AZ-104 Implement and Manage Virtual Networking Practice Question
A development team runs Windows and Linux VMs in a single Azure subnet. The VMs must access an Azure Storage account, and the security team wants to restrict the storage account so only that subnet can reach it. The team does not want to create a private IP for the storage account or change DNS records. What should the administrator configure?
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to confuse service endpoints with private endpoints, assuming both require private IPs and DNS changes, but service endpoints operate at the network layer without altering the storage account's public endpoint.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
A service endpoint on the subnet and a storage account network rule allowing that subnet.
A service endpoint extends the subnet's identity to the storage account, allowing the storage firewall to accept traffic from that subnet without assigning a private IP. This meets the security requirement of restricting access to only that subnet while avoiding private IPs or DNS changes.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
A private endpoint for the storage account and a private DNS zone.
Why it's wrong here
A private endpoint uses a network interface with a private IP address from the virtual network, which violates the team's explicit requirement not to create a private IP. Although it would restrict access to the storage account, it also requires a private DNS zone and DNS record updates so clients resolve the account's public name to that new private address. Because the team wants to avoid both private IP allocation and DNS changes, this design is the opposite of the requested solution.
When this WOULD be correct
When the requirement is to ensure the storage account is accessible only from a specific virtual network using a private IP address, and the team is willing to manage private DNS zones or use custom DNS to resolve the storage account's private endpoint.
- ✓
A service endpoint on the subnet and a storage account network rule allowing that subnet.
Why this is correct
Service endpoints extend the subnet identity to the Azure Storage service without assigning a private IP to the storage account. This allows the administrator to restrict access to the specific Azure subnet while keeping the service reachable through its normal public DNS name. It fits the requirement to avoid DNS changes and private IP creation.
- ✗
A site-to-site VPN between the subnet and the storage account.
Why it's wrong here
A site-to-site VPN cannot terminate directly on a storage account because Azure Storage is a PaaS service with no VPN gateway or IPsec endpoint. VPN tunnels connect an on-premises network or a virtual network to an Azure VNet gateway, not to a service-specific endpoint. Even if you forced storage traffic through a VPN, the storage account would still rely on its own network rules, and the VPN alone would not restrict access to the subnet or provide the required access-control boundary.
When this WOULD be correct
If the question required connecting an on-premises network to an Azure storage account securely over the internet, a site-to-site VPN would be correct. For example: 'An on-premises data center needs to access an Azure storage account securely without using a public endpoint.'
- ✗
A user-defined route that sends storage traffic to the default internet next hop.
Why it's wrong here
A user-defined route only changes the next hop for packets and does not enforce any authentication, authorization, or source-based filtering at the storage service. Setting the next hop to the Internet would not tell Azure Storage to reject requests from other subnets, so traffic would continue to be evaluated only by the account's firewall rules. Moreover, adding a UDR to send service traffic to the Internet for next-hop routing could bypass normal service tags and is not a substitute for subnet-level access control.
When this WOULD be correct
If the question required forcing all traffic from the subnet to a storage account through a specific network virtual appliance (NVA) for inspection, a UDR with the NVA as next hop would be correct. For example: 'VMs must access storage via a firewall for logging; configure a route to send storage traffic to the firewall.'
Option-by-option analysis
Why each answer is right or wrong
Understanding why wrong answers are wrong — and when they would be correct — is what separates a 750 score from a 900. The AZ-104 exam frequently reuses these exact scenarios with slightly different constraints.
✓A service endpoint on the subnet and a storage account network rule allowing that subnet.Correct answer▾
Why this is correct
Service endpoints extend the subnet identity to the Azure Storage service without assigning a private IP to the storage account. This allows the administrator to restrict access to the specific Azure subnet while keeping the service reachable through its normal public DNS name. It fits the requirement to avoid DNS changes and private IP creation.
✗A private endpoint for the storage account and a private DNS zone.Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The question explicitly states the team does not want to create a private IP for the storage account or change DNS records. A private endpoint requires a private IP and a private DNS zone, which violates these constraints.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
When the requirement is to ensure the storage account is accessible only from a specific virtual network using a private IP address, and the team is willing to manage private DNS zones or use custom DNS to resolve the storage account's private endpoint.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse private endpoints with service endpoints, thinking both provide similar subnet-level access, but private endpoints offer more isolation and are often perceived as the 'best practice' for securing PaaS resources.
✗A site-to-site VPN between the subnet and the storage account.Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
A site-to-site VPN connects on-premises networks to Azure, not a subnet within Azure. It does not restrict storage account access to a specific subnet without using private IPs or DNS changes.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
If the question required connecting an on-premises network to an Azure storage account securely over the internet, a site-to-site VPN would be correct. For example: 'An on-premises data center needs to access an Azure storage account securely without using a public endpoint.'
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may think a VPN provides secure network-level access control, but they overlook that service endpoints or private endpoints are designed for Azure-to-Azure subnet-level restrictions without VPN complexity.
✗A user-defined route that sends storage traffic to the default internet next hop.Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
A user-defined route (UDR) sending storage traffic to the default internet next hop does not restrict access to the subnet; it merely directs traffic via the internet, which offers no security boundary. The requirement is to limit storage account access to the subnet, which requires a network rule, not routing.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
If the question required forcing all traffic from the subnet to a storage account through a specific network virtual appliance (NVA) for inspection, a UDR with the NVA as next hop would be correct. For example: 'VMs must access storage via a firewall for logging; configure a route to send storage traffic to the firewall.'
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse routing with access control, thinking that directing traffic through a specific path (like the subnet) inherently restricts access, or they may assume a UDR can replace a network rule.
Analysis generated from the official AZ-104blueprint and verified against question context. The “when correct” sections are what AI assistants cite when candidates ask “what’s the difference between these options?”
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Key term
Firewall
A firewall is a network security system that monitors and controls incoming and outgoing traffic based on predetermined security rules to protect trusted internal networks from untrusted external networks.
Key term
DNS
DNS is the system that translates human-friendly domain names like example.com into machine-readable IP addresses so computers can find each other on a network.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This AZ-104 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Microsoft certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the AZ-104 exam.