Question 123 of 1,170

Manage Azure Identities and Governance →easyMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped

Quick Answer

The correct answer is to create a remediation task for the policy assignment. This is necessary because Azure Policy assignments using the append effect only evaluate and modify new resources during creation or update events; existing non-compliant resources are not automatically retroactively scanned. To remediate existing non-compliant resources with Azure Policy append effect, you must trigger a remediation task, which uses a managed identity to apply the missing tag to all current VMs in the subscription. On the AZ-104 exam, this concept tests your understanding of policy effects and lifecycle management—a common trap is assuming that assigning a policy automatically fixes everything, when in fact append and deployIfNotExists effects require manual remediation for existing resources. Remember the memory tip: “New gets the tag, old needs the task.”

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 Azure Policy that appends the Environment tag is assigned to a subscription. New virtual machines get the tag, but existing VMs do not. What should the administrator do next?

Question 1easymultiple choice

Full question →

A
Remove the policy and reassign it at the resource group scope
Why wrong: Changing scope does not automatically fix existing resources that already missed the tag.
B
Create a remediation task for the policy assignment
A remediation task is used to bring existing resources into compliance after a policy assignment is in place. In this case, the append effect works for new deployments, but older virtual machines need remediation so the Environment tag is added to resources that were created before the policy took effect. That is the expected operational follow-up.
C
Grant the policy assignment Reader access
Why wrong: RBAC permissions do not cause the policy engine to update existing resources.
D
Apply a CanNotDelete lock to the subscription
Why wrong: A lock prevents deletion, but it does not add missing tags or remediate policy compliance.

Full breakdown with real-world context →

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 remediation task for the policy assignment

Azure Policy assignments with 'deployIfNotExists' or 'append' effects only apply to new resources by default. To bring existing non-compliant resources into compliance, a remediation task must be triggered, which uses a managed identity to modify the resource. Option B is correct because creating a remediation task for the policy assignment will evaluate and append the missing Environment tag to existing VMs.

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.

✗
Remove the policy and reassign it at the resource group scope
Why it's wrong here
Changing scope does not automatically fix existing resources that already missed the tag.
✓
Create a remediation task for the policy assignment
Why this is correct
A remediation task is used to bring existing resources into compliance after a policy assignment is in place. In this case, the append effect works for new deployments, but older virtual machines need remediation so the Environment tag is added to resources that were created before the policy took effect. That is the expected operational follow-up.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Grant the policy assignment Reader access
Why it's wrong here
RBAC permissions do not cause the policy engine to update existing resources.
✗
Apply a CanNotDelete lock to the subscription
Why it's wrong here
A lock prevents deletion, but it does not add missing tags or remediate policy compliance.

Common exam traps

Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword

The trap here is that candidates assume policy effects like 'append' or 'deny' automatically apply to all resources in scope, forgetting that only 'audit' and 'modify' effects have built-in support for existing resources, while others require a remediation task.

Detailed technical explanation

How to think about this question

The 'append' effect in Azure Policy adds additional fields to a resource during creation or update, but it does not trigger on existing resources. A remediation task uses the policy assignment's managed identity to evaluate and modify non-compliant resources via the same ARM API calls that the policy effect would use during creation. This is distinct from 'deployIfNotExists' which can deploy a template, but both require explicit remediation to act on existing resources.

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.

What to study next

Got this wrong? Here's your next step.

Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.

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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 remediation task for the policy assignment — Azure Policy assignments with 'deployIfNotExists' or 'append' effects only apply to new resources by default. To bring existing non-compliant resources into compliance, a remediation task must be triggered, which uses a managed identity to modify the resource. Option B is correct because creating a remediation task for the policy assignment will evaluate and append the missing Environment tag to existing VMs.

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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Same concept, more angles

1 more ways this is tested on AZ-104

These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.

Variation 1. A modify policy that appends a CostCenter tag was assigned to a management group. The policy shows as assigned, but older virtual machines still lack the tag. What must the administrator do to update those existing resources?

medium

A.Reassign the policy at a lower scope so it applies more quickly.
✓ B.Create a remediation task for the policy assignment.
C.Change the policy effect from modify to audit.
D.Add a CanNotDelete lock to the virtual machines.

Why B: The 'modify' policy effect appends the CostCenter tag to new or updated resources automatically, but it does not retroactively apply to existing resources. To update older virtual machines that lack the tag, the administrator must create a remediation task for the policy assignment. This task uses Azure Policy's 'deployIfNotExists' or 'modify' effect to trigger a deployment that evaluates and corrects non-compliant existing resources.

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Question Discussion

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