PL-900 Demonstrate the capabilities of Power Apps Practice Question
Which TWO are benefits of using Dataverse as the data source for Power Apps?
⚠ Common exam trap
PL-900 often tests whether candidates overestimate Dataverse's capabilities — many assume it supports SQL queries or graph data because it is built on Azure SQL, but it actually uses FetchXML/OData and is purely relational.
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
✓
Rich relationships between tables
Option D is correct because Dataverse natively models one-to-many, many-to-one, and many-to-many relationships between tables, which Power Apps can traverse through lookups and related-record navigation without custom code. Option E is correct because Dataverse provides a built-in security model with business units, security roles, teams, and column-level (field-level) security, so Power Apps inherits row- and field-level access control automatically. Options A, B, and C are not Dataverse benefits: Dataverse is a relational (not graph) store, it does not automatically export data to Excel (users can export manually or via integrations), and it does not expose a SQL query engine for app makers — SQL-style access is only available through T-SQL endpoints for analytics, not as a general Power Apps query capability.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Built-in support for graph data
Why it's wrong here
Dataverse stores relational tables, not graph structures; graph data belongs to Microsoft Graph or Azure Cosmos DB's Gremlin API. It is tempting because Dataverse models relationships between tables, but those are foreign-key lookups, not traversable graph edges, so this is not a Dataverse benefit.
- ✗
Automatic Excel export
Why it's wrong here
Dataverse has no automatic Excel export feature; exporting to Excel is a manual action available in model-driven apps and views. It is tempting because Dataverse data can be opened in Excel, but that requires user action, not automatic synchronisation, so it is not a stated benefit.
- ✗
Ability to run complex SQL queries
Why it's wrong here
Dataverse does not expose a SQL query endpoint; it uses FetchXML, OData and its own Web API. It is tempting because Dataverse is built on Azure SQL underneath, but that engine is abstracted away, so direct complex SQL queries cannot be run against it.
- ✓
Rich relationships between tables
Why this is correct
Dataverse enforces relationships between tables, including one-to-many and many-to-many with cascading behaviour and lookup columns, which satisfies the stem's requirement for rich relationships as a benefit over flat sources such as SharePoint lists or Excel.
- ✓
Role-based security and field-level permissions
Why this is correct
Dataverse applies role-based security plus column-level (field-level) permissions, so access can be scoped by security role and restricted to individual columns. This satisfies the stem's requirement for granular access control as a benefit over SharePoint or SQL sources.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Microsoft exam blueprint
This PL-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 PL-900 exam.