Microsoft Azure Administrator (AZ104) Practice Exam

Which service enables you to automatically create point-in-time backups for SQL Server databases in Azure?

1. Azure SQL Database backup

2. Azure Backup for SQL Server VM

3. Azure BLOB Storage backup

4. Azure Site Recovery

The correct answer is: Azure Backup for SQL Server VM

The service that enables you to automatically create point-in-time backups for SQL Server databases in Azure is Azure Backup for SQL Server VM. This service is specifically designed for backing up SQL Server databases running on virtual machines within Azure, providing features that facilitate the scheduling and management of backups. Azure Backup for SQL Server VM seamlessly integrates with SQL Server, allowing you to set up automated backups that can capture the state of your databases at the time the backup is taken. This is particularly useful for disaster recovery and restoring specific versions of the database when necessary. It also supports point-in-time recovery, ensuring that you can restore your databases to a specific moment before any unwanted changes or failures occurred. Other options don't provide the same functionality tailored to point-in-time backups for SQL Server databases. While Azure SQL Database backup does indeed offer backup capabilities for Azure SQL Database instances, it operates differently from backups of SQL Server running on VMs. Azure BLOB Storage backup is related to storing large amounts of unstructured data but does not specifically manage backups for SQL databases. Azure Site Recovery is primarily focused on disaster recovery and replication of workloads but is not designed specifically for automated database backups. Therefore, Azure Backup for SQL Server VM is the most appropriate service for the requirement outlined in the question.