Quick Answer
The answer is File Recovery, the Azure Backup capability designed for granular file-level restoration. This feature works by mounting a VM backup’s recovery point as an iSCSI target on your local machine, allowing you to browse and copy individual files directly without restoring the entire virtual machine. On the AZ-104 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of Azure Backup’s recovery options, often appearing as a trick question where candidates might mistakenly choose “Restore VM” or “Instant Restore.” The key trap is that File Recovery is only supported for Windows and Linux VMs backed up using Azure Backup, and it requires the machine to be running to establish the iSCSI connection. A helpful memory tip: think of File Recovery as a “surgical extraction” tool—it lets you pluck out a single file from a backup snapshot, just like using a scalpel instead of a sledgehammer.
This AZ-104 practice question tests your understanding of deploy and manage azure compute. 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.
You need to restore a deleted file from a backed-up Azure virtual machine without restoring the entire VM. Which Azure Backup capability should you use?
Cross-region restore
Why wrong: This addresses regional recovery scenarios, not single-file restore.
File Recovery
This is the feature designed for restoring specific files and folders.
Azure Site Recovery failover
Why wrong: Site Recovery is not the standard feature for file-level recovery from backups.
Boot diagnostics
Why wrong: Boot diagnostics does not restore files.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
File Recovery
Azure Backup's File Recovery capability allows you to mount the VM's recovery point as a drive on your local machine, enabling you to browse and restore individual files without restoring the entire VM. This is achieved by creating an iSCSI target from the recovery point snapshot, which you can connect to from a compatible OS. It is the correct choice for granular file-level recovery from a VM backup.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
Cross-region restore
Why it's wrong here
This addresses regional recovery scenarios, not single-file restore.
File Recovery
Why this is correct
This is the feature designed for restoring specific files and folders.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Azure Site Recovery failover
Why it's wrong here
Site Recovery is not the standard feature for file-level recovery from backups.
Boot diagnostics
Why it's wrong here
Boot diagnostics does not restore files.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse Azure Backup's File Recovery with Azure Site Recovery's failover, mistakenly thinking failover can be used for granular file restoration, when in fact Site Recovery is for full VM replication and disaster recovery, not backup-based file recovery.
Trap categories for this question
Scenario analysis trap
This addresses regional recovery scenarios, not single-file restore.
Detailed technical explanation
File Recovery works by mounting the VM's backup snapshot as an iSCSI target on a temporary Azure VM (or directly on-premises via a script), allowing you to copy files using standard OS tools like robocopy or drag-and-drop. The iSCSI connection is secured with a shared access signature (SAS) token that expires after 12 hours, and the mount point is automatically cleaned up after disconnection. This is particularly useful for recovering critical configuration files (e.g., web.config, database files) from a corrupted VM without incurring the time and cost of a full VM restore.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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.
What to study next
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FAQ
Deploy and Manage Azure Compute — This question tests Deploy and Manage Azure Compute — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: File Recovery — Azure Backup's File Recovery capability allows you to mount the VM's recovery point as a drive on your local machine, enabling you to browse and restore individual files without restoring the entire VM. This is achieved by creating an iSCSI target from the recovery point snapshot, which you can connect to from a compatible OS. It is the correct choice for granular file-level recovery from a VM backup.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This AZ-104 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Microsoft certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the AZ-104 exam.
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