- A
Manually change each blob tier when the archive team remembers to review it.
Why wrong: Manual tier changes do not meet the requirement for automatic, ongoing movement of blobs based on age.
- B
Create a blob lifecycle management policy with a rule that moves blobs after 90 days.
A lifecycle management policy automates tier transitions based on blob age, last access time, or other conditions. In this case, the administrator can create a rule that moves blobs older than 90 days from a higher-cost tier to a lower-cost online tier, such as Cool, without manual work. This is the right control because it enforces a repeatable storage cost strategy over time.
- C
Enable object replication so the blobs are copied to another storage account.
Why wrong: Object replication copies blob data between accounts, but it does not automatically change access tiers based on age.
- D
Move the account to the Archive access tier and leave it there permanently.
Why wrong: Archive is an offline tier, so blobs are not immediately available for normal reads and are not described as online access here.
Quick Answer
The correct solution is to create a blob lifecycle management policy with a rule that moves blobs after 90 days. This is because Azure Blob Storage lifecycle management policies allow you to define automated rules that transition blobs to a lower-cost online tier—such as from Hot to Cool or Cool to Archive—based on the age of the blob, eliminating the need for manual intervention. On the AZ-104 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of cost optimization through automated tier transitions, often appearing as a scenario where you must choose between lifecycle policies, manual scripts, or Azure Automation runbooks; the common trap is selecting a manual or scheduled solution instead of the native policy. Remember that lifecycle policies are rule-based and trigger automatically on blob creation or modification timestamps, making them ideal for read-only archives. Memory tip: think “Lifecycle = automatic tier moves by age,” and avoid any solution requiring manual or scheduled triggers.
AZ-104 Implement and Manage Storage Practice Question
This AZ-104 practice question tests your understanding of implement and manage storage. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A records archive stores thousands of blobs that are usually read-only. The administrator wants blobs older than 90 days to move automatically to a lower-cost online tier without manual intervention. Which solution should be configured?
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
Create a blob lifecycle management policy with a rule that moves blobs after 90 days.
Option B is correct because Azure Blob Storage lifecycle management policies allow you to define rules that automatically transition blobs to a lower-cost access tier (e.g., from Hot to Cool or from Cool to Archive) based on the age of the blob. In this scenario, a rule can be configured to move blobs older than 90 days to the Cool or Archive tier without any manual intervention, meeting the requirement for automated cost optimization.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Manually change each blob tier when the archive team remembers to review it.
Why it's wrong here
Manual tier changes do not meet the requirement for automatic, ongoing movement of blobs based on age.
- ✓
Create a blob lifecycle management policy with a rule that moves blobs after 90 days.
Why this is correct
A lifecycle management policy automates tier transitions based on blob age, last access time, or other conditions. In this case, the administrator can create a rule that moves blobs older than 90 days from a higher-cost tier to a lower-cost online tier, such as Cool, without manual work. This is the right control because it enforces a repeatable storage cost strategy over time.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Enable object replication so the blobs are copied to another storage account.
Why it's wrong here
Object replication copies blob data between accounts, but it does not automatically change access tiers based on age.
- ✗
Move the account to the Archive access tier and leave it there permanently.
Why it's wrong here
Archive is an offline tier, so blobs are not immediately available for normal reads and are not described as online access here.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse object replication (which copies data for redundancy) with lifecycle management (which changes the tier of existing blobs), or they assume that setting the entire account to Archive is equivalent to per-blob tiering, ignoring the operational impact on frequently accessed data.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Azure lifecycle management policies are defined as JSON rules that evaluate blob properties such as 'lastModified' or 'creationTime' to trigger tier transitions (e.g., 'tierToCool', 'tierToArchive'). The policy runs once per day, and blobs must be at least 30 days old in the Cool tier before moving to Archive to avoid early deletion fees. In real-world scenarios, this is critical for compliance archives where data must be retained for years but accessed infrequently, allowing significant cost savings by automating tiering based on age.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A startup's cloud architect reviews their monthly bill and notices costs are higher than expected for a long-running batch job. Switching from on-demand instances to Reserved Instances — or using Spot/Preemptible VMs — can reduce compute costs by up to 72 %. Questions like this test whether you understand the tradeoffs between commitment, flexibility, and cost across cloud pricing models.
What to study next
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this AZ-104 question test?
Implement and Manage Storage — This question tests Implement and Manage Storage — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Create a blob lifecycle management policy with a rule that moves blobs after 90 days. — Option B is correct because Azure Blob Storage lifecycle management policies allow you to define rules that automatically transition blobs to a lower-cost access tier (e.g., from Hot to Cool or from Cool to Archive) based on the age of the blob. In this scenario, a rule can be configured to move blobs older than 90 days to the Cool or Archive tier without any manual intervention, meeting the requirement for automated cost optimization.
What should I do if I get this AZ-104 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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.
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