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.
Your team uses Azure Repos and wants to enforce that all commits to the release branch must be signed using GPG. Which branch policy should you enable?
Limit merge types
Why wrong: This restricts merge methods like squash or rebase.
Check for linked work items
Why wrong: This ensures work items are linked, not signing.
Require a minimum number of reviewers
Why wrong: This controls approvals, not signing.
Require signed commits
This policy enforces GPG or S/MIME signing.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Require signed commits
Option D is correct because Azure Repos branch policies include a 'Require signed commits' setting that enforces GPG signature verification on all commits pushed to the branch. When enabled, any commit without a valid GPG signature is rejected, ensuring the integrity and authenticity of the commit author.
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.
Limit merge types
Why it's wrong here
This restricts merge methods like squash or rebase.
Check for linked work items
Why it's wrong here
This ensures work items are linked, not signing.
Require a minimum number of reviewers
Why it's wrong here
This controls approvals, not signing.
Require signed commits
Why this is correct
This policy enforces GPG or S/MIME signing.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates may confuse 'Require signed commits' with other authentication or authorization policies, such as requiring reviewers or limiting merge types, because all are listed under branch policy settings but serve entirely different security purposes.
Detailed technical explanation
GPG signing uses a private key to create a digital signature that is attached to the commit object; Azure Repos verifies the signature against the public key uploaded to the user's Azure DevOps profile. This policy operates at the push level, meaning even direct pushes (not just PR merges) are blocked if commits lack valid signatures. In practice, this is critical for compliance scenarios (e.g., SOC 2, FedRAMP) where non-repudiation of code changes is required.
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: Require signed commits — Option D is correct because Azure Repos branch policies include a 'Require signed commits' setting that enforces GPG signature verification on all commits pushed to the branch. When enabled, any commit without a valid GPG signature is rejected, ensuring the integrity and authenticity of the commit author.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 25, 2026
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