This MS-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe cloud concepts. 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 company runs a critical application on-premises but wants to extend capacity to the cloud during peak demand without purchasing additional hardware. Which cloud deployment model best describes this strategy?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Public cloud
Why wrong: Public cloud would mean moving entirely to the cloud, not extending on-premises.
Private cloud
Why wrong: Private cloud is solely on-premises, not using public cloud for burst.
Hybrid cloud
Hybrid cloud connects on-premises with public cloud, enabling cloud bursting during peak loads.
Multi-cloud
Why wrong: Multi-cloud uses multiple public cloud providers, not necessarily connecting to on-premises.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Hybrid cloud
A hybrid cloud model combines on-premises infrastructure (private cloud) with public cloud resources, enabling a company to 'burst' into the public cloud during peak demand without purchasing additional hardware. This strategy, often called cloud bursting, allows the critical application to run locally under normal conditions and seamlessly extend capacity to a public cloud provider like Azure during spikes.
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.
Public cloud
Why it's wrong here
Public cloud would mean moving entirely to the cloud, not extending on-premises.
Private cloud
Why it's wrong here
Private cloud is solely on-premises, not using public cloud for burst.
Hybrid cloud
Why this is correct
Hybrid cloud connects on-premises with public cloud, enabling cloud bursting during peak loads.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Multi-cloud
Why it's wrong here
Multi-cloud uses multiple public cloud providers, not necessarily connecting to on-premises.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates confuse 'hybrid cloud' with 'multi-cloud,' but hybrid cloud specifically involves a mix of on-premises and public cloud, while multi-cloud involves multiple public clouds without any on-premises component.
Detailed technical explanation
Cloud bursting relies on orchestration tools like Azure Arc or AWS Outposts to dynamically scale workloads from on-premises to the public cloud. Under the hood, this requires consistent networking (e.g., VPN or ExpressRoute) and identity federation (e.g., Azure AD Connect) to ensure seamless failover and data synchronization. A real-world scenario is a retail company using on-premises SAP for daily operations but bursting to Azure VMs during Black Friday sales, avoiding capital expenditure on servers used only a few days a year.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A cloud solutions architect for a retail company is evaluating services for a new workload. The correct answer here reflects best practice for the specific scenario described — not a general cloud recommendation. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Cloud exam questions reward reading the constraint carefully: the same technology can be right or wrong depending on the use case.
What to study next
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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FAQ
Describe cloud concepts — This question tests Describe cloud concepts — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Hybrid cloud — A hybrid cloud model combines on-premises infrastructure (private cloud) with public cloud resources, enabling a company to 'burst' into the public cloud during peak demand without purchasing additional hardware. This strategy, often called cloud bursting, allows the critical application to run locally under normal conditions and seamlessly extend capacity to a public cloud provider like Azure during spikes.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This MS-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 MS-900 exam.
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