AZ-104 Deploy and Manage Azure Compute Practice Question

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 an availability set so the script runs during placement.

  Why it's wrong here

  An availability set is a logical grouping of VMs that distributes them across fault and update domains to improve resilience against hardware failures and Azure maintenance. It is purely a placement construct and has no capability to execute scripts or run configuration tasks when a VM is provisioned or placed. Therefore, using an availability set does not cause any first-boot script to run, and the requirement for automated local user creation would remain unmet.

  When this WOULD be correct

  When the question asks for a method to ensure that two or more VMs are not placed on the same physical hardware or are updated simultaneously to maintain application availability during planned or unplanned maintenance.

• ✓

  Use cloud-init to run first-boot configuration in Linux.

  Why this is correct

  cloud-init is the standard Linux first-boot provisioning tool, supported natively by Azure. By supplying a cloud-init script (in YAML or shell) at VM creation, you can automate creating local users with SSH keys, installing packages, running arbitrary commands, and applying system settings automatically on the first boot—before the OS is fully available for login. This directly fulfills the requirement to create a local user and configure the VM without manual intervention, making it the correct option.

• ✗

  Use a snapshot of the operating system disk.

  Why it's wrong here

  A snapshot is a point-in-time copy of the operating system disk, used primarily for backup or to create a new VM from an existing disk state. When you boot a VM from a snapshot, it simply restores that exact disk content; no configuration script or first-boot process is triggered. Thus, while a snapshot captures the filesystem, it lacks any execution mechanism to create users or install packages automatically, so you would still need to log in manually to perform those tasks.

• ✗

  Use a custom image and manually log in later.

  Why it's wrong here

  A custom image captures a pre-configured OS disk state, including any existing users or packages, but it does not include any first-boot provisioning logic. When you create a VM from that image, the VM boots directly to that state without running setup scripts, so you must manually SSH in and run commands to create a local user. This manual step violates the automation requirement, making the custom image approach incomplete for automatic first-boot configuration.

  When this WOULD be correct

  If the question asked for a method to deploy a VM with pre-configured software and settings that require manual post-deployment steps, such as compliance verification or custom application setup, using a custom image and logging in later would be appropriate.

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.

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?”

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