Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect ExpertDesign business continuity solutionsHard
A financial services company needs to store highly sensitive customer data in Azure Blob Storage. The data must be immutable for a period of 7 years to comply with regulatory requirements. Additionally, the data should be immediately accessible for auditing purposes throughout this retention period. Which Azure Blob Storage feature should be used?
- AHot Blob Storage with time-based retention policy
- BImmutable Blob Storage with legal hold
- CCool Blob Storage with soft delete
- DArchive Blob Storage with immutability policy
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Hot Blob Storage with time-based retention policy
Hot Blob Storage ensures immediate access, and a time-based retention policy (an immutability policy) prevents deletion or modification for the specified 7-year period, fulfilling both requirements.
Why the other options are wrong
- B. Legal hold is for indefinite retention until the hold is removed, which doesn't fit the '7 years' requirement as precisely as a time-based policy. Also, 'Immutable Blob Storage' isn't a tier; it's a feature applied to existing tiers like Hot, Cool, or Archive.
- C. Cool storage has lower access costs but higher access latency than Hot, and soft delete only protects against accidental deletion, not modification or regulatory immutability.
- D. Archive storage has very high retrieval latency and cost, making it unsuitable for 'immediately accessible' data, even with an immutability policy.
Azure Blob Storage Immutability Policies
Allows you to store business-critical data in a WORM (Write Once, Read Many) state, preventing modification or deletion for a specified period or until a legal hold is removed.
- Supports time-based retention and legal holds.
- Can be applied to Hot, Cool, and Archive tiers.
- Ensures data integrity for compliance and regulatory needs.
Memory trick: Always Secure Data: Immutability is the Key.