Describe considerations for working with non-relational data on Azure →mediumMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
DP-900 Practice Question: Describe considerations for working with non-relational data on Azure
A media company stores video files in Azure Blob Storage. They want to use Azure Content Delivery Network (CDN) to serve these videos globally. However, they need to restrict access to only authorized users. What should you implement?
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
✓
Implement shared access signatures (SAS) and token-based authentication on the CDN.
To restrict access to authorized users when serving video files from Azure Blob Storage via Azure CDN, you should implement token-based authentication using shared access signatures (SAS). SAS tokens grant time-limited, specific permissions to clients, and Azure CDN can be configured to require these tokens before delivering content. This ensures only authorized users can access the videos. Option A is incorrect because making the blob container public would allow unrestricted access to anyone. Option B is incorrect because Azure Active Directory authentication is not directly supported by Azure CDN for blob access; token-based authentication with SAS is the standard approach. Option D is incorrect because a storage account firewall restricting to CDN IP addresses only limits the network source, not individual user authorization; any request coming from the CDN IP would still be served without user-level authentication.
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 blob container to public access.
Why it's wrong here
Setting the blob container to public access removes all read-access controls at the storage layer. This grants any anonymous user who has the blob URL the ability to download the video, which directly conflicts with the requirement to restrict access to authorized users. Azure CDN can serve public containers, but that does not provide any per-user authentication or authorization, so this option is unsuitable for private content.
- ✗
Use Azure Active Directory (Microsoft Entra ID) authentication for the CDN endpoint.
Why it's wrong here
Azure CDN endpoints do not natively validate Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory) tokens for end-user requests. While Microsoft Entra ID can secure blob storage through RBAC, this authentication method is not integrated at the CDN edge, and the CDN cannot pass OAuth tokens to the storage origin for verification. Applying Azure AD authentication would require building a custom proxy or token-exchange layer, which is not a built-in CDN capability; therefore, it is not a direct solution for restricting video access.
- ✓
Implement shared access signatures (SAS) and token-based authentication on the CDN.
Why this is correct
Implementing shared access signatures (SAS) on the underlying blobs and using token-based authentication on the CDN is the correct method to restrict access to authorized users. A SAS token can be generated with granular permissions, such as read-only and with a specific expiration time, and appended to the video URL or used as a key for CDN token authentication. This ensures that only users with a valid, unexpired token can fetch the content from the origin, while the CDN caches and delivers it efficiently; invalid or expired tokens result in access denial.
- ✗
Use a firewall on the storage account to allow only CDN IP addresses.
Why it's wrong here
Configuring a storage account firewall to allow only CDN IP addresses restricts network-level access, but it does not identify or authorize individual end users. Because the CDN acts as an intermediary for all users, the origin storage cannot distinguish a legitimate viewer from an unauthorized one when requests originate from the same CDN IP range. Additionally, maintaining a current list of CDN egress IPs is impractical for globally distributed deployments, making this approach both insufficient and operationally fragile.
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 |
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This DP-900 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-900 exam.