DP-300 Implement a secure environment Practice Question
This DP-300 practice question tests your understanding of implement a secure environment. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
Your company wants to implement transparent data encryption (TDE) for an Azure SQL Database using a customer-managed key stored in Azure Key Vault. Which TWO prerequisites must be met? (Choose two.)
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The Azure SQL Server must have a system-assigned managed identity.
Option A is correct because Azure SQL Database uses the server's system-assigned managed identity to authenticate to Azure Key Vault when accessing the customer-managed key for TDE. Without this identity, the SQL Server cannot prove its identity to Key Vault to retrieve the key. Option B is correct because the Key Vault must have an access policy that grants the SQL Server's managed identity the 'get', 'wrapKey', and 'unwrapKey' permissions, which are required for TDE operations.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✓
The Azure SQL Server must have a system-assigned managed identity.
Why this is correct
Managed identity is used to authenticate to Key Vault.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✓
The Key Vault must have an access policy granting necessary permissions to the SQL Server identity.
Why this is correct
Permissions required: Get, Wrap Key, Unwrap Key.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
The database must contain a column master key.
Why it's wrong here
Column master key is for Always Encrypted, not TDE.
✗
The Key Vault must be in a different region than the SQL Server.
Why it's wrong here
Key Vault should be in the same region for best performance.
✗
The database must be taken offline during key configuration.
Why it's wrong here
TDE can be configured online.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse TDE prerequisites with Always Encrypted prerequisites, mistakenly thinking a column master key (Option C) is needed, or they assume the database must be offline (Option E) for key configuration, which is not the case for TDE.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, TDE with customer-managed keys uses the SQL Server's system-assigned managed identity to authenticate via Azure AD to Key Vault, where the key encryption key (KEK) is stored. The DEK is encrypted by the KEK, and the managed identity must have 'get', 'wrapKey', and 'unwrapKey' permissions in the Key Vault access policy. In a real-world scenario, if the managed identity is accidentally disabled or the access policy is removed, TDE will fail and the database may become inaccessible until the permissions are restored.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this DP-300 question in full detail.
Implement a secure environment — This question tests Implement a secure environment — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The Azure SQL Server must have a system-assigned managed identity. — Option A is correct because Azure SQL Database uses the server's system-assigned managed identity to authenticate to Azure Key Vault when accessing the customer-managed key for TDE. Without this identity, the SQL Server cannot prove its identity to Key Vault to retrieve the key. Option B is correct because the Key Vault must have an access policy that grants the SQL Server's managed identity the 'get', 'wrapKey', and 'unwrapKey' permissions, which are required for TDE operations.
What should I do if I get this DP-300 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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