This AZ-400 practice question tests your understanding of design and implement a source control strategy. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 organization uses GitHub and wants to implement a monorepo strategy for multiple related projects. Which approach best optimizes CI/CD pipeline performance by only building projects that have changed?
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.
Use a single workflow that builds all projects on every push
Why wrong: Inefficient for monorepos.
Use submodules to separate projects
Why wrong: Adds complexity and separate repos.
Use workflow templates and composite actions
Why wrong: Reusability, not optimization.
Use path filters in GitHub Actions workflows
Triggers only for changed paths.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Use path filters in GitHub Actions workflows
Option D is correct because GitHub Actions path filters (using `on.push.paths` or `on.pull_request.paths`) allow you to trigger workflows only when changes are made to specific directories or files. In a monorepo, this ensures that CI/CD pipelines run exclusively for the projects that have been modified, avoiding unnecessary builds and significantly improving performance.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
Use a single workflow that builds all projects on every push
Why it's wrong here
Inefficient for monorepos.
Use submodules to separate projects
Why it's wrong here
Adds complexity and separate repos.
Use workflow templates and composite actions
Why it's wrong here
Reusability, not optimization.
Use path filters in GitHub Actions workflows
Why this is correct
Triggers only for changed paths.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates confuse workflow reuse mechanisms (templates, composite actions) with conditional execution, or assume submodules are the standard monorepo approach, when in fact path filters are the native and efficient way to achieve selective builds in GitHub Actions.
Detailed technical explanation
Path filters in GitHub Actions evaluate the diff of a push or pull request against the base branch, using glob patterns to match file paths. Under the hood, the `paths` filter checks the list of changed files; if none match the specified patterns, the workflow is skipped entirely (status: 'skipped'). This is especially valuable in large monorepos with dozens of projects, where a single commit might touch only one component, and you want to avoid triggering tests or deployments for unrelated services.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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.
What to study next
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FAQ
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..
The correct answer is: Use path filters in GitHub Actions workflows — Option D is correct because GitHub Actions path filters (using `on.push.paths` or `on.pull_request.paths`) allow you to trigger workflows only when changes are made to specific directories or files. In a monorepo, this ensures that CI/CD pipelines run exclusively for the projects that have been modified, avoiding unnecessary builds and significantly improving performance.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 25, 2026
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