Describe considerations for working with non-relational data on Azure →easyMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
DP-900 Practice Question: Describe considerations for working with non-relational data on Azure
A company stores IoT sensor data as JSON files in Azure Blob Storage. A data analyst needs to run ad-hoc SQL queries on these files without moving the data and without provisioning any compute clusters. The analyst wants to pay only for the amount of data processed by each query. Which Azure service should they use?
⚠ Common exam trap
Watch out — candidates often confuse Azure Synapse Serverless SQL pool with Azure SQL Database, assuming any SQL-capable service can query files in Blob Storage, but only the serverless pool provides pay-per-query billing and direct file access without provisioning compute.
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 Synapse Serverless SQL pool
Azure Synapse Serverless SQL pool allows you to query data directly from Azure Blob Storage using T-SQL without provisioning any compute clusters. It uses a pay-per-query model where you are billed only for the amount of data processed, making it ideal for ad-hoc SQL queries on JSON files stored in Blob Storage without data movement.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Azure SQL Database
Why it's wrong here
Azure SQL Database is a fully managed relational database service that stores data in its own transaction log and data pages; it cannot treat JSON files in Blob Storage as an external table for direct ad-hoc queries. To analyze those JSON files, you would first have to import or bulk-load them into a relational table, which is an ETL step, not a serverless query. Even though Azure SQL Database supports OPENJSON, that function only parses JSON stored inside the database, not JSON sitting in Blob Storage.
- ✓
Azure Synapse Serverless SQL pool
Why this is correct
Correct. Azure Synapse Serverless SQL pool is a query engine that reads data directly from Azure Blob Storage or Azure Data Lake Storage using the OPENROWSET function. You can issue standard T-SQL with OPENROWSET to read the JSON files and parse them with OPENJSON, all without provisioning any dedicated infrastructure. Billing is per amount of data scanned, making it ideal for occasional or interactive analysis over IoT sensor data in Blob.
- ✗
Azure Cosmos DB
Why it's wrong here
Azure Cosmos DB is a multi-model NoSQL database with its own storage engine and indexing; it only queries documents that have been inserted into its containers. It cannot directly connect to JSON files in Blob Storage and treat them as queryable sources. You would need to copy or ingest the IoT data into Cosmos DB first, which is a data movement operation—not an ad-hoc query against the original blob files.
- ✗
Azure Data Factory
Why it's wrong here
Azure Data Factory is an ETL/ELT orchestration and data-movement service, not an interactive SQL query engine. It can copy JSON files from Blob Storage to another destination, or process them through mapping data flows, but it does not provide a way to run ad-hoc T-SQL queries directly against the Blob storage content. For querying JSON files in place without moving the data, Synapse Serverless SQL pool is the appropriate tool.
Quick reference
Azure Blob Storage Tier Comparison
| Tier | Storage Cost | Retrieval Cost | Latency | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hot | Highest | Lowest | Immediate | Active data, frequent reads |
| Cool | Lower | Higher | Immediate | Data accessed < once / month |
| Cold | Lower still | Higher | Immediate | Data accessed < once / quarter |
| Archive | Lowest | Highest + rehydration delay | Hours | Long-term compliance retention |
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Data Roles and Core Concepts
Key term
Serverless SQL pool
Serverless SQL pool is an on-demand, pay-per-query analytics service in Azure that lets you query data stored in data lakes without provisioning or managing any dedicated infrastructure.
Key term
Service
A service is a software component or system that performs a specific function and is available to be used by other programs or users over a network.
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