DP-300 Plan and implement data platform resources Practice Question
Your organization requires that all Azure SQL Database backups be retained for 10 years to meet compliance requirements. Which backup retention policy should you configure?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse point-in-time restore (PITR) retention with long-term retention (LTR), assuming PITR can be extended to years, but Azure SQL Database caps PITR at 35 days, making LTR the only option for multi-year compliance.
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
✓
Configure long-term retention (LTR) policy.
Long-term retention (LTR) in Azure SQL Database allows you to retain full database backups for up to 10 years, which meets the compliance requirement for 10-year backup retention. LTR policies are configured separately from point-in-time restore (PITR) and store backups in isolated containers for extended periods, ensuring regulatory compliance.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Configure point-in-time restore (PITR) retention to 10 years.
Why it's wrong here
Point-in-time restore retention caps at 35 days for Azure SQL Database and cannot be extended to 10 years. Long-term retention (LTR) policies are the mechanism for multi-year compliance retention. PITR is tempting because it sounds like the general backup retention setting, but it governs short-term restore windows only.
- ✗
Enable automatic tuning to optimize backups.
Why it's wrong here
Automatic tuning adjusts indexes, plan regression and parameter sniffing; it does not control backup retention at all. It is tempting because it is a database-level automated feature, but it cannot satisfy a 10-year compliance retention requirement. Long-term retention (LTR) policies are the correct mechanism.
- ✓
Configure long-term retention (LTR) policy.
Why this is correct
Long-term retention stores full backups in read-access geo-redundant blob storage for up to ten years, satisfying the compliance requirement. The default point-in-time and short-term policies cap at 35 days, so only LTR reaches the mandated decade.
- ✗
Enable geo-redundant backup storage (GRS).
Why it's wrong here
Geo-redundant storage replicates backups across paired regions for disaster recovery, but its retention ceiling is the same as locally redundant storage, so it cannot reach ten years. It is tempting because GRS genuinely protects against regional outages, and it would be right if the requirement were durability rather than long-term retention.
Go deeper
Related to this question
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.
About these practice questions
This DP-300 question is part of Courseiva's 574-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam 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.