The answer is to assign the Reader role at the Sales subscription scope. This is correct because Azure RBAC roles assigned at a subscription level are inherited by all child resource groups and resources, including those created in the future, ensuring the Auditors group can read every current and future resource in that subscription without affecting the Research subscription. On the AZ-104 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of role assignment scope and inheritance, with a common trap being to assign the role at a resource group level or management group level, which would either miss future resources or inadvertently grant access to other subscriptions. Remember the key principle: subscription scope covers all child objects, while management group scope would cascade to multiple subscriptions. Memory tip: "Sub scope locks all child blocks" — assign at the subscription to cover every resource group and resource within it.
AZ-104 Manage Azure Identities and Governance Practice Question
This AZ-104 practice question tests your understanding of manage azure identities and governance. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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.
Exhibit
Tenant hierarchy:
- Corp (management group)
- Sales (subscription)
- RG-Web
- RG-Data
- Research (subscription)
- RG-Lab
Requirement from the business owner:
- Auditors must view all resources in Sales.
- Any new resource group created under Sales must also be covered.
- Auditors must not see resources in Research.
Based on the exhibit, where should you assign the Reader role so the Auditors group can read every current and future resource in the Sales subscription, including resource groups created later, while not granting access to the Research subscription?
Tenant hierarchy:
- Corp (management group)
- Sales (subscription)
- RG-Web
- RG-Data
- Research (subscription)
- RG-Lab
Requirement from the business owner:
- Auditors must view all resources in Sales.
- Any new resource group created under Sales must also be covered.
- Auditors must not see resources in Research.
A
Assign Reader to RG-Web, because the group can then inherit access to resources in that resource group only.
Why wrong: This scope is too narrow and only covers one existing resource group. It would not include RG-Data or any future resource groups created in the Sales subscription.
B
Assign Reader to the Sales subscription, because subscription-level scope includes all current and future resource groups and resources in that subscription.
Subscription scope is the narrowest scope that satisfies the requirement. RBAC inheritance flows downward, so a Reader assignment at the Sales subscription applies to all current and future resource groups and resources inside Sales, but it does not grant access to the Research subscription.
C
Assign Reader to the Corp management group, because that is the only scope that can cover multiple subscriptions.
Why wrong: This would indeed cover Sales, but it is broader than necessary because it would also grant read access to Research. The requirement explicitly says Auditors must not access Research.
D
Assign Reader to each resource individually, because that avoids inheritance and limits visibility to selected items.
Why wrong: This approach is operationally expensive and does not satisfy the requirement for future resource groups or newly created resources. It also increases the chance of missing resources during later deployments.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Assign Reader to the Sales subscription, because subscription-level scope includes all current and future resource groups and resources in that subscription.
Assigning the Reader role at the Sales subscription scope grants the Auditors group read access to all current and future resource groups and resources within that subscription. This is because Azure RBAC roles assigned at a subscription level are inherited by all child resource groups and resources, including those created later. The requirement explicitly excludes the Research subscription, so a subscription-level assignment is the correct and most efficient approach.
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.
✗
Assign Reader to RG-Web, because the group can then inherit access to resources in that resource group only.
Why it's wrong here
This scope is too narrow and only covers one existing resource group. It would not include RG-Data or any future resource groups created in the Sales subscription.
✓
Assign Reader to the Sales subscription, because subscription-level scope includes all current and future resource groups and resources in that subscription.
Why this is correct
Subscription scope is the narrowest scope that satisfies the requirement. RBAC inheritance flows downward, so a Reader assignment at the Sales subscription applies to all current and future resource groups and resources inside Sales, but it does not grant access to the Research subscription.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Assign Reader to the Corp management group, because that is the only scope that can cover multiple subscriptions.
Why it's wrong here
This would indeed cover Sales, but it is broader than necessary because it would also grant read access to Research. The requirement explicitly says Auditors must not access Research.
✗
Assign Reader to each resource individually, because that avoids inheritance and limits visibility to selected items.
Why it's wrong here
This approach is operationally expensive and does not satisfy the requirement for future resource groups or newly created resources. It also increases the chance of missing resources during later deployments.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often choose the management group scope (Option C) thinking it is necessary to cover multiple subscriptions, but they overlook the requirement to exclude the Research subscription, making the subscription-level scope the only correct choice.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Azure RBAC uses an inheritance model where permissions assigned at a higher scope (management group, subscription, resource group) are automatically inherited by all child scopes. The Reader role at the subscription scope includes the 'Microsoft.Resources/subscriptions/read' action, which allows listing all resource groups and resources within that subscription. This approach ensures that any new resource group or resource created in the Sales subscription is automatically readable without additional role assignments, which is critical for auditing scenarios where future resources must be included.
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 company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this AZ-104 question in full detail.
Manage Azure Identities and Governance — This question tests Manage Azure Identities and Governance — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Assign Reader to the Sales subscription, because subscription-level scope includes all current and future resource groups and resources in that subscription. — Assigning the Reader role at the Sales subscription scope grants the Auditors group read access to all current and future resource groups and resources within that subscription. This is because Azure RBAC roles assigned at a subscription level are inherited by all child resource groups and resources, including those created later. The requirement explicitly excludes the Research subscription, so a subscription-level assignment is the correct and most efficient approach.
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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