Azure AZ-305: Designing Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions¶

The AZ-305 certification validates skills in designing cloud and hybrid solutions that run on Microsoft Azure, including compute, network, storage, monitoring, and security.

Quick Links¶

Fact Sheet - Exam logistics and objectives
Practice Plan - Structured study schedule

Study Materials¶

Core Notes¶

Exam Focus Areas¶

The AZ-305 exam measures ability to accomplish:

Design Identity, Governance, and Monitoring Solutions (25-30%)
Design governance solutions
Design authentication and authorization solutions
Design monitoring and logging solutions
Design Data Storage Solutions (25-30%)
Design data storage solutions for relational data
Design data storage solutions for semi-structured and unstructured data
Design data integration solutions
Design Business Continuity Solutions (10-15%)
Design backup and disaster recovery solutions
Design high availability solutions
Design Infrastructure Solutions (25-30%)
Design compute solutions
Design network solutions
Design migration solutions

Prerequisites & Skills¶

Required Knowledge¶

Azure Fundamentals: AZ-900 or equivalent knowledge
Azure Administrator: AZ-104 experience recommended
Enterprise Experience: Understanding of business requirements
Networking: TCP/IP, DNS, VPN, routing concepts
Security: Identity management, encryption, compliance

Technical Skills¶

Design solutions that meet business and technical requirements
Understand Azure service capabilities and limitations
Plan for cost optimization and resource governance
Design for security, compliance, and disaster recovery
Evaluate trade-offs between services and design options

Azure Service Coverage¶

Identity and Governance¶

Azure Active Directory: B2B, B2C, Conditional Access
Managed Identities: System-assigned, User-assigned
Azure Policy: Built-in and custom policies
Resource Locks: CanNotDelete, ReadOnly
Management Groups: Organizational hierarchy
RBAC: Built-in and custom roles
Privileged Identity Management: Just-in-time access

Compute Solutions¶

Virtual Machines: Availability sets, zones, scale sets
Azure App Service: Plans, deployment slots, authentication
Azure Functions: Consumption, Premium, Dedicated plans
Container Instances: Serverless containers
Azure Kubernetes Service: Node pools, scaling, monitoring
Azure Batch: Large-scale parallel workloads
Virtual Machine Scale Sets: Auto-scaling, updates

Storage Solutions¶

Azure Storage Accounts: Performance tiers, replication
Blob Storage: Access tiers, lifecycle management
Azure Files: SMB and NFS, File Sync
Azure NetApp Files: Enterprise file shares
Managed Disks: Standard, Premium, Ultra
Data Lake Storage Gen2: Hierarchical namespace
Azure Archive Storage: Long-term retention

Database Solutions¶

Azure SQL Database: Single database, elastic pools, hyperscale
Azure SQL Managed Instance: Compatibility, VNet integration
Cosmos DB: Multi-model, global distribution, consistency levels
Azure Database for PostgreSQL: Single server, flexible server
Azure Database for MySQL: Single server, flexible server
Azure Synapse Analytics: Dedicated pools, serverless pools
Azure Cache for Redis: Clustering, persistence, geo-replication

Networking Solutions¶

Virtual Networks: Subnets, NSGs, route tables
VPN Gateway: Site-to-site, point-to-site, VNet-to-VNet
ExpressRoute: Private connectivity, FastPath, Global Reach
Azure Load Balancer: Standard, Basic, cross-region
Application Gateway: v2 SKU, WAF, autoscaling
Azure Front Door: Global routing, caching, WAF
Azure Firewall: Standard, Premium, forced tunneling
Azure Bastion: Secure RDP/SSH access
Private Link: Private endpoints, private link service
NAT Gateway: Outbound connectivity

Integration and Messaging¶

Azure Service Bus: Queues, topics, sessions
Azure Event Hubs: Stream processing, capture, Kafka
Azure Event Grid: Event-driven architectures
Logic Apps: Workflows, connectors, integration
API Management: Policies, products, developer portal
Azure Functions: Event processing, durable functions

Analytics and Big Data¶

Azure Synapse Analytics: SQL pools, Spark pools, pipelines
Azure Databricks: Apache Spark, collaborative notebooks
Azure Data Factory: Data integration, mapping data flows
Azure Stream Analytics: Real-time analytics
Azure Data Lake: Storage and analytics
HDInsight: Hadoop, Spark, Kafka, HBase

Monitoring and Management¶

Azure Monitor: Metrics, logs, dashboards
Application Insights: APM, distributed tracing
Log Analytics: KQL queries, workspaces
Azure Automation: Runbooks, update management
Azure Backup: Vaults, policies, recovery
Azure Site Recovery: Disaster recovery, replication

Study Strategy¶

Recommended Timeline: 10-12 Weeks¶

Weeks 1-2: Identity, Governance, and Monitoring - Azure AD and authentication patterns - RBAC and custom roles - Azure Policy and governance - Monitoring and logging solutions

Weeks 3-4: Data Storage Solutions - Storage account design - Database selection and design - Data integration patterns - Backup and archival strategies

Weeks 5-6: Business Continuity - High availability patterns - Disaster recovery solutions - Backup and restore strategies - Cross-region replication

Weeks 7-8: Infrastructure Solutions - Compute design patterns - Network architecture design - Load balancing solutions - Migration strategies

Weeks 9-10: Integration and Practice - Design comprehensive solutions - Practice exams and scenarios - Weak area remediation - Final review and preparation

Essential Hands-on Practice¶

Design multi-tier application architectures
Implement hub-and-spoke network topology
Configure hybrid identity with Azure AD Connect
Design disaster recovery with Azure Site Recovery
Implement application monitoring with Application Insights
Design multi-region solutions with Front Door
Configure private connectivity with Private Link

Study Resources¶

👉 Complete Azure Study Resources Guide

Quick Links (AZ-305 Specific)¶

Recommended Study Resources¶

Microsoft Learn: Official AZ-305 learning path (FREE)
John Savill's AZ-305 Course: YouTube (FREE)
Pluralsight/Cloud Academy: Comprehensive courses
Practice Tests: MeasureUp, Whizlabs
Azure Documentation: Service-specific deep dives

Exam Tips¶

Question Strategy¶

Read case studies carefully and take notes
Identify business vs. technical requirements
Look for keywords indicating specific services
Consider cost, compliance, and SLAs
Think about hybrid and multi-region scenarios

Common Question Themes¶

Identity and access management design
Hybrid connectivity patterns
High availability and disaster recovery
Database selection and design
Application architecture patterns
Monitoring and governance
Migration strategies

Time Management¶

Review case studies (10-15 minutes each)
Allocate time for complex scenario questions
Flag uncertain questions for review
Leave buffer time at the end

Success Criteria¶

Design resilient, scalable, and secure Azure solutions
Understand Azure-specific architectural patterns
Navigate Azure's resource organization model
Demonstrate expertise in hybrid cloud scenarios
Balance technical requirements with business constraints
Apply Azure Well-Architected Framework principles
Design for compliance, governance, and cost optimization