Home labs & practical projects
Choose a recovery design for a regional outage
A project to do with your own tools, with guidance on what to create and capture.
What you could create
An Azure-hosted customer portal needs a regional outage plan. Its transactional database and uploaded documents have different recovery objectives.
| Evidence | What to capture |
|---|---|
| Regional recovery architecture | Show the inputs, scope and decisions behind this record. No dependency silently remains in the failed region. |
| Decision record and failover acceptance criteria | Include the evidence supporting your conclusion. Recovery objectives are evaluated per data store. |
What you'll need
Document, spreadsheet or diagram tool
Define data volumes, allowable downtime and allowable data loss for each component. Use current Azure architecture documentation to compare two recovery patterns.
Project record
Keep the working files for regional recovery architecture and record assumptions as you go.
Current reference material
Use the linked provider resources to verify the features, access terms and version relevant to your project.
Access & cost
No paid platform is needed for the written version. Use a document, spreadsheet or diagram tool you already have.
The organisation and records are fictional. Write down assumptions; do not substitute confidential employer information.
Suggested milestones
- 1
Plan and investigate
Map identity, application, data and DNS dependencies across regions.
- 2
Develop your approach
Explain replication, backup and failover choices separately.
- 3
Verify and explain
Write a failover and return-to-normal plan with an explicit cost and complexity trade-off.
Useful resources
Use these resources to deepen your understanding and check key details.
Review the current provider requirements and relevant subject areas.
Check relevance, platform versions and current access terms.
Find relevant providers and check features, access requirements and costs.
A useful starting point
Define data volumes, allowable downtime and allowable data loss for each component. Use current Azure architecture documentation to compare two recovery patterns.
What a good result looks like
- No dependency silently remains in the failed region.
- Recovery objectives are evaluated per data store.
- The return plan considers writes made during the outage.
Finish the project
Keep the decision record and note unanswered questions. A written design is not evidence that a technical control has been tested.
Independent home-project guidance, not an official vendor lab or a claim of complete exam coverage. Use your own tools and label the work accurately.