DP-900 Practice Question: Describe considerations for working with non-relational data on Azure
Exhibit
{
"PartitionKey": "user123",
"RowKey": "settings",
"theme": "dark",
"language": "en"
}Refer to the exhibit. You are designing an Azure Table storage schema for user settings. The JSON shows a sample entity. Which query will retrieve all settings for user123 efficiently?
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
✓
Filter by PartitionKey eq 'user123' and RowKey eq 'settings'
In Azure Table storage the PartitionKey groups all entities belonging to the same logical partition, and specifying both PartitionKey eq 'user123' and RowKey eq 'settings' performs a precise point query that targets a single entity with the lowest latency and lowest RU cost. Since the scenario asks for all settings for user123, using PartitionKey 'user123' with the specific RowKey 'settings' retrieves exactly that entity efficiently. Option A is inefficient because filtering only on RowKey forces a full table scan across all partitions. Option C would return all entities for user123 across different RowKeys, which may be broader than needed and less efficient than a point query. Option D uses an OR condition on PartitionKey and RowKey, which prevents an efficient index seek and results in a full table scan.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Filter by RowKey eq 'settings'
Why it's wrong here
This requires a full table scan.
- ✓
Filter by PartitionKey eq 'user123' and RowKey eq 'settings'
Why this is correct
This is a point query, the most efficient.
- ✗
Filter by PartitionKey eq 'user123'
Why it's wrong here
This returns all entities in the partition, not just the settings row.
- ✗
Filter by PartitionKey eq 'user123' or RowKey eq 'settings'
Why it's wrong here
OR conditions are inefficient and may scan multiple partitions.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 Hierarchical Namespace
Key term
Schema
A schema is a blueprint or logical structure that defines how data is organized, stored, and accessed in a database or information system.
Key term
Index
An index is a data structure that speeds up data retrieval operations on a database table or file, much like a book index helps you find topics quickly.
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