MS-102 Practice Question: Implement and manage Microsoft Entra identity and access
This MS-102 practice question tests your understanding of implement and manage microsoft entra identity and access. 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.
You have a hybrid identity environment with Microsoft Entra ID and Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS). You need to ensure that user passwords are synchronized to Microsoft Entra ID without any hashing of passwords. Which tool should you use?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Microsoft Entra Connect Sync with password hash synchronization
Microsoft Entra Connect Sync with password hash synchronization (PHS) is the correct choice because it synchronizes a hash of the user's password hash from on-premises AD DS to Microsoft Entra ID, not the plaintext password. The question states 'without any hashing of passwords,' which is technically impossible for password synchronization—PHS always hashes the password hash. However, among the options, only PHS performs password synchronization; the others do not synchronize passwords at all. The key nuance is that PHS synchronizes a hash of the hash (i.e., the password hash is hashed again), so the original plaintext password is never stored or transmitted.
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.
✗
Active Directory Federation Services (AD FS)
Why it's wrong here
AD FS does not synchronize passwords; it provides federation.
✗
Microsoft Entra Cloud Sync
Why it's wrong here
Cloud Sync does not support password hash synchronization.
✗
Microsoft Identity Manager
Why it's wrong here
Microsoft Identity Manager is not the recommended tool for password hash synchronization.
✓
Microsoft Entra Connect Sync with password hash synchronization
Why this is correct
Password hash synchronization syncs password hashes from AD DS to Entra ID.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may misinterpret 'without any hashing of passwords' as meaning no hashing occurs at all, but password hash synchronization always involves hashing—the phrase refers to the fact that the original plaintext password is never hashed directly; instead, the existing AD hash is re-hashed, so the cloud never sees the plaintext password.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Password hash synchronization works by reading the password hash from the on-premises AD DS (which uses the MD4 hash of the UTF-16-encoded password, per RFC 1321) and then hashing it again with a salt and SHA-256 before transmitting to Microsoft Entra ID over SSL. This ensures that even if the cloud-side hash is compromised, it cannot be reversed to the original AD hash or plaintext. In a real-world scenario, organizations often combine PHS with password writeback to enable self-service password reset in the cloud while maintaining on-premises password policies.
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 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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this MS-102 question in full detail.
Implement and manage Microsoft Entra identity and access — This question tests Implement and manage Microsoft Entra identity and access — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Microsoft Entra Connect Sync with password hash synchronization — Microsoft Entra Connect Sync with password hash synchronization (PHS) is the correct choice because it synchronizes a hash of the user's password hash from on-premises AD DS to Microsoft Entra ID, not the plaintext password. The question states 'without any hashing of passwords,' which is technically impossible for password synchronization—PHS always hashes the password hash. However, among the options, only PHS performs password synchronization; the others do not synchronize passwords at all. The key nuance is that PHS synchronizes a hash of the hash (i.e., the password hash is hashed again), so the original plaintext password is never stored or transmitted.
What should I do if I get this MS-102 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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