This MS-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe cloud concepts. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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.
Which two statements correctly describe SaaS in a cloud computing model? (Choose 2.)
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Users access a complete application provided by the cloud service provider.
Option A is correct because in the SaaS model, users access a complete application—such as Microsoft 365—that is hosted and managed entirely by the cloud service provider. The provider handles all aspects of the application, including availability, performance, and security, while the user simply consumes the software via a web browser or client. This aligns with the NIST definition of SaaS, where the consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure or even individual application capabilities.
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.
✓
Users access a complete application provided by the cloud service provider.
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse SaaS with PaaS or IaaS, mistakenly thinking customers are responsible for OS patching (Option C) or deploying their own runtime (Option D), when in fact SaaS abstracts all underlying layers away from the consumer.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, SaaS applications run on multi-tenant architectures where a single instance of the software serves multiple customers, with data isolation enforced at the application layer. For example, Microsoft 365 uses Azure Active Directory for tenant separation and relies on the provider to apply OS patches via automated update rings, ensuring zero customer involvement in infrastructure management. This model is defined in NIST SP 800-145, which explicitly states that the consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure, network, servers, operating systems, storage, or even individual application capabilities.
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 company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
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: Users access a complete application provided by the cloud service provider. — Option A is correct because in the SaaS model, users access a complete application—such as Microsoft 365—that is hosted and managed entirely by the cloud service provider. The provider handles all aspects of the application, including availability, performance, and security, while the user simply consumes the software via a web browser or client. This aligns with the NIST definition of SaaS, where the consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure or even individual application capabilities.
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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