AZ-104 Monitor and Maintain Azure Resources Practice Question
A VM must be backed up every day, and backups must be retained for several days after creation. Which two settings are configured in an Azure Backup policy? Select two.
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse backup policies with other VM management features like networking or availability, but Azure Backup policies strictly require only a schedule and retention rules to function.
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
✓
Backup schedule
An Azure Backup policy requires a backup schedule to define when the backup job runs (e.g., daily at a specific time). Option B is correct because retention rules specify how long each backup recovery point is kept (e.g., 7 days for daily backups, 30 days for weekly). Together, these two settings form the core of a backup policy, ensuring both the timing and lifespan of backups are controlled.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Backup schedule
Why this is correct
In an Azure Backup policy, the backup schedule is the component that dictates when a snapshot of the VM is taken, typically with a daily frequency. For example, you can set the policy to run at 2:00 AM UTC every day, and this triggers the Azure Backup extension to capture a consistent recovery point. Without a correctly configured schedule, no backups will be created, regardless of retention rules, so this is a required part of any backup solution.
- ✓
Retention rules
Why this is correct
Retention rules in an Azure Backup policy define how long each backup recovery point is stored, using a tiered approach that can include daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly retention points. These rules allow organizations to meet compliance or business continuity requirements by keeping more granular backups for a short period and older backups for years. For instance, you might retain daily backups for 7 days, weekly for 4 weeks, monthly for 12 months, and yearly for 7 years. This is essential for managing both storage costs and recovery point availability over time.
- ✗
Network security group rules
Why it's wrong here
Network security group (NSG) rules are Azure components that allow or deny inbound and outbound traffic to VM network interfaces or subnets based on source/destination IP, port, and protocol. They are security filters designed to protect workloads from unwanted network traffic, and they have no bearing on how or when Azure Backup snapshots are created. Associating an NSG with a VM does not affect its backup scheduling or retention, so it is irrelevant to this policy's configuration.
When this WOULD be correct
In a question about securing a VM's network traffic, such as 'Which Azure resource filters traffic to a VM based on source IP and port?', Network Security Group rules would be the correct answer.
- ✗
Private DNS zone records
Why it's wrong here
Private DNS zone records enable name resolution for resources within a virtual network, such as mapping a VM's hostname to a private IP address. These records support internal service discovery and are completely separate from backup policy configuration, which deals with snapshot timing and lifecycle. Changing DNS records will neither trigger nor inhibit backups, so any settings here are unrelated to the requirement of daily backups and retention.
When this WOULD be correct
In a question about configuring custom DNS resolution for Azure resources that need to resolve a private domain name within a VNet, such as 'How do you enable name resolution for a private endpoint?'
- ✗
Availability set placement
Why it's wrong here
An availability set distributes VM replicas across multiple fault domains and update domains to increase application availability during both planned maintenance and unexpected hardware failures. This placement strategy improves uptime but does not govern backup schedules or how long recovery points are retained. Backup policies operate independently of the VM's physical placement in a datacenter, so membership in an availability set is not a relevant factor when defining retention or scheduling rules.
When this WOULD be correct
In a question about configuring high availability for a VM, such as 'Which setting ensures VMs are distributed across fault domains to maintain availability during maintenance?', availability set placement would be the correct answer.
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.
✓Backup scheduleCorrect answer▾
Why this is correct
In an Azure Backup policy, the backup schedule is the component that dictates when a snapshot of the VM is taken, typically with a daily frequency. For example, you can set the policy to run at 2:00 AM UTC every day, and this triggers the Azure Backup extension to capture a consistent recovery point. Without a correctly configured schedule, no backups will be created, regardless of retention rules, so this is a required part of any backup solution.
✗Network security group rulesWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Network security group rules control inbound/outbound traffic to Azure resources, not backup scheduling or retention. Azure Backup policies only include backup schedule and retention rules.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
In a question about securing a VM's network traffic, such as 'Which Azure resource filters traffic to a VM based on source IP and port?', Network Security Group rules would be the correct answer.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse backup policies with network security, thinking that backup involves network rules to allow backup traffic, but Azure Backup handles this automatically.
✗Private DNS zone recordsWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Private DNS zone records are used for custom domain name resolution within a virtual network, not for configuring backup retention or scheduling. Azure Backup policies only involve backup schedule and retention rules.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
In a question about configuring custom DNS resolution for Azure resources that need to resolve a private domain name within a VNet, such as 'How do you enable name resolution for a private endpoint?'
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse 'backup policy' with 'network policy' or think that DNS records are needed to ensure backup services can resolve names, but Azure Backup does not require DNS configuration.
✗Availability set placementWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Availability set placement is a VM high-availability configuration, not a backup policy setting. Backup policies define when backups occur and how long they are retained, not VM placement.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
In a question about configuring high availability for a VM, such as 'Which setting ensures VMs are distributed across fault domains to maintain availability during maintenance?', availability set placement would be the correct answer.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse backup policies with general VM configuration settings, mistakenly thinking that availability sets are part of backup retention or scheduling.
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?”
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Managed Identities for Azure Resources
Key term
Azure Backup
Azure Backup is a cloud-based service from Microsoft that protects your data by creating and storing backups of files, folders, virtual machines, databases, and entire servers in the Azure cloud.
Key term
Policy
A policy is a set of rules or guidelines that defines how an organization manages, secures, and operates its IT systems and services.
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Courseiva writes every AZ-104 question from scratch — 1,049 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
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.