This MS-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe cloud concepts. 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 company uses a cloud service where they can provision virtual machines, install any operating system, and manage all software on those machines. The cloud provider is responsible for the physical hardware, data center security, and network infrastructure. Which cloud service model does this represent?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service)
This scenario describes Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) because the customer has full control over virtual machines, including the operating system and all installed software, while the cloud provider manages the underlying physical hardware, data center security, and network infrastructure. In IaaS, the provider offers virtualized computing resources over the internet, and the customer is responsible for everything above the hypervisor layer, such as OS patches, application configuration, and middleware.
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.
✓
IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service)
Why this is correct
IaaS gives the customer flexibility to manage OS and software while the provider handles hardware and networking.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
PaaS (Platform as a Service)
Why it's wrong here
PaaS manages the runtime and OS; the customer only manages applications and data.
✗
SaaS (Software as a Service)
Why it's wrong here
SaaS provides ready-to-use applications; the customer does not manage the underlying infrastructure or OS.
✗
FaaS (Function as a Service)
Why it's wrong here
FaaS is a serverless model where the provider runs code in response to events; the customer does not manage servers.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse IaaS with PaaS because both involve virtual machines, but the key differentiator is whether the customer manages the operating system and software stack (IaaS) or the provider manages them (PaaS).
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, IaaS relies on a hypervisor (e.g., VMware ESXi, Microsoft Hyper-V, or KVM) to abstract physical hardware into virtual machines, each with its own virtual CPU, memory, storage, and network interfaces. The customer manages the guest OS via remote access (e.g., SSH or RDP) and is responsible for OS-level security patches, firewall rules within the VM, and application dependencies, while the provider handles physical server maintenance, redundant power, and network switches. A real-world example is provisioning a Windows Server 2022 VM on Azure to run a legacy on-premises application that requires full OS control, which would not be possible in PaaS or SaaS.
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
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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this MS-900 question in full detail.
Describe cloud concepts — This question tests Describe cloud concepts — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service) — This scenario describes Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) because the customer has full control over virtual machines, including the operating system and all installed software, while the cloud provider manages the underlying physical hardware, data center security, and network infrastructure. In IaaS, the provider offers virtualized computing resources over the internet, and the customer is responsible for everything above the hypervisor layer, such as OS patches, application configuration, and middleware.
What should I do if I get this MS-900 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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