The answer is an expired health attestation certificate. When a hybrid Azure AD joined Windows 10 device shows as noncompliant in Intune despite having all required compliance policies applied, the most likely cause is that the device’s health attestation certificate has expired. Intune relies on the Windows Health Attestation Service (HAS) to verify device integrity; without a valid certificate, the device cannot prove its health status, so Intune marks it noncompliant even when policies are correctly assigned. On the MD-102 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how compliance evaluation depends on attestation data, not just policy assignment—a common trap is to focus on policy misconfiguration rather than certificate lifecycle. Remember: a device can be fully policy-compliant on paper but fail attestation if its certificate is stale. Memory tip: think “HAS expired” as in “health attestation status expired”—if the cert is old, the device is told.
MD-102 Manage and maintain devices Practice Question
This MD-102 practice question tests your understanding of manage and maintain devices. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 troubleshooting a Windows 10 device that shows as 'Noncompliant' in Intune despite having all required compliance policies applied. The device is domain-joined and configured with hybrid Azure AD join. What is the most likely cause?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The device's health attestation certificate has expired.
A device that is hybrid Azure AD joined and domain-joined but shows as 'Noncompliant' in Intune, despite having all required compliance policies applied, is most likely failing compliance due to an expired health attestation certificate. Intune uses Windows Health Attestation Service (HAS) to verify device integrity; if the attestation certificate has expired, the device cannot prove its health status, causing it to be marked noncompliant even when policies are correctly assigned.
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.
✗
The Intune Management Extension is not installed.
Why it's wrong here
This extension is not required for compliance evaluation.
✗
The device is not registered in Microsoft Entra ID.
Why it's wrong here
Hybrid join registers the device with Entra ID.
✓
The device's health attestation certificate has expired.
Why this is correct
Expired health attestation can cause noncompliance.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
The device is not enrolled in Intune.
Why it's wrong here
Hybrid Azure AD joined devices are automatically enrolled in Intune.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume noncompliance is due to missing enrollment or registration, but the question explicitly states the device is hybrid joined and enrolled, so the real issue is a stale or expired health attestation certificate that prevents the compliance check from completing.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Windows Health Attestation uses a TPM-backed certificate to report boot integrity, Secure Boot status, and BitLocker state to the Intune compliance service. When this certificate expires (typically after 30 days if not refreshed), the device cannot provide a valid attestation report, causing the compliance status to flip to 'Noncompliant' even if all other policy settings are satisfied. Administrators can verify this by checking the device's HealthAttestationStatus in the registry or using the Get-Tpm cmdlet.
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 MD-102 question in full detail.
Manage and maintain devices — This question tests Manage and maintain devices — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The device's health attestation certificate has expired. — A device that is hybrid Azure AD joined and domain-joined but shows as 'Noncompliant' in Intune, despite having all required compliance policies applied, is most likely failing compliance due to an expired health attestation certificate. Intune uses Windows Health Attestation Service (HAS) to verify device integrity; if the attestation certificate has expired, the device cannot prove its health status, causing it to be marked noncompliant even when policies are correctly assigned.
What should I do if I get this MD-102 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: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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