When preparing for the DP-100 exam or implementing a data science solution on Azure, understanding the selection of Azure Storage resources is paramount. We will dive into the details of different Azure Storage types, their use-cases and other important features that you need to know.
Azure Storage is a Microsoft-managed cloud service that provides storage that is secure, scalable, durable, and highly available.
There are four types of Azure Storage resources:
- Azure Blobs: Used for storing large amounts of unstructured data, it’s excellent for serving images, documents, streaming video and audio, or storing back-up data and log files.
- Azure Files: Offers managed file shares in the cloud that are accessible via the industry-standard Server Message Block (SMB) protocol.
- Azure Queues: Essentially, they are a way of communicating between different program services inside and outside Azure. It’s particularly useful for managing large batches of processes across distributed systems.
- Azure Tables: A service that stores non-relational structured data (also known as structured NoSQL data) in the cloud, providing a key/attribute store with a schema-less design.
Let’s illustrate the variety of these storage types with a comparison table:
| Storage Type | Optimal For | Data Model | API | Management |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Azure Blobs | Large amount of unstructured data | Object Storage | Rest-based API | Azure Storage Account |
| Azure Files | Files shares in cloud | File System | SMB, Rest-based API | Azure Storage Account |
| Azure Queues | Communication across distributed systems | Message Queue | Rest-based API | Azure Storage Account |
| Azure Tables | Non-relational structured data | Key/Attribute Store | Rest-based API | Azure Storage Account |
Choosing the Correct Azure Storage Resource
When architecting a solution on Azure, it is essential to choose the correct type of Azure Storage resource based on specific needs. For example, if we wish to store logs from IoT devices that continuously send various types of data, the Azure Blob storage is an excellent option due to its unstructured nature.
from azure.storage.blob import BlobServiceClient
blob_service_client = BlobServiceClient.from_connection_string("my_connection_string")
blob_client = blob_service_client.get_blob_client("my_container", "my_blob")
with open("example.txt", "rb") as data:
blob_client.upload_blob(data)
The code above shows how to create a blob and upload data with Python using the Azure SDK.
On the other hand, if you are creating a distributed application that requires a shared file system, Azure Files is a perfect fit. It enables your applications running in Azure virtual machines or Azure compute services to share data easily.
It’s also worth noting that Azure Queues provide an easy solution for communication between different components of your application, while Azure Tables might be a good fit when dealing with data that doesn’t have complex relationships and where speed and cost-effectiveness is a priority.
Conclusion
In conclusion, understanding Azure Storage resources isn’t just about knowing what they are, but also knowing their optimum use-cases and how to effectively implement them in your solutions. This will not only prepare you for the DP-100 exam but also enrich your capacity to create efficient cloud solutions on Azure.
Practice Test
True or False: Azure Blob Storage stores massive amounts of unstructured object data, such as text or binary data.
- True
- False
Answer: True.
Explanation: Azure Blob Storage is designed to store large amounts of unstructured data, which can be text or binary data.
Which of the following are types of Azure Storage resources? (Multiple Select)
- a) Azure Cosmos DB
- b) Azure Queue Storage
- c) Azure Functions
- d) Azure SQL Database
Answer: a, b.
Explanation: Both Azure Cosmos DB and Azure Queue Storage are types of Azure Storage Resources. Azure Functions and Azure SQL database provide computational and relational database services respectively.
True or False: Azure Queue Storage is best suited for storing relational data.
- True
- False
Answer: False.
Explanation: Azure Queue Storage is used for storing and retrieving large numbers of messages. For storing relational data, options like Azure SQL Database or Azure Cosmos DB would be more appropriate.
Which of the following allows for real-time analytics on fast-moving streams of data from applications and devices?
- a) Azure Data Lake Store
- b) Azure Stream Analytics
- c) Azure Queue Storage
- d) Azure SQL Database
Answer: b. Azure Stream Analytics.
Explanation: Azure Stream Analytics is a fully managed real-time analytics service designed to analyze and process fast-moving streams of data from applications and devices.
True or False: You can use Azure File Storage to create a hierarchical namespace for data.
- True
- False
Answer: False.
Explanation: Azure Data Lake Storage is used to create a hierarchical namespace for data, not Azure File Storage. Azure File Storage allows for the creation of file shares in the cloud.
Which of the following services provides high throughput, low latency data access to massively scalable and geographically distributed data?
- a) Azure SQL Database
- b) Azure Cosmos DB
- c) Azure Blob Storage
- d) Azure Data Lake Storage
Answer: b. Azure Cosmos DB.
Explanation: Azure Cosmos DB is a globally distributed database service designed to provide high throughput, low latency access to scalable data.
True or False: Azure Table Storage accounts include a 500 TB storage capacity limit.
- True
- False
Answer: True.
Explanation: Azure Table Storage offers a 500 TB storage capacity limit for each account.
Which of the following Azure storage resources is ideal for structured NoSQL data?
- a) Azure Queue Storage
- b) Azure Cosmos DB
- c) Azure Data Lake Storage
- d) Azure Blob Storage
Answer: b. Azure Cosmos DB.
Explanation: Azure Cosmos DB is a multi-model database service that is ideal for storing and querying NoSQL data.
True or False: All Azure Storage service support real-time data access.
- True
- False
Answer: False.
Explanation: Not all Azure Storage services support real-time data access. For instance, Azure Blob Storage is meant for large volumes of unstructured data, not for real-time data access.
Which of the following Azure storage offerings is best suited for large volumes of unstructured data?
- a) Azure SQL Database
- b) Azure Cosmos DB
- c) Azure Blob Storage
- d) Azure Queue Storage
Answer: c. Azure Blob Storage.
Explanation: Azure Blob Storage is ideal for storing large amounts of unstructured data, such as text or binary data.
Interview Questions
What are Azure Storage resources?
Azure Storage resources are durable, scalable, and highly available storage services in the Azure cloud. They include services such as Blob Storage, Disk Storage, File Storage, Queue Storage, and Table Storage.
What is Blob Storage in Azure?
Blob Storage in Azure is a service for storing unstructured data in the cloud as objects/blobs. It can store large amounts of data such as text or binary data.
How does Azure Queue Storage facilitate communication between application components?
Azure Queue Storage helps in communication between application components by passing them through a queue. This ensures that if the system handling the process becomes unavailable, the message in the queue will still be processed later when the system is back up.
Which storage resource would be best for sharing files across applications using standard protocols like SMB and NFS?
Azure File Storage is the best for sharing files across applications using standard protocols.
Why would you use Azure Table Storage service in your application?
Azure Table Storage is used when you need to store flexible datasets like user data for a web application. It is a service that stores structured NoSQL data in the cloud.
Can you partition data in Azure Blob Storage?
Yes, Blob Storage provides two levels of data organization, the storage account and the containers in the account. A storage account provides a unique namespace in Azure for your data. Every object that you store in Azure Storage has an address within this namespace.
How is data encrypted in Azure Storage?
Data in Azure Storage is encrypted and decrypted transparently using 256-bit AES encryption, one of the strongest block ciphers available. Azure Storage Service Encryption (SSE) automatically encrypts data prior to persisting to storage and decrypts prior to retrieval.
What types of replication does Azure Storage support?
Azure Storage supports several types of replication including: Locally redundant storage (LRS), Zone redundant storage (ZRS), Geo-redundant storage (GRS), and Read-access geo-redundant storage (RA-GRS).
Is it possible to move data between Azure Storage accounts?
Yes, Azure Storage provides various data transfer options, including the AzCopy command-line utility, Azure Data Factory, and Azure Storage Explorer. These tools can be used to move data between Azure Storage accounts.
What is the purpose of an Azure Storage access key?
An Azure Storage access key is used to authenticate and authorize access to the data in your Azure Storage account. It is a 512-bit string that you can generate and regenerate as needed.
How would you secure data in Azure Storage?
Data in Azure Storage can be secured using Azure Active Directory (Azure AD), role-based access control (RBAC), Azure Storage Service Encryption (SSE) for at-rest encryption, and SSL/TLS for data in transit.
What is the lifecycle management in Azure Blob Storage?
Azure Blob Storage lifecycle management offers a rule-based policy to transition your data to the appropriate access tiers or expire at the end of the data’s lifecycle. This helps you to optimize costs by storing data in the most cost-effective manner.
How is durability ensured in Azure Storage?
Durability is ensured in Azure Storage through various replication strategies including local, zone, geo and read-access geo-redundant storage.
What is the durability guarantee of Azure Storage?
Azure Storage offers a durability of 99.999999999% (eleven 9’s), which ensures that data will not be lost when stored over a given year’s time.
What does the term “hot” and “cool” refer to in Azure Storage?
The terms “hot” and “cool” refer to access patterns in Azure Storage. Hot storage is for data that is accessed frequently, while cool storage is for data that is infrequently accessed and stored for at least 30 days.
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