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. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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.
Your company uses GitHub for source control. The security team requires that all commits to the main branch be signed with an approved GPG key. Additionally, developers must use their corporate email for commits. You need to configure branch protection rules and repository settings to enforce these requirements. Which combination of settings 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
✓
Enable 'Require signed commits' in branch protection and use a required status check that runs a custom action to verify commit author email.
Option D is correct because GitHub branch protection rules can require signed commits, but they only verify that a commit is signed with any GPG key, not that the signer's email matches a corporate domain. To enforce the corporate email requirement, you must add a required status check that runs a custom action (e.g., using `actions-ecosystem/action-check-commit-email`) to verify the commit author email matches the corporate domain. This combination satisfies both the GPG signature and email domain requirements.
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.
✗
Configure repository to require commit signature verification via SSH keys.
Why it's wrong here
GitHub does not support SSH signature verification for commits.
✗
Enable 'Require signed commits' in branch protection rules and use a pre-receive hook to validate email domain.
Why it's wrong here
Pre-receive hooks are only available on GitHub Enterprise Server.
✗
Use a GitHub Actions workflow that checks commit signatures and email and rejects if invalid.
Why it's wrong here
Actions run after push; cannot reject push.
✓
Enable 'Require signed commits' in branch protection and use a required status check that runs a custom action to verify commit author email.
Why this is correct
Branch protection can require signed commits; a status check can validate email.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates assume 'Require signed commits' alone enforces both signature and email domain, but it only ensures the commit is signed with a verified GPG key—it does not restrict the email domain, so an additional status check is needed.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
GitHub's 'Require signed commits' branch protection rule enforces that commits must be signed with a GPG key that GitHub recognizes as verified (i.e., the key's email matches the committer email). However, it does not validate that the email belongs to a specific corporate domain; any verified GPG key (including personal keys) will pass. A custom required status check can use the GitHub API to inspect the commit's `author.email` field and compare it against a regex or allowed domain list, then return a success or failure status. This check runs after the push but before a pull request can be merged, effectively enforcing the policy.
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 cloud solutions architect for a retail company is evaluating services for a new workload. The correct answer here reflects best practice for the specific scenario described — not a general cloud recommendation. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Cloud exam questions reward reading the constraint carefully: the same technology can be right or wrong depending on the use case.
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: Enable 'Require signed commits' in branch protection and use a required status check that runs a custom action to verify commit author email. — Option D is correct because GitHub branch protection rules can require signed commits, but they only verify that a commit is signed with any GPG key, not that the signer's email matches a corporate domain. To enforce the corporate email requirement, you must add a required status check that runs a custom action (e.g., using `actions-ecosystem/action-check-commit-email`) to verify the commit author email matches the corporate domain. This combination satisfies both the GPG signature and email domain requirements.
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.
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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