The answer is the Cool access tier. This is the correct choice because it is specifically designed for data that is infrequently accessed but requires immediate availability when needed, offering lower storage costs than the Hot tier while maintaining low-latency retrieval. For the medical imaging company, moving MRI scans older than six months to Cool tier perfectly balances cost savings with the requirement for instant access during comparisons. On the Microsoft Azure Data Fundamentals DP-900 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how access patterns dictate tier selection, with a common trap being the Archive tier—which has the lowest storage cost but introduces a multi-hour retrieval delay, failing the “immediate access” requirement. Remember the memory tip: “Cool for the occasional, Hot for the constant, Archive for the forgotten.”
DP-900 Practice Question: Describe considerations for working with non-relational data on Azure
This DP-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe considerations for working with non-relational data on azure. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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.
A medical imaging company stores high-resolution MRI scans in Azure Blob Storage. The scans are accessed frequently for the first 6 months after being generated, then rarely after that, but must be available immediately when accessed for comparisons. The company wants to minimize storage costs. Which Azure Blob Storage access tier should they use for scans older than 6 months?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "first"
Why it matters: Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
Clue: "minimum / minimize"
Why it matters: Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.
Clue: "immediately / without restart"
Why it matters: Time or reboot constraint — the correct answer must take effect right away without requiring a reboot or reload.
Why wrong: Hot tier is designed for frequent access and has higher storage costs. Since the older scans are rarely accessed, this would not minimize costs.
B
Cool access tier
Cool tier is optimized for infrequently accessed data that still needs immediate availability. It offers lower storage costs than Hot tier while still allowing instant access.
C
Archive access tier
Why wrong: Archive tier has the lowest storage cost but requires manual rehydration to retrieve data, taking up to 15 hours. This does not meet the requirement for immediate availability.
D
Premium access tier
Why wrong: Premium tier provides low-latency access and high throughput but is significantly more expensive. It is not suitable for rarely accessed data.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Cool access tier
The Cool access tier is ideal for data that is infrequently accessed but must be available immediately when needed. It offers lower storage costs than the Hot tier while maintaining low-latency retrieval, matching the requirement for scans older than 6 months that are rarely accessed but require instant availability.
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.
✗
Hot access tier
Why it's wrong here
Hot tier is designed for frequent access and has higher storage costs. Since the older scans are rarely accessed, this would not minimize costs.
✓
Cool access tier
Why this is correct
Cool tier is optimized for infrequently accessed data that still needs immediate availability. It offers lower storage costs than Hot tier while still allowing instant access.
Clue confirmation
The clue words "first", "minimum / minimize", "immediately / without restart" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Archive access tier
Why it's wrong here
Archive tier has the lowest storage cost but requires manual rehydration to retrieve data, taking up to 15 hours. This does not meet the requirement for immediate availability.
✗
Premium access tier
Why it's wrong here
Premium tier provides low-latency access and high throughput but is significantly more expensive. It is not suitable for rarely accessed data.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse 'rarely accessed' with 'Archive tier,' forgetting that Archive requires hours of rehydration time, which fails the 'available immediately' constraint in the question.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Azure Blob Storage access tiers (Hot, Cool, Cold, Archive) use different pricing models: Cool tier has lower per-GB storage costs but higher per-GB read costs compared to Hot. The Cool tier also has a 30-day minimum storage duration penalty for early deletion, which is irrelevant here since data is older than 6 months. Under the hood, Cool tier data is stored on lower-cost hardware with slightly higher latency (still milliseconds) but no rehydration delay, unlike Archive which uses offline storage.
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 startup's cloud architect reviews their monthly bill and notices costs are higher than expected for a long-running batch job. Switching from on-demand instances to Reserved Instances — or using Spot/Preemptible VMs — can reduce compute costs by up to 72 %. Questions like this test whether you understand the tradeoffs between commitment, flexibility, and cost across cloud pricing models.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this DP-900 question in full detail.
Describe considerations for working with non-relational data on Azure — This question tests Describe considerations for working with non-relational data on Azure — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Cool access tier — The Cool access tier is ideal for data that is infrequently accessed but must be available immediately when needed. It offers lower storage costs than the Hot tier while maintaining low-latency retrieval, matching the requirement for scans older than 6 months that are rarely accessed but require instant availability.
What should I do if I get this DP-900 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "first", "minimum / minimize", "immediately / without restart". Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
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.
Question Discussion
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.