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 team uses GitHub and wants to enforce that all commits to the main branch are signed with a GPG key. Which branch protection rule should you configure?
Require pull request reviews before merging.
Why wrong: Does not enforce commit signing.
Require status checks to pass before merging.
Why wrong: Status checks are for CI, not signing.
Require linear history.
Why wrong: Prevents merge commits, does not enforce signing.
Require signed commits.
Enforces GPG or S/MIME signing on every commit.
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 the 'Require signed commits' branch protection rule enforces that every commit pushed to the protected branch must be signed with a GPG key. This ensures cryptographic verification of the commit author's identity, directly addressing the requirement to enforce signed commits on the main branch.
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.
Require pull request reviews before merging.
Why it's wrong here
Does not enforce commit signing.
Require status checks to pass before merging.
Why it's wrong here
Status checks are for CI, not signing.
Require linear history.
Why it's wrong here
Prevents merge commits, does not enforce signing.
Require signed commits.
Why this is correct
Enforces GPG or S/MIME signing on every commit.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates confuse 'Require signed commits' with 'Require status checks to pass before merging', mistakenly thinking a CI status check can enforce signing, but GitHub's built-in rule is the only way to natively reject unsigned commits at the server level.
Detailed technical explanation
Git uses GPG (GNU Privacy Guard) to sign commits with a private key, and the corresponding public key is uploaded to GitHub to verify the signature. When 'Require signed commits' is enabled, GitHub rejects any unsigned commit or commit with an invalid signature, even if the user has push access. This is critical in regulated environments (e.g., SOC 2, PCI DSS) where non-repudiation and audit trails are mandatory.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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.
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 the 'Require signed commits' branch protection rule enforces that every commit pushed to the protected branch must be signed with a GPG key. This ensures cryptographic verification of the commit author's identity, directly addressing the requirement to enforce signed commits on the main branch.
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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