AZ-400 Practice Question: Design and implement a source control strategy
This AZ-400 practice question tests your understanding of design and implement a source control strategy. 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 are setting up a new GitHub repository for a project that requires strict access control. Only specific team members should be able to push to the main branch, but all team members should be able to create branches and open pull requests. What is the best way to achieve this?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Use a branch protection rule to restrict pushes to the main branch to specific users or teams.
Branch protection rules in GitHub allow you to enforce restrictions on specific branches, such as requiring pull request reviews or restricting who can push directly. By configuring a rule for the main branch that limits push access to only designated users or teams, you ensure that all team members can create branches and open PRs, but only authorized members can merge into main. This directly meets the requirement without over-provisioning permissions or blocking collaboration.
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.
✗
Add all team members as administrators of the repository.
Why it's wrong here
Admins can bypass restrictions; not secure.
✗
Remove write permissions for non-core team members and give them read-only access.
Why it's wrong here
Read-only access prevents creating branches and PRs.
✓
Use a branch protection rule to restrict pushes to the main branch to specific users or teams.
Why this is correct
Allows branch creation but restricts pushes to main.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Set the repository to private and invite only core team members.
Why it's wrong here
Does not restrict pushes to main specifically.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse restricting push access with removing write permissions entirely, not realizing that branch protection rules allow granular control over specific branches while preserving write-level collaboration on other branches.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Branch protection rules are enforced server-side by GitHub's Git hooks and are evaluated before any push is accepted; they can be configured to require status checks, dismiss stale reviews, or restrict push access via the 'Restrict who can push to matching branches' setting. This setting uses GitHub's permission model, where users or teams must have write or higher access to the repository to be eligible for inclusion in the restriction list. In a real-world scenario, you might combine this with a CODEOWNERS file to enforce mandatory reviews from specific teams before merging into main.
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-400 question in full detail.
Design and implement a source control strategy — This question tests Design and implement a source control strategy — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use a branch protection rule to restrict pushes to the main branch to specific users or teams. — Branch protection rules in GitHub allow you to enforce restrictions on specific branches, such as requiring pull request reviews or restricting who can push directly. By configuring a rule for the main branch that limits push access to only designated users or teams, you ensure that all team members can create branches and open PRs, but only authorized members can merge into main. This directly meets the requirement without over-provisioning permissions or blocking collaboration.
What should I do if I get this AZ-400 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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