Quick Answer
The answer is Azure SQL Database with Active Geo-Replication because it directly meets the compliance, encryption, and failover requirements for regulated financial transaction data. This solution provides Transparent Data Encryption (TDE) for encryption at rest, SSL/TLS for encryption in transit, and automatic, asynchronous replication to a secondary region for disaster recovery and business continuity. On the Microsoft Azure Data Fundamentals DP-900 exam, this scenario tests your ability to match specific compliance needs—like encryption and geo-failover—to the correct PaaS database service, with a common trap being to confuse Azure SQL Database’s built-in geo-replication with the manual configuration required for SQL Server on Azure VMs. A helpful memory tip is to think of “Active Geo-Replication” as the compliance-ready, hands-off failover solution: it actively keeps a readable secondary copy in another region, so you stay compliant even if the primary region goes down.
This DP-900 practice question tests your understanding of identify considerations for relational data on azure. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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 financial services company needs to store transaction data in a relational database that must comply with strict regulatory requirements. The data must be encrypted at rest and in transit, and the database must support automatic failover to a secondary region. Which Azure solution meets these requirements?
Azure Database for MySQL
Why wrong: MySQL supports encryption but not automatic geo-failover.
Azure Cosmos DB
Why wrong: Cosmos DB is NoSQL and does not enforce relational constraints.
Azure SQL Database with Active Geo-Replication
Provides TDE, SSL, and automatic geo-failover.
SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines
Why wrong: Requires manual setup for encryption and failover.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Azure SQL Database with Active Geo-Replication
Option D is correct because Azure SQL Database with Active Geo-Replication provides encryption at rest (TDE), encryption in transit (SSL), and automatic failover to a secondary region. Option A (Azure Cosmos DB) is NoSQL. Option B (Azure Database for MySQL) supports encryption but not automatic geo-failover by default. Option C (SQL Server on Azure VM) requires manual configuration for all these features.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
Azure Database for MySQL
Why it's wrong here
MySQL supports encryption but not automatic geo-failover.
Azure Cosmos DB
Why it's wrong here
Cosmos DB is NoSQL and does not enforce relational constraints.
Azure SQL Database with Active Geo-Replication
Why this is correct
Provides TDE, SSL, and automatic geo-failover.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines
Why it's wrong here
Requires manual setup for encryption and failover.
Common exam traps
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
What to study next
Identify which DP-900 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
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FAQ
Identify considerations for relational data on Azure — This question tests Identify considerations for relational data on Azure — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Azure SQL Database with Active Geo-Replication — Option D is correct because Azure SQL Database with Active Geo-Replication provides encryption at rest (TDE), encryption in transit (SSL), and automatic failover to a secondary region. Option A (Azure Cosmos DB) is NoSQL. Option B (Azure Database for MySQL) supports encryption but not automatic geo-failover by default. Option C (SQL Server on Azure VM) requires manual configuration for all these features.
Identify which DP-900 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 20, 2026
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.
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