- A
Assign the Virtual Machine Contributor role at the subscription scope
Why wrong: This grants more permission than needed and affects all resource groups in the subscription.
- B
Create a custom role and assign it at the RG-App resource group scope
A custom role can include only the start, deallocate, and read actions needed for that resource group.
- C
Assign the Reader role at the resource group scope
Why wrong: Reader allows viewing resources only and does not permit starting or stopping virtual machines.
- D
Assign the Owner role at the resource group scope
Why wrong: Owner is far broader than required and includes delete and permission-management capabilities.
Question 363 of 1,170
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.
An operations team needs to start and deallocate every virtual machine in RG-App and read VM settings, but they must not be able to delete VMs or manage networking resources. What is the best Azure RBAC solution?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Create a custom role and assign it at the RG-App resource group scope
Option B is correct because the required permissions—starting, deallocating, and reading VM settings—are not fully covered by any built-in role, and the custom role must be scoped to RG-App to avoid granting broader access. A custom role allows combining Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines/start/action, Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines/deallocate/action, and Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines/read, while explicitly excluding delete and networking management actions. Assigning at the resource group scope ensures the permissions apply only to resources within RG-App.
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 the Virtual Machine Contributor role at the subscription scope
Why it's wrong here
This grants more permission than needed and affects all resource groups in the subscription.
When this WOULD be correct
If the requirement were to allow starting, deallocating, and managing VMs (including deletion and networking) for all VMs in a subscription, then assigning Virtual Machine Contributor at subscription scope would be appropriate.
- ✓
Create a custom role and assign it at the RG-App resource group scope
Why this is correct
A custom role can include only the start, deallocate, and read actions needed for that resource group.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Assign the Reader role at the resource group scope
Why it's wrong here
Reader allows viewing resources only and does not permit starting or stopping virtual machines.
When this WOULD be correct
If the requirement were only to read VM settings and not to start or deallocate VMs, assigning the Reader role at the resource group scope would be the best solution.
- ✗
Assign the Owner role at the resource group scope
Why it's wrong here
Owner is far broader than required and includes delete and permission-management capabilities.
When this WOULD be correct
Assign the Owner role at the resource group scope would be correct if the requirement was to grant full control over all resources in the resource group, including the ability to delete VMs and manage networking, with no restrictions.
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.
✓Create a custom role and assign it at the RG-App resource group scopeCorrect answer▾
Why this is correct
A custom role can include only the start, deallocate, and read actions needed for that resource group.
✗Assign the Virtual Machine Contributor role at the subscription scopeWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The Virtual Machine Contributor role at subscription scope grants permission to manage VMs but also allows deleting VMs and managing networking resources, which violates the requirement to prevent deletion and networking management.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
If the requirement were to allow starting, deallocating, and managing VMs (including deletion and networking) for all VMs in a subscription, then assigning Virtual Machine Contributor at subscription scope would be appropriate.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may think Virtual Machine Contributor covers start/stop and reading settings, but overlook that it includes delete and networking permissions, and that subscription scope is broader than needed.
✗Assign the Reader role at the resource group scopeWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The Reader role allows reading VM settings but does not permit starting or deallocating VMs, which is required by the operations team.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
If the requirement were only to read VM settings and not to start or deallocate VMs, assigning the Reader role at the resource group scope would be the best solution.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may think Reader is sufficient because it allows reading settings, but they overlook the need for start/deallocate actions, which require a role with Virtual Machine Contributor permissions.
✗Assign the Owner role at the resource group scopeWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The Owner role grants full access to all resources, including the ability to delete VMs and manage networking resources, which violates the requirement to prevent deletion and networking management.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
Assign the Owner role at the resource group scope would be correct if the requirement was to grant full control over all resources in the resource group, including the ability to delete VMs and manage networking, with no restrictions.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may think Owner is necessary to start/stop VMs, not realizing that more restrictive roles like Contributor or custom roles can also perform these actions without granting excessive permissions.
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?”
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often choose Virtual Machine Contributor (Option A) because it seems to cover VM operations, but they overlook that it includes delete and networking management permissions, and that scoping at subscription level grants excessive access beyond the RG-App resource group.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Azure RBAC custom roles are defined using a JSON structure with Actions, NotActions, DataActions, and AssignableScopes. For this scenario, the custom role would include Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines/start/action and Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines/deallocate/action under Actions, and Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines/delete under NotActions to explicitly deny deletion. Networking management is excluded by omitting any Microsoft.Network/* actions. Assigning at the resource group scope leverages Azure's hierarchical permission model, where inherited permissions from higher scopes (e.g., subscription) are additive unless explicitly denied via NotActions.
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.
Quick reference
Access Control Model Comparison
| Model | Acronym | Who Controls Access? | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discretionary Access Control | DAC | Resource owner | Small teams, file shares |
| Mandatory Access Control | MAC | System / security labels | Classified govt / military |
| Role-Based Access Control | RBAC | Administrator (via roles) | Enterprise environments |
| Attribute-Based Access Control | ABAC | Policy engine (user + resource attributes) | Fine-grained, dynamic policies |
| Rule-Based Access Control | RuBAC | System rules / ACLs | Firewall rules, network ACLs |
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this AZ-104 question test?
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: Create a custom role and assign it at the RG-App resource group scope — Option B is correct because the required permissions—starting, deallocating, and reading VM settings—are not fully covered by any built-in role, and the custom role must be scoped to RG-App to avoid granting broader access. A custom role allows combining Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines/start/action, Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines/deallocate/action, and Microsoft.Compute/virtualMachines/read, while explicitly excluding delete and networking management actions. Assigning at the resource group scope ensures the permissions apply only to resources within RG-App.
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.
About these practice questions
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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