaaS), not for Azure SQL Database, so it does not apply. The other options (A, B, D) do not provide automated backup with long-term retention for Azure SQL Database.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
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Azure Site Recovery
Why it's wrong here
Azure Site Recovery replicates virtual machines for disaster recovery and does not create or retain SQL database backups. It is tempting because it is a data-protection service with retention policies, and it would be the right choice for orchestrating failover and replication of IaaS virtual machines rather than database-level long-term retention.
- ✗
Azure Blob Storage snapshots
Why it's wrong here
Blob snapshots capture storage-account blobs; they cannot initiate or schedule backups of Azure SQL Database, whose backups are managed by the service. They are tempting because snapshots do provide point-in-time copies, but only for blob data, not database engine backups.
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Azure Backup for SQL Server in Azure VMs
Why it's wrong here
Azure Backup for SQL Server in Azure VMs protects IaaS SQL instances, not the platform-managed Azure SQL Database service, so it cannot target those databases at all. It is tempting because it genuinely delivers long-term retention, but only for SQL Server running inside virtual machines.
- ✗
Azure Storage lifecycle management
Why it's wrong here
Lifecycle management only transitions or deletes existing blobs; it neither creates database backups nor extends Azure SQL Database retention. It is tempting because it controls long-term storage cost, which is genuinely useful once backups already exist in a storage account.
- ✓
Azure SQL Database long-term retention (LTR) backup policy
Why this is correct
Azure SQL Database long-term retention (LTR) backup policy extends automated backups to up to 10 years, satisfying the requirement for retention beyond the default 7–35 days. LTR stores full backups in Azure Blob storage as read-only copies, independent of the standard retention window, with no manual intervention needed.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Overview of Azure Data Platform Options
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.
Key term
Azure SQL Database Backup
Azure SQL Database Backup is a fully managed, automated service that creates and stores copies of your SQL database data and transaction logs in Azure storage, enabling point-in-time recovery and long-term retention for data protection and business continuity.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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