The answer is the Network Watcher effective routes tool. This is the correct choice because it displays the complete route table applied to a VM’s network interface, including system routes, user-defined routes (UDRs), and BGP-propagated routes from virtual network gateways, allowing the administrator to see exactly which next hop is selected for traffic to 172.16.5.10 based on the longest prefix match. On the AZ-104 exam, this scenario tests your ability to differentiate Network Watcher tools—a common trap is confusing effective routes with the next hop tool, which only checks a single destination rather than showing the full table. Remember the memory tip: “Effective routes = the full routing report card for a NIC,” covering all route sources in one view.
AZ-104 Implement and Manage Virtual Networking Practice Question
This AZ-104 practice question tests your understanding of implement and manage virtual networking. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 VM sends traffic to 172.16.5.10, but the administrator suspects the traffic is taking an unexpected next hop. They want to see the effective route table applied to the VM NIC, including system routes, user-defined routes, and propagated routes. Which Network Watcher tool should be used?
Why wrong: IP flow verify checks whether a specific 5-tuple is allowed or denied, but it does not show the route table.
B
Effective routes
Effective routes displays the full route set that applies to a VM NIC, including system, user-defined, and propagated routes. That makes it the right tool when you need to understand why traffic is taking a particular next hop.
C
Packet capture
Why wrong: Packet capture records traffic for analysis, but it does not summarize route selection or next-hop behavior.
D
Connection troubleshoot
Why wrong: Connection troubleshoot tests end-to-end connectivity, but it is not focused on listing the applied routes.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Effective routes
Effective routes is the correct Network Watcher tool because it displays the complete route table applied to a VM NIC, including system routes, user-defined routes (UDRs), and BGP-propagated routes from virtual network gateways. This allows the administrator to see exactly which next hop is selected for traffic to 172.16.5.10 based on the longest prefix match, identifying any unexpected routing behavior.
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.
✗
IP flow verify
Why it's wrong here
IP flow verify checks whether a specific 5-tuple is allowed or denied, but it does not show the route table.
✓
Effective routes
Why this is correct
Effective routes displays the full route set that applies to a VM NIC, including system, user-defined, and propagated routes. That makes it the right tool when you need to understand why traffic is taking a particular next hop.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Packet capture
Why it's wrong here
Packet capture records traffic for analysis, but it does not summarize route selection or next-hop behavior.
✗
Connection troubleshoot
Why it's wrong here
Connection troubleshoot tests end-to-end connectivity, but it is not focused on listing the applied routes.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse IP flow verify (which checks NSG rules) with effective routes (which checks routing), leading them to pick A when the question explicitly asks about the route table and next hop, not firewall rules.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
IP flow verify checks whether a specific 5-tuple is allowed or denied, but it does not show the route table.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Effective routes works by querying the Azure platform's routing engine, which evaluates system routes (e.g., 0.0.0.0/0 to internet, VNet peering routes), UDRs from route tables associated with the subnet, and BGP-propagated routes from ExpressRoute or VPN gateways. The output shows each route's address prefix, next hop type (e.g., VirtualNetwork, Internet, VirtualAppliance), and next hop IP, enabling precise troubleshooting of asymmetric routing or forced tunneling issues. In a real-world scenario, if a VM sends traffic to 172.16.5.10 but the effective route shows a next hop of a network virtual appliance instead of the local VNet, the administrator can identify a misconfigured UDR or overlapping address space.
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
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this AZ-104 question in full detail.
Implement and Manage Virtual Networking — This question tests Implement and Manage Virtual Networking — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Effective routes — Effective routes is the correct Network Watcher tool because it displays the complete route table applied to a VM NIC, including system routes, user-defined routes (UDRs), and BGP-propagated routes from virtual network gateways. This allows the administrator to see exactly which next hop is selected for traffic to 172.16.5.10 based on the longest prefix match, identifying any unexpected routing behavior.
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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