AZ-400 Design and implement source control Practice Question
You are an Azure DevOps engineer at a software company that uses a single Azure Repos Git repository for a product with two independent release trains: a web front end and a backend API. You need to enforce that pull requests targeting the release branch for each train require approval from a different set of reviewers, and you must be able to report on policy compliance separately for each train. What should you configure?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that a wildcard branch policy on release/* or a path-based policy can enforce different reviewer groups per branch, when only per-branch policies provide that separation.
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
✓
Enable required reviewers on each release branch individually using the branch name, and assign the appropriate reviewer group to each policy.
Separate required-reviewer policies on each specific release branch allow different reviewer groups to be assigned to the web and API trains while keeping policy status and compliance reporting distinct per branch. Wildcard policies, path-based policies, and main-branch policies all fail to scope the approval requirement to each release train independently.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Enable required reviewers on each release branch individually using the branch name, and assign the appropriate reviewer group to each policy.
Why this is correct
Configuring a separate required-reviewer policy on each specific release branch lets you attach the correct reviewer group to the web train and a different group to the API train. Because each branch has its own policy object, Azure DevOps reports policy status and compliance independently for each branch, satisfying both the approval and reporting requirements without affecting unrelated branches.
- ✗
Configure a single required reviewer policy on the main branch and rely on branch hierarchy inheritance to apply it to the release branches.
Why it's wrong here
Azure Repos branch policies do not inherit down a branch hierarchy from main to release branches. A policy on main only governs pull requests targeting main. The release branches would remain unprotected unless you explicitly configure policies on them, and a single policy could not enforce different reviewer groups for the two trains.
- ✗
Create a path-based required reviewer policy on the folders that contain the web and API source code.
Why it's wrong here
Path-based required reviewers apply when files under a given folder change in a pull request, regardless of the target branch. The web and API code can be changed by pull requests targeting either release branch, so this approach does not cleanly separate approvals by release train and does not scope the requirement to the intended target branches.
- ✗
Create a branch policy on the release/* wildcard path with a required reviewer group that contains all reviewers for both trains.
Why it's wrong here
A wildcard branch policy applies the same reviewer set to every matching release branch, so it cannot require different reviewers for the web and API trains. It also collapses compliance reporting into a single policy, preventing separate reporting per train. The scenario explicitly needs distinct reviewers and separate compliance reporting, so a shared wildcard policy does not meet the requirement.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Designing a Security and Compliance Plan
Key term
Branch
A branch is a pointer to a specific commit in a version control system that allows you to work on features or fixes in isolation from the main codebase.
Key term
Repository
A repository is a central storage location where software packages, code, or configuration files are kept, managed, and distributed for use by IT systems.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Microsoft exam blueprint
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