Microsoft Azure Data FundamentalsDescribe how to work with non-relational data on AzureMedium
A financial institution is implementing a new system to store audit logs for regulatory compliance. These logs must be immutable, retained for 7 years, and infrequently accessed after initial writing. Which Azure non-relational data service and access tier combination is most cost-effective for this scenario?
- AAzure Data Lake Storage Gen2 with Cool access tier
- BAzure Blob Storage with Archive access tier
- CAzure Table Storage with Hot access tier
- DAzure Cosmos DB with Standard tier storage
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: B. Azure Blob Storage with Archive access tier
Azure Blob Storage's Archive tier is designed for long-term data retention with infrequent access, making it highly cost-effective for immutable audit logs. It allows for setting immutability policies to meet regulatory compliance.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 is optimized for big data analytics, and while the Cool tier is cheaper, it's still more expensive than Archive for immutability and very infrequent access over 7 years.
- C. Azure Table Storage is a key-value store, not ideal for large immutable logs, and the Hot access tier is for frequently accessed data, making it too expensive.
- D. Azure Cosmos DB is a NoSQL database, not optimized for static, long-term archival of immutable logs. Its pricing model is based on throughput and storage, which would be expensive for this use case.
Azure Blob Storage Archive Tier
The Archive access tier in Azure Blob Storage is optimized for storing data that is rarely accessed and has flexible latency requirements (on the order of hours). It offers the lowest storage cost.
- Lowest storage cost compared to Hot and Cool tiers.
- High retrieval cost and latency (hours).
- Suitable for long-term backups, archival, and regulatory compliance data.
- Supports immutability policies.
Memory trick: Remember the temperature: Hot for frequent, Cool for less, Archive for frozen away.