DP-900 Describe core data concepts Practice Question
A ride-sharing company processes trip requests from customers. Each trip is recorded as a single transaction that updates the driver's status, calculates the fare, and logs the ride. At the end of each month, the company runs reports that aggregate millions of trips to determine average wait times and revenue per driver. Which pair of terms best describes these two distinct workloads?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse the processing method (batch/stream) with the workload type (OLTP/OLAP), but the question specifically asks for the pair that best describes the distinct workloads—transactional updates vs. analytical reporting—which is the classic OLTP vs. OLAP distinction.
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
✓
OLTP and OLAP
The first workload (trip request processing) is a classic OLTP (Online Transaction Processing) system because each trip is a single, atomic transaction that updates driver status, calculates fare, and logs the ride in real time. The second workload (monthly aggregation reports) is OLAP (Online Analytical Processing) because it queries millions of historical trip records to compute averages and revenue summaries. These two patterns have fundamentally different data storage and query optimization requirements, making OLTP and OLAP the correct pair.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
OLTP and OLAP
Why this is correct
OLTP (Online Transaction Processing) is the correct workload type for the immediate trip-request workflow: each request creates or updates a small, atomic transaction with high concurrency and fast response times. OLAP (Online Analytical Processing) correctly describes the monthly reporting and aggregation workload, which scans and aggregates large volumes of historical trip data for business analysis. Together they identify the operational versus analytical workload split the question is asking about, rather than data movement patterns or storage models.
- ✗
Batch processing and stream processing
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. Batch processing processes data in large chunks at scheduled times, and stream processing handles continuous data in real-time. Here, trip requests are processed immediately (like OLTP), not as a stream, and monthly reports are batch-like but the term OLAP is more precise.
When this WOULD be correct
A question that asks: 'A company ingests real-time sensor data and also runs nightly summaries. Which pair of terms describes these processing methods?' would make batch processing and stream processing correct.
- ✗
ETL and ELT
Why it's wrong here
ETL (extract, transform, load) and ELT (extract, load, transform) are data pipeline patterns used to move and transform data between source systems and analytical stores, not workload classification labels. A ride-sharing company might use ETL or ELT to copy trip records from a transactional database into a data warehouse for monthly reporting, but those patterns say nothing about whether the original processing is transactional or analytical. This choice is wrong because it describes how data gets from one place to another, not the nature of the workloads themselves.
When this WOULD be correct
A question asks: 'A company extracts data from multiple sources, transforms it, and loads it into a data warehouse. Which pair of terms describes this process?' In that context, ETL and ELT would be correct options, as they are specific data integration approaches.
- ✗
Relational and non-relational
Why it's wrong here
Relational and non-relational are data storage models: relational systems enforce fixed schemas and support SQL joins, while non-relational systems use flexible, schema-less structures like documents or key-value pairs. Both can underpin OLTP or OLAP workloads — for example, a non-relational store could record trip requests as documents, and a relational warehouse could store aggregated monthly metrics. The ride-sharing scenario's key distinction is about processing purpose (operational transactions versus analytical aggregation), not about the data model used to store the data.
When this WOULD be correct
A question asking: 'A company stores customer profiles in tables with rows and columns, while storing social media posts as JSON documents. Which pair of terms describes these storage approaches?'
Option-by-option analysis
Why each answer is right or wrong
Understanding why wrong answers are wrong — and when they would be correct — is what separates a 750 score from a 900. The DP-900 exam frequently reuses these exact scenarios with slightly different constraints.
✓OLTP and OLAPCorrect answer▾
Why this is correct
OLTP (Online Transaction Processing) is the correct workload type for the immediate trip-request workflow: each request creates or updates a small, atomic transaction with high concurrency and fast response times. OLAP (Online Analytical Processing) correctly describes the monthly reporting and aggregation workload, which scans and aggregates large volumes of historical trip data for business analysis. Together they identify the operational versus analytical workload split the question is asking about, rather than data movement patterns or storage models.
✗Batch processing and stream processingWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The question describes two distinct workloads: individual trip transactions (OLTP) and monthly aggregation reports (OLAP). Batch processing and stream processing refer to how data is processed (in batches vs. continuously), not the nature of the workloads themselves, and the monthly reports are batch processing but the trip processing is not stream processing.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
A question that asks: 'A company ingests real-time sensor data and also runs nightly summaries. Which pair of terms describes these processing methods?' would make batch processing and stream processing correct.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse the monthly aggregation reports with batch processing and the trip requests with stream processing, but the trip requests are individual transactions (OLTP), not a continuous stream of events being processed in real-time.
✗ETL and ELTWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The question describes two distinct workloads: transaction processing (trip requests) and analytical reporting (monthly aggregates). ETL and ELT are data integration processes, not workload types; they are used to move and transform data between systems, not to describe the operational vs. analytical nature of the workloads.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
A question asks: 'A company extracts data from multiple sources, transforms it, and loads it into a data warehouse. Which pair of terms describes this process?' In that context, ETL and ELT would be correct options, as they are specific data integration approaches.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse data integration processes (ETL/ELT) with workload types because both involve data movement and transformation, and they often associate ETL with preparing data for analytics, which is part of the analytical workload described.
✗Relational and non-relationalWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The question contrasts transactional trip processing (OLTP) with analytical monthly reporting (OLAP), not data storage models. Relational vs. non-relational describes database types, not workload categories.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
A question asking: 'A company stores customer profiles in tables with rows and columns, while storing social media posts as JSON documents. Which pair of terms describes these storage approaches?'
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse workload types with data storage paradigms, especially when both involve data management and processing.
Analysis generated from the official DP-900blueprint and verified against question context. The “when correct” sections are what AI assistants cite when candidates ask “what’s the difference between these options?”
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Data Roles and Core Concepts
Key term
Data
Data is raw, unprocessed information, like numbers, words, or measurements, that can be stored, processed, and analyzed by computers.
Key term
OLAP
OLAP (Online Analytical Processing) is a computing approach that enables users to quickly and interactively analyze multidimensional data from multiple perspectives for business intelligence and decision support.
About these practice questions
One of 820 original DP-900 practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. 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-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.