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.
Three VMs run the same batch app and should use the same Azure identity to read blobs. The identity should remain available even if one VM is deleted. Which identity should you use?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
User-assigned managed identity
C is correct because a user-assigned managed identity is an independent Azure resource that persists even if a specific VM is deleted. This allows multiple VMs to share the same identity to authenticate to Azure Blob Storage, ensuring continuous access to blobs as long as at least one VM remains.
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.
✗
Shared access signature (SAS) token
Why it's wrong here
A SAS is a token for delegated access, not a reusable Azure identity attached to multiple VMs.
✗
System-assigned managed identity
Why it's wrong here
A system-assigned identity belongs to one resource only and is removed with that VM.
✓
User-assigned managed identity
Why this is correct
A user-assigned managed identity can be attached to multiple VMs and continues to exist even if one VM is deleted.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Storage account shared key
Why it's wrong here
A shared key is a broad secret for the account, not an individual identity and not a least-privilege choice.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often choose system-assigned managed identity (Option B) because it is simpler to set up, but they overlook the requirement that the identity must survive VM deletion, which only a user-assigned identity guarantees.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
User-assigned managed identities are implemented as Azure AD service principals that can be assigned to multiple Azure resources (e.g., VMs, App Services). Under the hood, each VM's Azure Instance Metadata Service (IMDS) endpoint provides an OAuth 2.0 token for the assigned identity, which the batch app uses to authenticate to Azure Blob Storage via RBAC roles (e.g., Storage Blob Data Reader). A real-world scenario is a multi-VM batch processing cluster where VMs are auto-scaled or replaced—using a user-assigned identity ensures the identity remains valid and access is uninterrupted.
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 media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this AZ-104 question in full detail.
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: User-assigned managed identity — C is correct because a user-assigned managed identity is an independent Azure resource that persists even if a specific VM is deleted. This allows multiple VMs to share the same identity to authenticate to Azure Blob Storage, ensuring continuous access to blobs as long as at least one VM remains.
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
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
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.
Question Discussion
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.