As an Azure administrator, taking the Azure 104 exam is a crucial step in your career development. This exam validates your skills in implementing and managing Azure services, including virtual machines, storage, and networking.
To prepare for the exam, it's essential to understand the exam objectives, which are outlined in the exam guide. The exam guide is available on the Microsoft website and provides a detailed description of the skills and knowledge required to pass the exam.
To get started with your study plan, you'll want to familiarize yourself with the exam format, which includes a mix of multiple-choice questions and hands-on lab exercises. The exam is designed to test your ability to implement and manage Azure services, so be prepared to demonstrate your skills in a practical setting.
Study and Preparation
To prepare for the AZ-104 exam, it's essential to have access to a variety of study resources. You can consider enrolling in a boot camp tailored to the AZ-104 exam, such as the Microsoft Azure Administrator Boot Camp or the Microsoft Azure Dual Certification Boot Camp.
Practice exams can help you familiarize yourself with the exam format, identify your strengths and weaknesses, and determine which areas you need to focus on. The AZ-104 Practice Question Sets Learning Path includes a full-length practice exam.
To make the most of your study time, develop effective study habits and manage your time efficiently. Good habits include setting realistic goals, creating a study schedule, and utilizing various learning techniques like flashcards, mind maps, and practice labs. Time management is also crucial, as the exam is timed.
Here are some recommended study resources:
- Microsoft Azure Administrator Boot Camp
- Microsoft Azure Dual Certification Boot Camp
- Practice exams
- Hands-on labs
- Community forums
- Azure documentation and tools
Exam Prerequisites
To ensure you're well-prepared for the AZ-104 exam, it's essential to meet the baseline prerequisites. Microsoft recommends candidates have at least six months of hands-on experience administering Azure.
You should possess fundamental IT administration abilities like managing networking, storage, computing, data, and security components. Familiarity with operating systems and virtualization is also highly advantageous.
Prior experience with disaster recovery, budgets, and governance is beneficial, as it will help you grasp the security implications of administrative decisions. Cloud computing expands the attack surface and introduces new risks that Azure administrators must stay cognizant of.
Basic cybersecurity awareness around topics like network security, identity management, data protection, and threat detection is extremely helpful. If you don't have specific cybersecurity skills, the AZ-104 certification empowers you to securely administer Azure services and support organizational security objectives.
Study Preparation Tips
To prepare for the AZ-104 exam, it's essential to have access to a variety of study resources and employ effective preparation strategies.
Consider enrolling in a boot camp tailored to the AZ-104 exam, such as the Microsoft Azure Administrator Boot Camp or the Microsoft Azure Dual Certification Boot Camp, which covers both the AZ-104 and AZ-500 exams to enhance your security skills.
Practice exams are also crucial in familiarizing yourself with the exam format, identifying your strengths and weaknesses, and determining which areas you need to focus on. Our AZ-104 Practice Question Sets Learning Path includes a full-length practice exam.
Hands-on labs are another valuable resource, providing valuable practical experience with Azure. Microsoft offers a range of free hands-on labs that simulate real-world scenarios.
To make the most of your study time, develop effective study habits and manage your time efficiently. Good habits include setting realistic goals, creating a study schedule, and utilizing various learning techniques like flashcards, mind maps, and practice labs.
Here are some recommended study resources:
- Online courses and boot camps
- Practice exams
- Hands-on labs
- Community forums
- Azure documentation and tools
To create your own study plan, consider the following tips:
- Develop strong study habits like setting realistic goals and creating a study schedule
- Practice managing your time effectively during practice tests and while studying different domains
- Familiarize yourself with the exam format, including the number of questions, question types, and duration
Azure 104 Topics
The AZ-104 exam is a comprehensive test of your skills in administering Azure environments and implementing core solutions on the Azure platform. It's intended for individuals who carry out a broad range of administrative responsibilities involving Azure services and components.
The exam assesses your expertise in tasks such as managing Azure subscriptions and resources, implementing and managing storage, configuring virtual networks, managing Azure workloads, and monitoring and securing Azure resources. If you're familiar with foundational IT concepts, cloud computing basics, and security principles, this exam will help you solidify your expertise in Azure administration.
The exam is divided into several key domains, each focusing on specific aspects of Azure administration, including managing Azure identities and governance, implementing and managing storage, deploying and managing Azure compute resources, configuring and managing virtual networking, and monitoring and backing up Azure resources.
Exam Content
The AZ-104 exam is divided into several key domains, each focusing on specific aspects of Azure administration. These domains are: Manage Azure identities and governance, Implement and manage storage, Deploy and manage Azure compute resources, Configure and manage virtual networking, and Monitor and back up Azure resources.
The Manage Azure identities and governance domain accounts for 15-20% of the exam and focuses on handling user identities and access control within Azure. This includes Azure Active Directory (AD) concepts and configurations, managing user accounts, groups, and roles, implementing Azure AD policies and conditional access, securing identities with Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), and governance best practices for resource access control.
The Implement and manage storage domain tests your knowledge of storing data in Azure, covering various Azure storage options, configuring and managing storage accounts, implementing data access control and security, data backup and recovery strategies, and monitoring and optimizing storage performance.
The Deploy and manage Azure compute resources domain assesses your ability to provision and manage virtual machines (VMs) and other compute resources, including creating and configuring VMs using Azure portal, PowerShell, or CLI, managing VM images, discs, and network settings, scaling compute resources based on demand, implementing high availability and disaster recovery solutions, and monitoring and troubleshooting network connectivity issues.
The Configure and manage virtual networking domain covers your understanding of Azure's virtual network infrastructure, including creating and managing virtual networks, subnets, and network security groups (NSGs), configuring public and private IP addresses, implementing firewalls and access control policies, setting up VPN connections for secure remote access, and monitoring and troubleshooting network connectivity issues.
The Monitor and back up Azure resources domain assesses your ability to ensure the health and security of your Azure environment, including monitoring resource performance and usage metrics, setting up alerts and notifications for potential issues, implementing Azure Monitor and other monitoring tools, creating backups of critical data and resources, and disaster recovery planning and execution.
Here are the exam domains with their corresponding weightage and number of questions:
Ratings and Reviews
Tutorial Dojo's practice exams and study guides have been extremely helpful for students preparing for the AZ104 exam, with many users reporting a high pass rate.
The style and content of the questions on Tutorial Dojo's exams were really helpful in preparing for the exam, as they closely resembled the actual exam questions.
Many users have reported that the practice exams and study guides on Tutorial Dojo were instrumental in their success, with one user passing the exam with a good score after going over the review-mode sets several times.
The interactive nature of Tutorial Dojo's practice exams, which provide detailed explanations for incorrect answers, was a major advantage for many users, who found it more effective than just reading MS Docs.
Tutorial Dojo's practice exams have been praised for their accuracy, with one user noting that a few of the questions they had on the real exam were even identical to those on the practice exams.
One user had a minor issue with a question in the Review mode set 1, but overall they highly recommend the course and its great UI in both exam mode and review modes.
Tutorial Dojo's practice exams have been reported to be much more effective than other exam sites, with one user noting that they were able to pass the exam on the first try after using Tutorial Dojo's exams.
Name Resolution and Load Balancing
Name resolution and load balancing are crucial components of a well-functioning Azure infrastructure. You can configure Azure DNS to manage your domain names and IP addresses.
To set up load balancing, you have two options: internal or public load balancers. I've found that internal load balancers are useful for distributing traffic within a virtual network, while public load balancers are better suited for external traffic.
Azure DNS can be configured in various ways, including creating DNS zones, records, and resource records. This allows you to manage your domain names and IP addresses in a centralized location.
Troubleshooting load balancing issues can be a challenge, but there are steps you can take to resolve common problems. For example, you can check the load balancer's configuration, verify the health of your backend pool, and monitor the load balancer's performance metrics.
Here are the key steps to configure name resolution and load balancing in Azure:
- Configure Azure DNS
- Configure an internal or public load balancer
- Troubleshoot load balancing
Azure Services
Azure offers a wide range of services that cater to various needs, from computing and storage to machine learning and analytics.
Azure Virtual Machines provide a flexible and scalable way to deploy and manage virtual machines in the cloud. Azure Storage offers highly available and durable object, file, and block storage. Azure Machine Learning enables data scientists and developers to build, deploy, and manage predictive models at scale.
Azure Databricks is a fast, easy, and collaborative Apache Spark-based analytics platform optimized for Azure. Azure Cosmos DB is a globally distributed, multi-model database service that supports document, key-value, graph, and column-family data models.
Automate Deployment with ARM/Bicep
You can automate the deployment of resources using Azure Resource Manager (ARM) templates or Bicep files, which provide a structured way to create and manage resources in Azure.
ARM templates and Bicep files can be used to deploy resources, including virtual machines, storage accounts, and networking resources. You can interpret an existing template or file, modify it as needed, and then deploy it to create your desired resources.
To get started, you'll need to learn how to interpret an Azure Resource Manager template or a Bicep file, which involves understanding the syntax and structure of the template or file.
Here are the key steps involved in automating deployment with ARM/Bicep:
- Interpret an Azure Resource Manager template or a Bicep file
- Modify an existing Azure Resource Manager template or a Bicep file
- Deploy resources by using an Azure Resource Manager template or a Bicep file
- Export a deployment as an Azure Resource Manager template or convert an Azure Resource Manager template to a Bicep file
By following these steps, you can automate the deployment of your Azure resources and streamline your workflow.
Provision Containers in Portal
Provisioning containers in the Azure portal is a straightforward process. You can create and manage an Azure container registry, which is a central location for storing and managing your container images.
To provision a container, you can use Azure Container Instances, which allows you to run a single container or a group of containers in a scalable and secure environment. You can also use Azure Container Apps, which provides a managed platform for building, deploying, and managing containerized applications.
You can manage sizing and scaling for containers, including Azure Container Instances and Azure Container Apps, to ensure that your containers are running efficiently and effectively.
Here are some key benefits of using Azure Container Instances and Azure Container Apps:
- Create and manage an Azure container registry
- Provision a container by using Azure Container Instances
- Provision a container by using Azure Container Apps
- Manage sizing and scaling for containers, including Azure Container Instances and Azure Container Apps
Virtual Networks
Virtual networks are a fundamental part of Azure Services, and understanding how to configure and manage them is crucial for any Azure user.
You can create and configure virtual networks and subnets, which is the first step in setting up a secure and organized network infrastructure.
Virtual network peering allows you to connect multiple virtual networks, making it easier to communicate between them.
Here are some key tasks you can perform when configuring virtual networks:
- Create and configure virtual networks and subnets
- Create and configure virtual network peering
- Configure public IP addresses
- Configure user-defined network routes
- Troubleshoot network connectivity
By doing so, you can ensure that your virtual networks are properly set up and running smoothly, which is essential for any Azure-based application or service.
Monitor
Monitoring your Azure resources is a crucial step in ensuring their health and performance. You can interpret metrics in Azure Monitor to get a clear picture of your resources' usage and performance.
Azure Monitor allows you to configure log settings, which is essential for troubleshooting issues. This means you can set up log collection, retention, and even export logs to other services.
Querying and analyzing logs in Azure Monitor is a powerful tool for identifying trends and patterns. By leveraging this feature, you can gain valuable insights into your resources' behavior.
Setting up alert rules, action groups, and alert processing rules in Azure Monitor helps you stay on top of potential issues. This way, you can take swift action to resolve problems before they become major issues.
You can also configure and interpret monitoring of virtual machines, storage accounts, and networks by using Azure Monitor Insights. This provides a unified view of your resources' performance and health.
Azure Network Watcher and Connection Monitor are also valuable tools for monitoring your network traffic and connections. With these tools, you can identify potential issues and optimize your network performance.
Here are some key monitoring features in Azure:
- Interpret metrics in Azure Monitor
- Configure log settings in Azure Monitor
- Query and analyze logs in Azure Monitor
- Set up alert rules, action groups, and alert processing rules in Azure Monitor
- Configure and interpret monitoring of virtual machines, storage accounts, and networks by using Azure Monitor Insights
- Use Azure Network Watcher and Connection Monitor
Backup and Recovery
To implement a solid backup and recovery plan, you'll want to start by creating a Recovery Services vault. This is a crucial step in ensuring your data is safe and can be recovered in case of a disaster.
A Recovery Services vault is a centralized location where you can manage all your backup and recovery operations. By creating one, you'll be able to easily monitor and manage your backups.
You'll also want to create an Azure Backup vault, which is a secure location for storing your backed-up data. This vault will help you protect your data from accidental deletion or corruption.
Next, you'll need to create and configure a backup policy. This policy will determine how often your backups are taken and what data is included in the backups. By setting a consistent backup policy, you'll be able to ensure your data is always up-to-date.
Here are the key steps to create a backup policy:
- Create a backup policy that meets your needs
- Configure the policy to include the data you want to backup
- Set a schedule for the backups to run
By following these steps, you'll be able to create a robust backup and recovery plan that will help protect your data in case of a disaster.
Storage
Storage is a critical aspect of Azure Services, allowing you to store and manage your data with ease.
To configure access to your storage, you'll want to start by configuring Azure Storage firewalls and virtual networks. This will help control who can access your storage and from where.
You can also create and use shared access signature (SAS) tokens to grant temporary access to your storage without having to share your access keys. This is a great way to securely share files or data with others.
Another important aspect of storage configuration is stored access policies. These policies determine who can access your storage and what actions they can perform.
Access keys are also a crucial part of storage management. You can manage your access keys to ensure that they are secure and not compromised.
Identity-based access for Azure Files is also a feature worth noting. This allows you to grant access to your file shares based on user identity, rather than relying on access keys.
Here are some key storage management tasks:
- Create and configure storage accounts
- Configure Azure Storage redundancy
- Configure object replication
- Configure storage account encryption
- Manage data by using Azure Storage Explorer and AzCopy
Azure Files and Azure Blob Storage offer a range of features for storing and managing your data. You can create and configure file shares in Azure Storage, as well as containers in Blob Storage.
Storage tiers are also available to help you optimize your storage costs. You can configure storage tiers to move your data to more cost-effective storage options as needed.
Snapshots and soft delete for Azure Files are also worth noting. These features allow you to create snapshots of your file shares and recover deleted files with ease.
Blob lifecycle management and blob versioning are also available to help you manage your data over time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Azure 104 exam hard?
The Azure 104 exam is considered moderate in difficulty, requiring a good grasp of Azure services, virtual machines, and security. If you're well-prepared, you can pass this exam with confidence.
Is AZ 104 entry level?
The AZ 104 course is not entry-level, as it assumes prior knowledge in operating systems, virtualization, and networking. However, students with relevant experience can still benefit from this course.
What is Azure Administrator Associate?
An Azure Administrator Associate is a certified IT professional with expertise in implementing, managing, and monitoring Microsoft Azure environments. This certification validates their skills in deploying and maintaining scalable Azure solutions.
How much is AZ 104 Azure administrator?
The AZ 104 exam fee ranges from $165 to $330, varying by country/region, with costs in USD or local currency such as ₹4800 INR in India. Check the exam fee for your location to confirm the cost.
What is AZ-104 in Azure?
The AZ-104 certification is for Azure Administrators who implement, manage, and monitor cloud resources such as identity, storage, and virtual networks. It validates the skills to provision, size, and adjust resources in a cloud environment.
Sources
- https://www.infosecinstitute.com/resources/microsoft-azure/microsoft-azure-schedule-duration-format-scheduling-scoring-and-results/
- https://portal.tutorialsdojo.com/courses/az-104-microsoft-azure-administrator-practice-exams/
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/resources/study-guides/az-104
- https://learn.cloudlee.io/p/az-104-microsoft-azure-administrator
- https://www.cognixia.com/course/az-104-microsoft-azure-administrator/
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