DP-300 Configure and manage automation of tasks Practice Question
You have an Azure SQL Database that must be automatically restarted every night to clear the procedure cache. You plan to use elastic jobs in Azure SQL Database. What should you create first?
⚠ Common exam trap
DP-300 often tests the order of elastic job components, and candidates may incorrectly select the job database or target group as the first step, overlooking the need for the agent.
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
✓
An elastic job agent
To use elastic jobs in Azure SQL Database, you must first create an elastic job agent. The agent is the compute resource that runs the jobs. After creating the agent, you create a job database, target groups, credentials, and jobs. The agent is the foundational component.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
A job database
Why it's wrong here
The job database stores job definitions and history but cannot be created before the credential and target group that jobs reference. It is tempting because it is the central artefact holding job metadata, and it would be the first thing to create once the credential and target group already exist.
- ✓
An elastic job agent
Why this is correct
Elastic jobs require an elastic job agent as the parent Azure resource that stores job definitions, credentials and target databases. Without creating the agent first, you cannot define the nightly T-SQL job that clears the procedure cache, so it satisfies the prerequisite constraint in the stem.
- ✗
A target group
Why it's wrong here
A target group defines which databases jobs run against, but it is created after the job agent and job database exist. It is tempting because target groups are essential for scoping elastic job execution, and creating one would be correct once the underlying agent infrastructure is provisioned.
- ✗
A job credential
Why it's wrong here
A job credential is needed to authenticate to targets, but the elastic job agent itself must exist before any credential can be stored in its job database. It is tempting because credentials are a prerequisite for job steps, and creating one would be correct once the agent and job database are in place.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Managing Environment Configurations and Resource Governance
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.
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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.