A branch office relies on a Windows file server for fast local access. Head office wants a single authoritative copy of those files in Azure, with the branch server keeping only the files people are actually using so its disk stops filling up. What do you deploy?
Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900), objective architecture-and-services. Azure architecture and services medium
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The options
Correct Azure File Sync on the branch server
Correct. File Sync turns a Windows Server into a cache of an Azure file share, and cloud tiering keeps frequently used files on local disk while everything else lives only in Azure until it is needed.
Not correct A nightly AzCopy job uploading the whole share
Wrong shape. That is a backup, not a synchronisation: changes made in Azure never come back, conflicting edits are nobody's problem until they are, and nothing frees space on the branch server.
Not correct An Azure Data Box
Wrong. Data Box is a one-off bulk transfer appliance for getting a large dataset in or out. It has no ongoing role once the shipment is done.
Not correct Mount the Azure file share directly at the branch and switch the local server off
Wrong against the stated requirement. It does give one authoritative copy, but every read now crosses the wide area link, which is the fast local access the office depends on.
Why
File Sync is the hybrid answer for file shares: Azure holds the authoritative copy, servers in offices hold caches, and cloud tiering decides what stays local based on use. It also gives you multi-site sync, which a copy job cannot — several servers can present the same share and converge on the same content, rather than each drifting into its own version of the truth.
Where this comes from
- Cited
- Microsoft AZ-900 study guide skill area architecture-and-services.storage
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