The correct answer is to mount the recovery point and copy the file back to the VM. This is because Azure Backup’s file-level restore feature exposes the recovery point as an iSCSI target, allowing you to mount it as a disk on the running VM and browse its contents to copy only the deleted file back, without any full VM recovery or downtime. On the AZ-104 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of the “File Recovery” option within Azure Backup—a common trap is assuming you must stop the VM or perform a full restore, but the key is that the VM remains online and the mounted snapshot is read-only. Remember the memory tip: “Mount, don’t overwrite” — you are mounting a point-in-time snapshot to retrieve a single file, not restoring the entire disk.
AZ-104 Monitor and Maintain Azure Resources Practice Question
This AZ-104 practice question tests your understanding of monitor and maintain azure resources. 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
Azure Backup recovery point
---------------------------
Protected item: win-file01
Restore points available: 2026-04-25 23:00, 2026-04-26 23:00
Recovery option selected in portal: Restore virtual machine
User impact: One file missing at C:\Data\Reports\April.xlsx
Goal: Recover only the deleted file
Based on the exhibit, a user deleted one file from a Windows Azure VM. The VM is still running, and the administrator wants to restore only that file instead of recovering the full machine. Which restore approach should be used?
Azure Backup recovery point
---------------------------
Protected item: win-file01
Restore points available: 2026-04-25 23:00, 2026-04-26 23:00
Recovery option selected in portal: Restore virtual machine
User impact: One file missing at C:\Data\Reports\April.xlsx
Goal: Recover only the deleted file
A
Use the VM restore option and overwrite the entire VM.
Why wrong: A full VM restore would bring back the whole server and is unnecessary when only a single file is missing.
B
Mount the recovery point and copy the file back to the VM.
Azure Backup supports file-level recovery by mounting the recovery point so you can browse the backup content and copy back only the missing file. This minimizes impact and avoids replacing the entire VM.
C
Increase the VM size and redeploy the workload.
Why wrong: Resizing the VM does not recover deleted data. It only changes compute capacity.
D
Enable a diagnostic setting on the VM and recover the file from logs.
Why wrong: Diagnostic logs are not a data recovery mechanism. They may help with investigation, but they cannot restore the deleted file.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Mount the recovery point and copy the file back to the VM.
Option B is correct because Azure VM backup allows you to mount a recovery point as a disk on another VM or the same VM, enabling file-level restore without overwriting the entire VM. This approach uses the 'File Recovery' feature of Azure Backup, which presents the recovery point as an iSCSI target that can be mounted and browsed to copy individual files back to the running VM.
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.
✗
Use the VM restore option and overwrite the entire VM.
Why it's wrong here
A full VM restore would bring back the whole server and is unnecessary when only a single file is missing.
✓
Mount the recovery point and copy the file back to the VM.
Why this is correct
Azure Backup supports file-level recovery by mounting the recovery point so you can browse the backup content and copy back only the missing file. This minimizes impact and avoids replacing the entire VM.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Increase the VM size and redeploy the workload.
Why it's wrong here
Resizing the VM does not recover deleted data. It only changes compute capacity.
✗
Enable a diagnostic setting on the VM and recover the file from logs.
Why it's wrong here
Diagnostic logs are not a data recovery mechanism. They may help with investigation, but they cannot restore the deleted file.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may assume file-level recovery requires restoring the entire VM (Option A) or confuse diagnostic logs with backup data (Option D), not realizing that Azure Backup's mount-and-copy feature is specifically designed for granular file recovery from a running VM.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Azure Backup's file-level recovery works by creating a temporary iSCSI target from a recovery point snapshot, which you mount to the VM using the provided script (e.g., 'mount_windows_azure_uri.ps1'). The mounted disk is read-only and exposes the file system at the point-in-time of the backup, allowing you to copy the deleted file back to the original location. This process does not require stopping the VM and leverages the Azure Backup Vault's underlying blob snapshots.
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.
Monitor and Maintain Azure Resources — This question tests Monitor and Maintain Azure Resources — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Mount the recovery point and copy the file back to the VM. — Option B is correct because Azure VM backup allows you to mount a recovery point as a disk on another VM or the same VM, enabling file-level restore without overwriting the entire VM. This approach uses the 'File Recovery' feature of Azure Backup, which presents the recovery point as an iSCSI target that can be mounted and browsed to copy individual files back to the running VM.
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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