DP-300 Plan and implement data platform resources Practice Question
You have an Azure SQL Database that is used by a development team. The team works only during business hours and the database can be unavailable outside those hours. You need to minimize compute cost while allowing the database to automatically pause when it is idle and resume when a connection is made. What should you configure?
⚠ Common exam trap
Watch out — candidates often confuse the Hyperscale service tier with the Serverless compute tier, assuming that a modern scalable tier automatically pauses, when only Serverless supports auto-pause.
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
✓
Set the database to the General Purpose service tier with the Serverless compute tier and configure the auto-pause delay.
The Serverless compute tier is the only Azure SQL Database option that automatically pauses compute after an idle period and resumes on the next connection. Configuring it on the General Purpose service tier lets the development team pay only for the compute used during business hours. The auto-pause delay controls how long the database waits before suspending, directly reducing cost for an intermittently used 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.
- ✗
Set the database to the Hyperscale service tier with one read-scale replica.
Why it's wrong here
Hyperscale is intended for very large databases and provides fast scale-out and rapid backup, but it does not support the Serverless compute tier and therefore cannot auto-pause when idle. Adding a read-scale replica increases cost. This option is more expensive and does not satisfy the requirement to suspend compute during non-business hours.
- ✓
Set the database to the General Purpose service tier with the Serverless compute tier and configure the auto-pause delay.
Why this is correct
The Serverless compute tier automatically pauses the database after a configured idle period and resumes it when a new connection arrives. This directly matches the requirement to minimize cost for a database that is used only during business hours. General Purpose with Serverless also allows a minimum and maximum vCore range so that compute scales with demand while idle time is not billed.
- ✗
Set the database to the General Purpose service tier with the Provisioned compute tier.
Why it's wrong here
Provisioned compute keeps vCores allocated and billed continuously, whether or not the database is being used. It does not automatically pause when idle, so the development team would pay for compute outside business hours. This option reduces cost compared with higher tiers but does not meet the requirement to pause automatically and resume on connection.
- ✗
Set the database to the Business Critical service tier with zone redundancy enabled.
Why it's wrong here
Business Critical provides the highest availability and lowest storage latency by using local SSD replicas, and zone redundancy adds further resilience. Neither feature allows the database to pause when idle, and both increase cost substantially. This option is the opposite of the cost-minimization goal for a development database that can be offline outside business hours.
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 and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Microsoft exam blueprint
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.