The answer is Microsoft Entra ID Domain Services, formerly Azure AD DS, because it provides managed domain services for legacy authentication protocols like LDAP, NTLM, and Kerberos without the operational overhead of deploying or patching domain controllers. This service integrates directly with your existing Microsoft Entra tenant, enabling domain join, group policy, and the legacy authentication needed by on-premises Windows applications migrated to Azure VMs. On the AZ-305 exam, this scenario tests your ability to choose a managed identity solution over self-managed options like Active Directory Domain Services on IaaS VMs, which would require ongoing domain controller management. A common trap is confusing this with Microsoft Entra ID itself, which does not support NTLM or Kerberos for legacy apps. Remember the mnemonic: "Legacy apps need legacy protocols, so Entra ID DS is the logical choice."
AZ-305 Practice Question: Design identity, governance, and monitoring solutions
This AZ-305 practice question tests your understanding of design identity, governance, and monitoring solutions. 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.
A company is migrating on-premises Windows applications that require LDAP, NTLM, or Kerberos authentication to Azure VMs. They want to provide domain services for these applications without deploying and managing domain controllers. Which Azure service should they use?
Why wrong: Microsoft Entra ID is a cloud-based identity provider but does not support LDAP or NTLM protocols natively, which are required by many legacy applications.
B
Microsoft Entra ID Domain Services
AAD DS provides a fully managed domain controller service that supports LDAP, NTLM, and Kerberos, ideal for lifting-and-shifting legacy apps.
C
Active Directory on Azure VMs
Why wrong: While this could work, it requires manual deployment, patching, and management, which the company wants to avoid.
D
Microsoft Entra ID B2C
Why wrong: Microsoft Entra ID B2C is designed for customer-facing applications with social identity providers, not for legacy enterprise app authentication.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Microsoft Entra ID Domain Services
Microsoft Entra ID Domain Services (formerly Azure AD DS) provides managed domain services such as LDAP, NTLM, and Kerberos authentication without requiring you to deploy, patch, or manage domain controllers. It integrates with your existing Microsoft Entra tenant and supports group policy, domain join, and legacy authentication protocols needed by the on-premises Windows applications being migrated to Azure 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.
✗
Microsoft Entra ID
Why it's wrong here
Microsoft Entra ID is a cloud-based identity provider but does not support LDAP or NTLM protocols natively, which are required by many legacy applications.
✓
Microsoft Entra ID Domain Services
Why this is correct
AAD DS provides a fully managed domain controller service that supports LDAP, NTLM, and Kerberos, ideal for lifting-and-shifting legacy apps.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Active Directory on Azure VMs
Why it's wrong here
While this could work, it requires manual deployment, patching, and management, which the company wants to avoid.
✗
Microsoft Entra ID B2C
Why it's wrong here
Microsoft Entra ID B2C is designed for customer-facing applications with social identity providers, not for legacy enterprise app authentication.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse Microsoft Entra ID (a modern identity provider) with Microsoft Entra ID Domain Services (which provides legacy protocol support), leading them to incorrectly select Entra ID for LDAP/NTLM/Kerberos needs.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Entra ID Domain Services synchronizes identity information from your Microsoft Entra tenant and automatically handles domain controller replication, patching, and high availability. It exposes standard LDAP (port 389/636) and Kerberos endpoints, allowing legacy applications to authenticate without code changes. In a real-world migration, you would domain-join the Azure VMs to the managed domain and configure group policies, while the service transparently handles the underlying Active Directory infrastructure.
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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this AZ-305 question in full detail.
Design identity, governance, and monitoring solutions — This question tests Design identity, governance, and monitoring solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Microsoft Entra ID Domain Services — Microsoft Entra ID Domain Services (formerly Azure AD DS) provides managed domain services such as LDAP, NTLM, and Kerberos authentication without requiring you to deploy, patch, or manage domain controllers. It integrates with your existing Microsoft Entra tenant and supports group policy, domain join, and legacy authentication protocols needed by the on-premises Windows applications being migrated to Azure VMs.
What should I do if I get this AZ-305 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.
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Question Discussion
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