Developing Solutions for Microsoft Azure (AZ-204) Practice Exam

Which Azure Functions hosting plan is best when predictive scaling and costs are required?

1. Functions Premium Plan

2. App service plan

3. Consumption plan

4. Dedicated hosting plan

The correct answer is: App service plan

The App Service Plan is well-suited for scenarios where predictive scaling and cost management are important. This hosting plan allows developers to create and manage a set of Azure Functions that can be pre-provisioned with a specified amount of resources. This ensures that the application can scale based on anticipated demand, which is valuable for applications with predictable workloads. When using an App Service Plan, you can determine the pricing tier that best meets your expected usage, allowing for cost control while providing the ability to scale up or down as needed. This flexibility supports a more consistent performance and can handle sudden spikes in traffic without the unpredictability associated with serverless architectures. In contrast, other hosting options may not provide the same level of predictability in terms of cost or scaling. For example, the Consumption Plan scales automatically but is best for unpredicted workloads and may incur variability in costs depending on actual usage. The Functions Premium Plan offers more capabilities but typically comes at a higher cost without the same level of predictability. Dedicated hosting plans are often associated with more fixed resources and can lead to underutilization and unnecessary costs if the scale is not appropriate. Therefore, when considering a requirement for predictive scaling and effective cost management, the App Service Plan stands out as the