Microsoft Certified Azure Data Fundamentals (DP-900) Exam Guide: Build a solid foundation in Azure data services and pass the DP-900 exam on your first try

Microsoft Certified Azure Data Fundamentals (DP-900) Exam Guide

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Author: Steve Miles

Reviewer: Priyanka Agrawal

Publishing Product Manager: Anindya Sil

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First Published: September 2024

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Contributors

About the Author

Steve Miles works in a senior technology role for the cloud practice of a multi-billion turnover European IT distributor. He is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP), Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT), and an Alibaba Cloud MVP with 25+ years of technology experience in hosted datacenter services, hybrid, and multi-cloud platforms, and a previous military career in engineering, signals, and communications. Steve is the author of many books on Microsoft technologies with a focus on Azure, AI and data, as well as security, which can be found on his author profile on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/stores/Steve-Miles/author/B09NDJ1RC8

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Steve is a petrolhead and can be found tinkering with cars when he is not writing.

You can connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevemiles70/

About the Reviewer

Priyanka Agrawal is a Technical Trainer at Microsoft, USA, with over 15 years of experience as a Microsoft Certified Trainer. She is passionate about learning and sharing knowledge in all capabilities and excels in delivering training, proctoring, and upskilling Microsoft Partners and Customers. Priyanka has significantly contributed to AI and Data-related courseware, exams, and high-profile events such as Microsoft Ignite, Microsoft Learn Live Shows, MCT Community AI Readiness, and Women in Cloud Skills Ready.

Beyond her professional achievements, Priyanka is a passionate advocate for environmental protection and actively supports related initiatives. In her personal time, she enjoys traveling and spending quality time with her family.

Table of Contents

Preface

1

Describe Core Data Concepts

Making the Most Out of This Book – Your Certification and Beyond

Describe Ways to Represent Data

What is Data?

Data Structures

Data Dimensions

Data Categories

Identify Options for Data Storage

Data Files

Databases

Describe Common Data Workloads

Features of Transactional Workloads

Features of Analytical Workloads

Identify Roles and Responsibilities for Data Workloads

Responsibilities of Database Administrators

Responsibilities of Data Engineers

Responsibilities of Data Analysts

Summary

Additional Reading

Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions

Exam Readiness Drill

Working On Timing

2

Describe Relational Concepts

Identify Features of Relational Data

Relational Database Characteristics

Describe Normalization and Why It Is Used

Identify Common Structured Query Language (SQL) Statements

Identify Common Database Objects

Tables

Views

Indexes

Stored Procedures

Summary

Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions

Exam Readiness Drill

Working On Timing

3

Describe Relational Azure Data Services

Microsoft SQL Databases on Azure

SQL Server on Azure VMs

Azure SQL Managed Instance

Azure SQL Database

Comparing SQL Deployment Options

Open Source Databases on Azure

MySQL Database

PostgreSQL Database

MariaDB Database

Summary

Additional Reading

Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions

Exam Readiness Drill

Working On Timing

4

Describe the Capabilities of Azure Storage

Azure Storage Services

Storage Accounts

Describe Azure Blob Storage

Storage Tiers

Describe Azure Files Storage

Describe Azure Table Storage

Summary

Additional Reading

Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions

Exam Readiness Drill

Working On Timing

5

Describe the Capabilities and Features of Azure Cosmos DB

Identify Use Cases for Azure Cosmos DB

Features and Capabilities

Describe Azure Cosmos DB APIs

SQL API

MongoDB API

Cassandra API

Table API

Gremlin API

Summary

Additional Reading

Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions

Exam Readiness Drill

Working On Timing

6

Describe the Common Elements of Large-Scale Analytics

Describe Considerations for Data Ingestion and Processing

Data Sources

Data Storage

Data Processing

Data Consumption and Visualization

Describe Options for Analytical Data Stores

Data Warehouses

Data Lakehouses

Describe Azure Services for Data Warehousing

Azure Data Factory

Azure Synapse Analytics

Azure HDInsight

Azure Databricks

Microsoft Fabric

Summary

Additional Reading

Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions

Exam Readiness Drill

Working On Timing

7

Describe Consideration for Real-Time Data Analytics

Describe the Difference between Batch and Streaming Data

What Is Batch Processing?

What Is Stream Processing?

Combining Stream and Batch Processing

Identify Microsoft Cloud Services for Real-Time Analytics

Azure Stream Analytics

Apache Spark

Azure Data Explorer

Microsoft Fabric

Summary

Additional Reading

Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions

Exam Readiness Drill

Working On Timing

8

Describe Data Visualization in Microsoft BI

Identify the Capabilities of Power BI

Power BI Desktop

The Power BI Service

Better Together

Describe Core Concepts of Data Modeling

Cubes

Schemas

Describe the Features of Data Models in Power BI

Identify Appropriate Visualizations for Data

Summary

Additional Reading

Exam Readiness Drill – Chapter Review Questions

Exam Readiness Drill

Working On Timing

9

Accessing the Online Practice Resources

Other Books You May Enjoy

Preface

The DP-900 certification exam, also called the Azure Data Fundamentals exam, is designed to validate foundational knowledge of data concepts and how they are implemented in Microsoft Azure.

The DP-900 exam has been updated a few times to include new technologies as they emerge and enter the Azure environment—and the latest edition of the exam is no different. The DP-900 exam now includes content on the Microsoft Fabric unified data analytics platform as part of an Azure subscription.

Who This Book Is For

This book is intended for individuals who wish to pass the Microsoft Certified: Azure Data Fundamentals (DP-900) exam, to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in this area, as well as those interested in gaining a basic understanding of Azure’s data capabilities who might not have experience in the field. This includes business stakeholders, decision-makers, and technical professionals who are new to data and cloud technologies.

The content in this book assumes you have no knowledge of data concepts (though having that knowledge would certainly help with understanding the fundamental cloud computing topics covered).

Written in a clear, concise way and comprising self-assessment questions, exam tips, and mock exams with detailed answers, this book covers the topics of data concepts and Azure’s data services and provides a focus on the exam skills measured, without burdening you with complex jargon or unnecessary background information or concepts, allowing you to pass the DP-900 exam with confidence.

What This Book Covers

Chapter 1

, Describe Core Data Concepts, includes content covering core data concepts such as structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data features; common formats for data files and types of databases; the features of transactional and analytical workloads; and the responsibilities of data-related roles such as administrators, engineers, and analysts.

Chapter 2

, Describe Relational Concepts, includes content covering the features of relational data, understanding normalization, and identifying common Structured Query Language (SQL) statements and common database objects.

Chapter 3

, Describe Relational Azure Data Services, includes content covering the SQL product family available in Azure and open source database systems.

Chapter 4

, Describe the Capabilities of Azure Storage, includes content covering the Blob, File, and Table Storage services available in Azure.

Chapter 5

, Describe the Capabilities and Features of Azure Cosmos DB, includes content covering Azure Cosmos DB use cases and the APIs of Azure Cosmos DB.

Chapter 6

, Describe the Common Elements of Large-Scale Analytics, includes content covering data ingestion and processing considerations, analytical data store options, and data warehousing services in Azure.

Chapter 7

, Describe Consideration for Real-Time Data Analytics, includes content covering the differences between batch and streaming data and exploring real-time analytics services in Azure.

Chapter 8

, Describe Data Visualization in Microsoft BI, includes content covering Power BI capabilities, data model features, and data visualizations.

How to Get the Most Out of This Book

This book is crafted to equip you with the knowledge and skills necessary to excel in the DP-900 exam through memorable explanations of major domain topics. It covers the eight core domains critical to the security expertise that candidates must be proficient in to pass the exam. For each domain, you’ll work through content that reflects real-world IT security challenges. At certain points in the book, you’ll assess your understanding by taking chapter-specific quizzes. This not only prepares you for the DP-900 exam but also allows you to dive deeper into a topic as needed, based on your results.

Online Practice Resources

With this book, you will unlock unlimited access to our online exam-prep platform (Figure 0.1). This is your place to practice everything you learn in the book. How to access the resources. To learn how to access the online resources, refer to Chapter 9

, Accessing the Online Practice Resources at the end of this book.

Figure 0.1 – Online exam-prep platform on a desktop device

Sharpen your knowledge of DP-900 concepts with multiple sets of mock exams, interactive flashcards, and exam tips accessible from all modern web browsers.

Download the Color Images

We also provide a PDF file that has color images of the screenshots/diagrams used in this book. You can download it here: https://packt.link/DP900GraphicBundle

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Conventions Used

Code in text: Indicates code words in the text, database table names, folder names, filenames, file extensions, pathnames, dummy URLs, user input, and X (formerly known as Twitter) handles are shown as follows: The elements are enclosed within and tags and are hierarchical; an element can contain other elements, attributes, or text.

A block of code is set as follows:

SELECT *

FROM Employees

WHERE Department = 'Engineering';

SELECT ProductID, Name, Price

FROM Product

ORDER BY Price ASC;

Bold: Indicates a new term or an important word and abbreviations. Here is an example: Data can be retrieved from across tables with Structured Query Language (SQL) statements; in brief, SQL is a standardized programming language used for managing and manipulating relational databases.

Tips or important notes

Appear like this.

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