Study Guide Microsoft Azure Data Fundamentals Certification Exam DP-900
Prerequisites
This certification is intended for candidates beginning to work with data in the cloud. Candidate should have foundational knowledge of core data concepts and how they are implemented using Microsoft Azure data services. Candidates should be familiar with the concepts of relational and non-relational data, and different types of data workloads such as transactional or analytical.
Why to do it?
This certificate provides you an opportunity to demonstrate the knowledge of core data concepts and how they are implemented using Microsoft Azure data services. Azure Data Fundamentals can be used to prepare for other Azure role-based certifications like Azure Database Administrator Associate or Azure Data Engineer Associate. It will add value to your skill set and expertise if you into job roles like Azure Data Analyst, Azure Database Administrator, Azure Data Engineer, Solutions Architect etc.
Exam, Languages & Price
To get this certificate you need to pass ‘Exam DP-900’, which is available in English, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), Korean, French, German, Spanish. Price is based on the country in which the exam is proctored. In the USA it’s for $99 USD and in India it’s for ₹3696 INR.
In exam, you will get 60 minutes to answer around 49 multiple choice questions. To pass the exam, you will need to score 700 points out of 1000. I got 903 points, Link to my certification badge
Skills Measured
Below details are based on the updates available at the time of writing this article, for latest skill outline please refer link
Please note skills measured are intended to illustrate how Microsoft is assessing that skill. This list is not definitive or exhaustive.
In most cases, exams do NOT cover preview features, and some features will only be added to an exam when they are GA (General Availability).
Learning Path
There are two ways to prepare for this exam. You can either self-teach using free online resources or can go for instructor led path. In this article I will list all the required resources from Microsoft Learn to clear this exam. Remember objective should be to achieve the necessary knowledge instead of just clearing certifications. If you google it, you will find tons of material with question and answers for this exam. But that won’t help you to gain necessary knowledge. In machine learning terminology, use all the learning material as ‘training data’ and use online question dumps as your ‘test data’. Remember if you use ‘test data’ during training then it may result in good score but will definitely fail in real life scenarios!
Below are the learning resources for each of the section mentioned in skill measured table. At the end of each learning resource there is knowledge check section, to test your understanding of a particular module.
Describe core data concepts
This section has around 15 to 20 % weightage in exam. It tests candidates ability to describe core data workloads and data analytics core concepts.
Describe types of core data workloads
- Describe batch data
- Describe streaming data
- Describe the difference between batch and streaming data
- Describe the characteristics of relational data
Describe data analytics core concepts
- Describe data visualization (e.g., visualization, reporting, business intelligence (BI))
- Describe basic chart types such as bar charts and pie charts
- Describe analytics techniques (e.g., descriptive, diagnostic, predictive, prescriptive,cognitive)
- Describe ELT and ETL processing
- Describe the concepts of data processing
Suggested online resource is as below
- Module 1: Explore core data concepts
- Module 2: Explore roles and responsibilities in the world of data
- Module 3: Describe concepts of relational data
- Module 4: Explore concepts of non-relational data
- Module 5: Explore concepts of data analytics
- Time required: Around 1 hour 45 Mins.
Sample Questions
Below are few of the sample questions with multiple choice options. These questions are from Microsoft online learning path, in exam also you will get similar questions like below.
Set 1
Set 2
Set 3
Set 4
Set 5
Describe how to work with relational data on Azure
This section has around 25 to 30 % weightage in exam. It tests candidates ability to identify relational data workloads, relational Azure data services, identify basic management tasks for relational data and query techniques for data using SQL language.
Describe relational data workloads
- Identify the right data offering for a relational workload
- Describe relational data structures (e.g., tables, index, views)
Describe relational Azure data services
- Describe and compare PaaS, IaaS, and SaaS solutions
- Describe Azure SQL database services including Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Managed Instance, and SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machine
- Describe Azure Synapse Analytics
- Describe Azure Database for PostgreSQL, Azure Database for MariaDB, and Azure Database for MySQL
Identify basic management tasks for relational data
- Describe provisioning and deployment of relational data services
- Describe method for deployment including the Azure portal, Azure Resource Manager templates, Azure PowerShell, and the Azure command-line interface (CLI)
- Identify data security components (e.g., firewall, authentication)
- Identify basic connectivity issues (e.g., accessing from on-premises, access with Azure VNets, access from Internet, authentication, firewalls)
- Identify query tools (e.g., Azure Data Studio, SQL Server Management Studio, sqlcmd utility, etc.)
Describe query techniques for data using SQL language
- Compare Data Definition Language (DDL) versus Data Manipulation Language (DML)
- Query relational data in Azure SQL Database, Azure Database for PostgreSQL, and Azure Database for MySQL
Suggested online resource is as below
- Module 1: Explore relational data offerings in Azure
- Module 2: Explore provisioning and deploying relational database offerings in Azure
- Module 3: Query relational data in Azure
- Time required: Around 1 Hr 27 Mins.
Sample Questions
Below are few of the sample questions with multiple choice options. These questions are from Microsoft online learning path, in exam also you will get similar questions like below.
Set 1
Describe how to work with non-relational data on Azure
This section has around 25 to 30% weightage in exam. It tests candidates ability to identify non-relational data workloads and corresponding offerings on the Azure.
Describe non-relational data workloads
- Describe the characteristics of non-relational data
- Describe the types of non-relational and NoSQL data
- Recommend the correct data store
- Determine when to use non-relational data
Describe non-relational data offerings on Azure
- Identify Azure data services for non-relational workloads
- Describe Azure Cosmos DB APIs
- Describe Azure Table storage
- Describe Azure Blob storage
- Describe Azure File storage
Identify basic management tasks for non-relational data
- Describe provisioning and deployment of non-relational data services
- Describe method for deployment including the Azure portal, Azure Resource Manager templates, Azure PowerShell, and the Azure command-line interface (CLI)
- Identify data security components (e.g., firewall, authentication)
- Identify basic connectivity issues (e.g., accessing from on-premises, access with Azure VNets, access from Internet, authentication, firewalls)
- Identify management tools for non-relational data
Suggested online resource is as below
- Module 1: Explore non-relational data offerings in Azure
- Module 2: Explore provisioning and deploying non-relational data services in Azure
- Module 3: Manage non-relational data stores in Azure
- Time required: Around 2 Hr 24 Mins.
- Exercise/Lab: Each module contains the lab which can be done using free Azure subscription.
Sample Questions
Below are few of the sample questions with multiple choice options. These questions are from Microsoft online learning path, in exam also you will get similar questions like below.
Set 1
Set 2
Describe an analytics workload on Azure
This section has around 25 to 30 % weightage in exam. It tests candidates ability to identify analytics workload, components of a modern data warehouse and Azure tools and services used for data ingestion and visualization.
Describe analytics workloads
- Describe transactional workloads
- Describe the difference between a transactional and an analytics workload
- Describe the difference between batch and real time
- Describe data warehousing workloads
- Determine when a data warehouse solution is needed
Describe the components of a modern data warehouse
- Describe Azure data services for modern data warehousing such as Azure Data Lake, Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure Databricks, and Azure HDInsight
- Describe modern data warehousing architecture and workload
Describe data ingestion and processing on Azure
- Describe common practices for data loading
- Describe the components of Azure Data Factory (e.g., pipeline, activities, etc.)
- Describe data processing options (e.g., Azure HDInsight, Azure Databricks, Azure Synapse Analytics, Azure Data Factory)
Describe data visualization in Microsoft Power BI
- Describe the role of paginated reporting
- Describe the role of interactive reports
- Describe the role of dashboards
- Describe the workflow in Power BI
Suggested online resource is as below
- Module 1: Examine components of a modern data warehouse
- Module 2: Explore data ingestion in Azure
- Module 3: Explore data storage and processing in Azure
- Module 4: Get started building with Power BI
- Time required: Around 2 Hrs.
Sample Questions
Below are few of the sample questions with multiple choice options. These questions are from Microsoft online learning path, in exam also you will get similar questions like below.
Set 1
Set 2
Set 3
Set 4
Practice Exams
Its always a better idea to do few practice tests, before going for final exam. I have taken Examtopics practice test. I have also prepared my handwritten notes based on above learning path that I have refered before the final exam. I have also refered the 200 Practice Questions For Azure Data DP-900 Fundamentals Exam.
