AZ-900 Microsoft Azure Fundamentals Study Guide and Certification

Getting started with the AZ-900 Microsoft Azure Fundamentals certification is a great way to kickstart your cloud computing journey. This certification is designed for individuals who want to demonstrate their understanding of Azure services, pricing, and security.

To prepare for the exam, you'll need to have a good grasp of Azure fundamentals, including its core services, deployment models, and pricing options. With a strong foundation in these areas, you'll be well-prepared to tackle the exam and earn your certification.

The AZ-900 certification is a great stepping stone for those looking to advance their careers in cloud computing. By passing this exam, you'll demonstrate your ability to design, implement, and manage cloud solutions using Azure.

The AZ-900 exam is a 90-minute test that covers foundational-level knowledge of cloud services and Microsoft Azure. It's a precursor to Microsoft Azure or Microsoft cloud services exams.

You can expect to answer 40-60 questions during the exam. The passing score is 700, and the exam costs $99.00 USD.

The exam has a total of six sections, with the weightage of each section as follows:

This exam is designed for technology professionals who want to demonstrate foundational knowledge of cloud concepts and Microsoft Azure.

When studying for the az-900 exam, it's essential to have the right study materials. Microsoft offers a free Azure Fundamentals study guide, which covers the exam objectives and provides a comprehensive overview of Azure services.

The study guide is available on the Microsoft Learn platform and includes interactive modules, quizzes, and hands-on exercises to help you learn Azure concepts.

The AZ-900 Microsoft Azure Fundamentals exam is designed for technology professionals who want to demonstrate their foundational knowledge of cloud concepts and Microsoft Azure. These professionals can expect to be tested on their understanding of Azure architectural components.

Candidates for this exam are expected to have skills and experience working in areas such as infrastructure management, database management, or software development. They should be familiar with Azure services, including computing, networking, and storage.

Understanding the concepts of cloud computing is crucial for the AZ-900 Microsoft Azure Fundamentals Exam. You'll need to describe Azure architectural components and services, such as computing, networking, and storage.

Azure regions, region pairs, and sovereign regions are fundamental concepts to grasp. These regions are essentially locations where Azure datacenters are hosted, and they're used to determine the geographic location of your resources.

Azure datacenters are the physical infrastructure that hosts your cloud resources. They're essentially large buildings that house servers, storage devices, and networking equipment.

To manage your Azure resources, you'll need to understand the hierarchy of resource groups, subscriptions, and management groups. This hierarchy is used to organize and structure your resources in a logical and manageable way.

The core architectural components of Azure include Azure accounts, physical infrastructure, and management infrastructure. Azure accounts come in different types, including free and paid subscriptions, and are used to access and manage Azure resources.

Azure management infrastructure includes tools like the Azure Portal, Azure PowerShell, Azure CLI, and Azure Cloud Shell. These tools are used to create, manage, and deploy resources in Azure.

Here's a quick summary of the different types of Azure accounts:

Understanding the different types of cloud services is also essential. These services include Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS). Each of these services has its own unique characteristics and use cases.

Computing is a fundamental aspect of cloud computing, and Microsoft Azure offers a range of services to support computing needs.

Azure Virtual Machines allow you to deploy and manage virtual machines in the cloud, giving you flexibility and scalability. You can create and configure an Azure Virtual Machine to suit your needs.

Azure Virtual Desktop is a service that provides virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) in the cloud, enabling you to access virtual desktops from anywhere.

Azure Functions is a serverless compute service that allows developers to run code on-demand without managing infrastructure.

Azure Containers enable the deployment and management of containerized applications, giving you more control over your application environment.

Here are some key computing services offered by Azure:

Storage is a crucial component of Azure, offering a range of services to meet different needs. Azure Storage is a highly available and durable cloud storage solution.

Azure Storage Services include Azure Blob storage, Azure Files, Azure Queue storage, and Azure Table storage. These services provide scalable and secure storage for your data.

Azure Storage offers various storage tiers, including Hot, Cool, and Archive, each with different access frequencies and prices. Hot storage is best for frequently accessed data, while Cool and Archive are more suitable for less frequently accessed data.

Redundancy options are also available, including Locally Redundant Storage (LRS), Zone-Redundant Storage (ZRS), and Geo-Redundant Storage (GRS). This ensures that your data is protected and can be recovered in case of an outage.

Storage account options include general-purpose v2 storage accounts and block blob storage accounts. You can also choose from various storage types, such as Azure Files and Azure Blob storage.

If you need to move files, you can use AzCopy, Azure Storage Explorer, or Azure File Sync. These tools make it easy to transfer files between storage accounts or on-premises storage systems.

When migrating data to Azure, you can use Azure Migrate or Azure Data Box. These services help you move large amounts of data to Azure with minimal downtime and disruption.

Here's a summary of the storage options available in Azure:

Identity and Security is a crucial aspect of Microsoft Azure, and candidates for the AZ-900 exam need to demonstrate a solid understanding of these concepts.

Azure identity and access are built around Microsoft Entra ID and Microsoft Entra Domain Services, which provide a robust directory service.

To secure Azure resources, candidates need to know about authentication methods such as single sign-on (SSO), multi-factor authentication (MFA), and passwordless.

External identities in Azure include business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-customer (B2C) scenarios, which require specific security measures.

Microsoft Entra Conditional Access is a feature that allows administrators to control access to Azure resources based on conditions such as location, device, or user behavior.

Azure role-based access control (RBAC) is a mechanism that grants users access to specific Azure resources based on their roles and permissions.

The concept of Zero Trust is essential in Azure security, as it assumes that no user or device is trustworthy by default.

The defense-in-depth model is a security strategy that involves multiple layers of protection to prevent unauthorized access to Azure resources.

Microsoft Defender for Cloud is a service that provides threat protection and security monitoring for Azure resources.

Management and Governance is a crucial aspect of cloud computing, and Microsoft Azure has a range of features and tools to help you manage and govern your resources.

Azure provides a centralized platform for managing and deploying resources, which is known as the Azure portal. This portal allows you to monitor, manage, and maintain your resources in one place.

Azure Cloud Shell is another essential tool for managing Azure resources. It provides a command-line interface, known as Azure Command-Line Interface (CLI), and Azure PowerShell, which allow you to automate and manage your resources using scripts.

Azure Arc is a feature that allows you to extend Azure management to any infrastructure, whether it's on-premises or in other cloud environments. This enables you to manage and govern your resources across multiple environments from a single platform.

Infrastructure as code (IaC) is a best practice for managing and deploying Azure resources. It allows you to define your infrastructure using code, which can be version-controlled and reused across different environments.

Azure Resource Manager (ARM) and ARM templates are also essential tools for managing and deploying Azure resources. ARM provides a way to manage and deploy resources as a single unit, while ARM templates allow you to define and deploy resources using a template.

Here are some key features and tools for managing and deploying Azure resources:

Cost Management in Azure is crucial to avoid unexpected expenses. To estimate and optimize Azure costs, Microsoft provides two calculators: the Pricing Calculator and the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) Calculator.

Resource usage is a significant factor that can affect costs in Azure. Data transfer and storage are also major contributors to Azure expenses.

The Azure Cost Management Tool helps monitor and manage costs associated with Azure resources. This tool provides a detailed breakdown of your expenses, enabling you to make informed decisions about your resource usage.

Tags play a vital role in cost management by allowing you to categorize and track expenses across different resources. This feature enables you to optimize costs by identifying areas where you can reduce unnecessary expenses.

Here are the key factors that can affect costs in Azure:

By understanding these factors and utilizing the Pricing Calculator and TCO Calculator, you can make informed decisions to optimize your Azure costs.

To prepare for the AZ-900 exam, focus on developing a foundational knowledge of cloud concepts and Microsoft Azure. This exam is designed for technology professionals with skills and experience in areas like infrastructure management, database management, or software development.

You'll need to be able to describe Azure architectural components and services, including computing, networking, and storage. These are the building blocks of cloud computing, so make sure you understand how they work together.

To succeed, practice explaining Azure features and tools for securing, governing, and administering the platform. This will help you demonstrate your knowledge on exam day.

The AZ-900 exam is a significant step in your Microsoft Azure journey, and understanding the number of certification questions can help you prepare effectively.

The AZ-900 certification exam comprises 40-60 questions.

You'll have 90 minutes to answer these questions, which is a decent amount of time considering the number of questions.

The passing score is 700, so you'll want to make sure you're well-prepared to achieve this mark.

Here's a quick rundown of the exam details:

If you're looking to prepare for the Microsoft Azure Fundamentals exam, online video courses are an excellent resource. The Exam AZ-900 Microsoft Azure Fundamentals video, for example, offers 4 hours of video instruction.

This video is designed to help you prepare for the exam, which covers foundational-level knowledge of cloud services and how Microsoft Azure provides those services. The video focuses on the skills measured by the exam, including describing cloud concepts, Azure architecture and services, and Azure management and governance.

The instructor, Jim Cheshire, is a Microsoft expert with 25 years of experience. He shares his insights and organizes the coverage by exam objective, making the most effective use of your study and exam prep time.

The video assumes no prior knowledge of Azure or cloud services, making it a great starting point for anyone looking to learn Microsoft Azure concepts and terminology.

To prepare for the AZ-900 exam, it's essential to understand the course objectives. The certification validates your basic knowledge of cloud services and how those services are provided with Azure. This exam can be taken as an optional first step in learning about cloud services and how those concepts are exemplified by Microsoft Azure.

You'll want to focus on learning the basic concepts of cloud computing and how they are implemented in Microsoft Azure. Candidates for this exam have skills and experience working in an area of information technology, such as infrastructure management, database management, or software development.

To manage your Azure account, you'll need to learn how to manage subscriptions, billing, and access control for Azure users and groups. This includes understanding how to implement use cases and configuration options for Azure App Service and App Service environments.

With this knowledge, you'll be able to create Azure resources, such as computing, networking, and storage services. You'll also be able to describe features and tools to secure, govern, and administer Azure.

By mastering these course objectives, you'll be well-prepared to take the AZ-900 exam and demonstrate your foundational knowledge of cloud concepts and Microsoft Azure.

Using cloud services offers numerous benefits that can enhance your IT experience. High availability is one of the key advantages, achieved through redundancy and fault tolerance, which minimizes downtime and ensures continuity.

Scalability is another significant benefit, allowing you to scale up or down based on demand, providing flexibility and cost optimization. This is especially useful for businesses with fluctuating workloads.

Security is a top concern for many organizations, and cloud services provide built-in security features, data encryption, and compliance certifications. This helps protect sensitive data and ensures regulatory compliance.

Governance is also an essential aspect of cloud services, offering centralized management, policy enforcement, and auditing capabilities. This helps maintain control and accountability within your organization.

Here are the benefits of cloud services in a concise table:

By leveraging these benefits, you can create a more efficient, secure, and scalable IT infrastructure that meets your organization's needs.