AI-200 Data Management Services And Vector Search Practice Question
You are configuring vector search on an Azure AI Search index using a custom vectorizer that points to an external embedding endpoint. Which authentication method is recommended and natively supported for securely connecting Azure AI Search to the Azure OpenAI endpoint?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Managed Identity (system-assigned or user-assigned)
Azure AI Search supports managed identities (both system-assigned and user-assigned) to securely authenticate against Azure OpenAI endpoints without storing API keys.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Managed Identity (system-assigned or user-assigned)
Why this is correct
Managed Identity is the secure, recommended authentication mechanism for connecting Azure AI Search to Azure OpenAI.
- ✗
OAuth2 client credentials grant with Azure AD tenant federation
Why it's wrong here
Azure AI Search integrates natively via Azure Managed Identities rather than manual OAuth2 client credential grant flows for Azure OpenAI.
- ✗
Shared Access Signature (SAS) tokens
Why it's wrong here
SAS tokens are used for Azure Storage accounts, not Azure OpenAI endpoints.
- ✗
Basic authentication with API keys stored in index metadata
Why it's wrong here
Storing API keys in index metadata is a security anti-pattern; managed identities should be used instead.
About these practice questions
This AI-200 question is part of Courseiva's 507-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed August 2026 · checked against the official Microsoft exam blueprint
This AI-200 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Microsoft certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the AI-200 exam.