Question 1mediummultiple choice
Full question →mediummultiple choiceObjective-mapped
Exhibit
Deployment note: - vm-app1 is in rg-web - vm-app2 is in rg-api - vm-app3 is in rg-batch - All three VMs must read from the same storage account - The identity must keep working if one VM is reimaged or replaced - Access should be granted once and then reused by all three VMs
Based on the exhibit, which identity approach should be used so all three virtual machines can reuse the same Azure access without sharing secrets?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Good practice is not just finding the correct option. The wrong answers often show the exact trap the exam wants you to fall into.
A
Distractor review
Assign a system-assigned managed identity to each VM.
A system-assigned identity is bound to one VM, so it cannot be shared cleanly across multiple machines.
B
Best answer
Use a user-assigned managed identity and attach it to all three VMs.
A user-assigned managed identity is the right fit when multiple resources need the same Azure identity. It is created as a standalone resource and can be attached to all three VMs, so the access model remains consistent even if a VM is reimaged or replaced. This also avoids storing storage keys, passwords, or connection strings in the application or operating system.
C
Distractor review
Create a storage account access key and place it in each VM's application settings.
Sharing storage keys increases risk and does not satisfy the requirement to avoid secrets.
D
Distractor review
Create a separate SAS token for each VM and rotate it manually.
SAS tokens are limited-time secrets and do not provide the shared, identity-based access pattern requested.
Common exam trap
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Technical deep dive
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
- Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
- Underline the problem statement mentally.
- 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.
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More questions from this exam
Keep practising from the same exam bank, or move into a focused topic page if this question exposed a weak area.
Question 1
A route table contains these entries: 10.0.0.0/8 with next hop Virtual appliance, and 10.1.1.0/24 with next hop Virtual network gateway. Which next hop will Azure use for traffic to 10.1.1.5?
Question 2
You are deploying a stateless web application on Azure virtual machines. The solution must automatically add and remove instances based on CPU demand and allow all instances to be managed as one logical group. Which Azure compute feature should you deploy?
Question 3
You are deploying a Windows Server VM for an internal app. The VM must support Secure Boot and vTPM later, its OS disk must survive host moves, and the team wants the lowest-cost managed disk tier that still behaves like a normal writable OS disk. Which two choices should you make? Select two.
Question 4
You need to deploy several identical virtual machines and ensure that the failure of a single Azure host does not affect all of them. Which feature should you use?
Question 5
You need to connect VNet-Hub and VNet-Spoke so that resources in both virtual networks can communicate privately over the Microsoft backbone. Both virtual networks are in the same region. What should you configure?
Question 6
You need to create a storage account that provides the lowest-cost redundant storage for non-critical data and only needs protection against local disk or server failure within a single datacenter. Which redundancy option should you choose?
FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this AZ-104 question test?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use a user-assigned managed identity and attach it to all three VMs. — A user-assigned managed identity is designed for reuse across multiple Azure resources. Because the three VMs all need the same storage access and the identity must survive VM replacement, a shared user-assigned identity is the most appropriate design. You grant the identity the necessary data-plane role once, then attach it to each VM. That approach is cleaner and more durable than per-VM system-assigned identities or secret-based authentication. Why others are wrong: System-assigned identities are tied to one VM, so they are not the best choice for shared access. Storage keys and SAS tokens are secrets that the scenario explicitly wants to avoid. They also increase operational overhead because they must be distributed and rotated.
What should I do if I get this AZ-104 question wrong?
Then try more questions from the same exam bank and focus on understanding why the wrong options are tempting.
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