AZ-104 is Microsoft's associate-level Azure Administrator exam. Unlike the fundamentals exam, it assumes you can actually manage identities, storage, compute, virtual networking, and monitoring in the Azure portal and with the CLI.
What the exam covers
- Manage Azure identities and governance (Microsoft Entra ID, RBAC, subscriptions, policy).
- Implement and manage storage (storage accounts, blobs, files, lifecycle, replication).
- Deploy and manage compute resources (virtual machines, scale sets, containers, App Service).
- Implement and manage virtual networking (VNets, peering, NSGs, load balancing, DNS).
- Monitor and maintain Azure resources (Azure Monitor, alerts, backup, recovery).
Build, then break
The fastest way to prepare is to build each service, then deliberately misconfigure it and fix it. Create a virtual network with two subnets, peer it to a second network, and lock it down with a network security group. Deploy a VM, attach a managed disk, and configure backup.
Learn the CLI and PowerShell basics
Many tasks can be done in the portal, but the exam expects you to recognise equivalent commands. Get comfortable with a handful of Azure CLI commands; you do not need to memorise everything, just understand the patterns.
Focus on governance
RBAC, Azure Policy, resource locks, and cost management are heavily tested because they are the difference between a working environment and a governed one. Know how a role assignment inherits down a scope.
Suggested four-week plan
- Week 1: Identities, governance, and subscriptions.
- Week 2: Storage accounts and data protection.
- Week 3: Compute, containers, and virtual networking.
- Week 4: Monitoring, backup, and timed practice runs.
Treat every practice question as a lab task: if you cannot explain how you would implement the correct answer in the portal, revisit that topic.
