AZ-104
Microsoft Azure Administrator
Microsoft Azure Administrator AZ-104 Exam Guide
The AZ-104: Microsoft Azure Administrator exam validates practical ability to implement, manage, secure, and monitor Azure environments across identity, governance, storage, compute, networking, and operational maintenance. It is intended for administrators who work with Azure infrastructure as part of a broader technical team, especially candidates familiar with operating systems, networking, virtualization, PowerShell, Azure CLI, the Azure portal, and Microsoft Entra ID. This guide helps you decide whether to begin with fundamentals, follow Microsoft’s learning paths, use instructor-led training, or schedule the exam after targeted hands-on practice.
What the AZ-104 certification validates
AZ-104 leads to the Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate certification, an intermediate-level Azure credential for the Administrator role. The exam tests whether you can configure and operate common Azure services rather than merely recognize product names or repeat definitions.
Microsoft describes the Azure administrator as someone who configures, manages, secures, and administers key professional functions in Microsoft Azure. The role commonly sits within a larger team and coordinates with networking, security, database, application development, and DevOps specialists.
The assessed environment includes virtual networks, storage, compute, identity, security, and governance. In practical terms, preparation should connect each service to an administrative decision: who receives access, where data is stored, how a workload is deployed, how traffic is controlled, and how failures or abnormal behavior are detected.
The certification page classifies the credential as Intermediate, with Azure as the product and Administrator as the role. Microsoft states that associate, expert, and specialty certifications expire annually; the Azure Administrator certification has a 12-month renewal frequency. Renewal is handled through Microsoft Learn’s online assessment process rather than by treating the original exam as a permanent credential. Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/azure-administrator/
Who should take this exam
The best-fit candidate already supports or is preparing to support Azure infrastructure and wants a structured measure of administrator-level capability. The exam is a reasonable target for IT operations staff, system engineers, cloud technologists, and administrators moving from on-premises infrastructure into Azure.
Microsoft’s audience profile expects subject-matter expertise in implementing, managing, and monitoring an organization’s Azure environment. Relevant familiarity includes operating systems, networking, servers, and virtualization. Microsoft also lists experience with PowerShell, Azure CLI, the Azure portal, Azure Resource Manager templates or Bicep files, and Microsoft Entra ID.
Do not treat the word “administrator” as evidence that the exam is only about portal clicks. A capable candidate should understand resource organization, permissions, network paths, storage choices, compute configuration, backup, monitoring, and the operational consequences of changing a setting. The exam can expose gaps between knowing a service exists and being able to select or configure it appropriately.
Microsoft’s AZ-104 course profile adds useful background areas: virtual machines, virtual networking, virtual hard disks, TCP/IP, DNS, VPNs, firewalls, encryption, Active Directory concepts, role-based access control, backup, and restore. If several of these are unfamiliar, begin with the prerequisite learning path before attempting advanced practice. Sources: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/azure-administrator/ and https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/courses/az-104t00
What skills are measured
The study guide lists five assessed domains. Use the domain names with their weights when planning study time: Manage Azure identities and governance (20–25%), Implement and manage storage (15–20%), Deploy and manage Azure compute resources (20–25%), Implement and manage virtual networking (15–20%), and Monitor and maintain Azure resources (10–15%).
The two largest weighted ranges are Manage Azure identities and governance (20–25%) and Deploy and manage Azure compute resources (20–25%). That does not make the other areas optional: Implement and manage storage (15–20%), Implement and manage virtual networking (15–20%), and Monitor and maintain Azure resources (10–15%) together represent a substantial part of the assessment.
Microsoft’s exam-readiness episode breaks the identity and governance domain into managing Microsoft Entra ID users and groups, managing access to Azure resources, and managing Azure subscriptions and governance. The episode identifies Manage Azure identities and governance (20–25%) as the first of five high-level topics.
The study guide is the controlling reference for the detailed skill bullets and version-specific objectives. Microsoft updates exams periodically to reflect role requirements and provides two versions of the skills measured objectives depending on when a candidate takes the exam. Review the version that applies to your appointment instead of relying on an old outline.
Most questions cover generally available features. The study guide notes that preview features may appear when they are commonly used. This is a reason to study stable administrative concepts and current Microsoft Learn material, not to chase every preview service. Sources: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/resources/study-guides/az-104 and https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/shows/exam-readiness-zone/preparing-for-az-104-manage-azure-identities-and-governance-1-of-5
Manage Azure identities and governance
Build a clear model of Microsoft Entra identities, groups, Azure RBAC, subscriptions, governance, policy, and resource organization. Practice explaining the difference between authenticating a person, authorizing access to an Azure resource, and enforcing an organizational standard.
The Microsoft Learn identity and governance path covers Microsoft Entra ID, identity creation and management, Azure architecture, Azure Policy initiatives, Azure RBAC, and self-service password reset. Work through it by implementing small scenarios rather than reading every module passively.
A useful exercise is to design access for an administrator, a workload identity, and a read-only auditor. Record the scope at which each assignment applies and the minimum role required. Then add a policy requirement and determine how compliance would be assessed. This forces you to separate identity, authorization, and governance decisions.
The readiness video is particularly useful after your first study pass because it maps the domain to the exam objectives and highlights the relationship among users, groups, access, subscriptions, and governance. Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/paths/az-104-manage-identities-governance/
Implement and manage storage
Study storage as a set of workload decisions: the type of data, access pattern, redundancy requirement, security boundary, lifecycle, and recovery expectation. You should be able to explain why one storage configuration fits a scenario better than another, not simply identify storage terminology.
Use Microsoft’s AZ-104 learning sequence to cover storage services and then create a small comparison sheet. Include the service or feature, intended data pattern, access method, security control, redundancy consideration, and administrative task. Keep the sheet focused on decisions that an administrator would make during deployment or maintenance.
For hands-on work, create a storage resource, apply an access configuration, upload and retrieve test data, inspect monitoring information, and remove the resource when finished. Repeat the exercise through the portal and one command-line method where practical. The objective is to recognize the settings and understand their effect, not to memorize a sequence of interface labels.
Include backup and recovery in this domain’s operational thinking. A storage design is incomplete if you cannot state what is protected, how restoration would be approached, and which assumptions still need validation in the workload’s recovery plan. Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/paths/az-104-administrator-prerequisites/
Deploy and manage Azure compute resources
Compute preparation should cover the lifecycle of Azure virtual machines, web apps, containers, and related infrastructure. Concentrate on choosing an appropriate deployment model, configuring the resource, scaling or resizing it, securing access, and diagnosing a failed or unsuitable deployment.
The official AZ-104 course includes subscriptions, infrastructure, virtual machines, web apps, containers, and monitoring. Turn that breadth into repeatable labs: deploy a workload, change a configuration, apply access controls, observe its behavior, and then decommission it. Keep notes on dependencies such as networking, disks, identities, and availability requirements.
Practice reading a scenario before selecting a service. A question may be testing the distinction between the workload’s hosting model, the administration required, the scaling approach, or the way the service integrates with the surrounding network. Start by writing the requirement in plain language, then list the constraints before considering a product.
Infrastructure as code deserves deliberate practice. The prerequisite path includes deploying Azure infrastructure with JSON ARM templates, while the certification profile lists ARM templates or Bicep files. Build or modify a small deployment definition and identify which values should be parameters, which resources depend on others, and how a repeatable deployment differs from manual configuration. Sources: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/courses/az-104t00 and https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/paths/az-104-administrator-prerequisites/
Implement and manage virtual networking
Networking questions become easier when you trace traffic from source to destination and name every control that can allow, deny, route, or expose it. Prepare virtual networks, subnets, addressing, network security, name resolution, connectivity, traffic management, and connections between Azure and on-premises environments.
Refresh TCP/IP, DNS, VPNs, firewalls, and encryption before beginning detailed Azure networking work. Microsoft identifies these as relevant background. Without that foundation, it is easy to memorize Azure features while missing the actual cause of a connectivity problem.
For each lab, draw the topology first. Mark the virtual network, subnet, address range, workload, inbound and outbound path, security rules, name-resolution path, and any connection to another network. Then test the intended path and an explicitly blocked path. Record which control produced the result.
Do not study networking as a collection of isolated services. Compare the scope and purpose of each control, and ask whether the requirement concerns segmentation, routing, filtering, name resolution, private access, or site connectivity. This method is more reliable than remembering which feature appeared in a particular tutorial. Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/courses/az-104t00
Monitor and maintain Azure resources
The monitoring domain carries the smallest published range, but it is central to administration because monitoring, backup, and maintenance span the other domains. Learn how to identify resource health, interpret metrics and logs, configure alerts, protect workloads, and respond to operational changes.
Build a simple operational checklist for every lab: what should be measured, what constitutes an alert, where logs are reviewed, what is backed up, how restoration is verified, and which permissions are needed to perform the action. This turns monitoring from a final chapter into a habit applied throughout preparation.
Use failure-oriented practice. Stop or misconfigure a test resource, inspect the available evidence, and work backward to a likely cause. Then restore the intended state and document the diagnostic path. Avoid creating expensive or long-running resources; use the smallest practical lab and remove it when the exercise ends.
The certification page provides an exam sandbox, practice assessment, and AZ-104 preparation videos. Use the sandbox to learn the interface and question interaction, but use your own labs and Microsoft Learn objectives to develop the technical judgment the assessment measures. Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/azure-administrator/
How to choose a preparation route
Choose self-paced learning when you can maintain a regular lab schedule and diagnose gaps independently. Choose instructor-led training when you need a fixed sequence, live clarification, or external accountability. In either case, use the official skills outline as the checklist and hands-on work as the proof that you can apply it.
Microsoft’s AZ-104 learning series includes prerequisite, identity and governance, storage, compute, virtual networking, and monitoring and backup paths. This sequence is a sensible default because it moves from Azure foundations into the assessed operational areas.
The AZ-104T00-A course is available for instructor-led or self-directed study and is listed with a 4-day duration. Treat that as a course delivery detail, not as a guaranteed amount of preparation time. A candidate with production Azure experience may need less additional study than someone learning cloud administration for the first time.
A practical decision rule is to take a baseline practice assessment after reviewing the domains. If you miss foundational terminology, return to prerequisites. If you understand the terminology but cannot complete a task, schedule a focused lab. If you can complete tasks but cannot explain trade-offs, practice scenario analysis and review the relevant skill bullets.
Microsoft’s prerequisite path points learners toward Azure fundamentals covering cloud concepts, architecture and services, and management and governance. It also provides an option to pay as you go or try Azure free for up to 30 days; verify current account terms before creating a lab environment. Sources: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/paths/az-104-administrator-prerequisites/ and https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/courses/az-104t00
A practical AZ-104 study roadmap
A useful roadmap has four passes: establish foundations, build each domain, integrate the services in scenarios, and verify readiness against the official objectives. Adjust the calendar to your experience, but do not skip the diagnostic and review stages merely to reach a booking date.
Pass one: read the audience profile and detailed skills measured, then complete the prerequisite material if Azure architecture, networking, identity, or resource management is weak. Create a glossary in your own words and note every concept that you cannot explain without looking it up.
Pass two: study the five domains in the published sequence or in the order that matches your weakest areas. For each domain, complete a lab, repeat the task through a second management method where possible, and write a short explanation of the settings you changed. Include portal, Azure CLI, PowerShell, and ARM template or Bicep exposure across the whole plan rather than forcing every task into every tool.
Pass three: combine domains in scenarios. For example, design a workload that requires an identity, a governed subscription, storage, compute, a network path, monitoring, and backup. Deploy only a modest test version. Then change one requirement—such as access scope, network exposure, or recovery expectation—and explain what must change and what must remain unchanged.
Pass four: take the Microsoft practice assessment and review every uncertain answer, including answers you guessed correctly. Use the result to make a short gap list. Return to the exact Microsoft Learn module or skill bullet connected to each gap, perform a confirming task, and retest later rather than immediately repeating the same questions.
Finish with the exam sandbox and a one-page review sheet containing domain names, service distinctions, permission concepts, network controls, recovery steps, and command or template patterns you routinely forget. The sheet should prompt understanding; it should not become a substitute for hands-on practice or an attempt to memorize unauthorized exam content. Sources: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/resources/study-guides/az-104 and https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/azure-administrator/
Where candidates commonly lose preparation time
The most avoidable mistake is treating the portal as the entire exam. Azure administration also involves command-line tools, templates, permissions, dependencies, monitoring, and operational reasoning. Include at least one non-portal workflow for each major area you study.
Another mistake is learning services in isolation. A virtual machine may depend on identity, disks, a subnet, security rules, monitoring, and backup. A storage decision may involve access, governance, redundancy, and recovery. Build integrated scenarios so you can reason about consequences rather than recognize disconnected definitions.
Do not over-focus on the largest percentage ranges. Manage Azure identities and governance (20–25%) and Deploy and manage Azure compute resources (20–25%) deserve substantial attention, but Implement and manage storage (15–20%), Implement and manage virtual networking (15–20%), and Monitor and maintain Azure resources (10–15%) remain assessed domains.
Avoid relying on old exam announcements, outdated videos, or unverified question collections. Microsoft says exams are updated periodically, and the study guide identifies the skills measured as of April 17, 2026. Use the current study guide and linked Microsoft Learn material as your source of truth.
Do not confuse a passing score with mastery of every service. Microsoft states that a score of 700 or greater is required to pass, but preparation should still target reliable performance across the blueprint. A narrow strategy that ignores one domain can create a serious readiness gap.
Finally, do not create a lab without a cleanup plan. Track resources, permissions, and any network exposure. Delete test resources when the exercise is complete and keep only the notes or templates needed for later review.
How to schedule and prepare for delivery
Schedule from the Microsoft certification page through the available exam provider, then confirm the language, location, delivery option, identity details, and appointment rules before finalizing. Microsoft recommends registering with a personal Microsoft account so certification records are not lost if an organizational account becomes unavailable.
Microsoft states that certification exams can generally be taken online or at a local test center, subject to provider availability. If you choose an online appointment, run the provider’s system pre-check and make sure the testing area and computer meet the stated security requirements. A test center may suit candidates who prefer a configured environment.
You can schedule certification exams no more than 90 days in advance. Microsoft’s registration instructions also state that, through Pearson VUE, a maximum of two Microsoft Certification exams can be scheduled at a time. Check the scheduling page for the provider-specific rules that apply to your appointment.
Request accommodations before scheduling if you need assistive devices, extra time, or another modification. The provider needs time to review the request and confirm that the delivery environment supports it. If your preferred exam language is unavailable, the study guide says you can request an additional 30 minutes; confirm the current process during registration.
The certification page lists AZ-104 in English, Chinese (Simplified), Korean, Japanese, French, Spanish, German, Portuguese (Brazil), Chinese (Traditional), and Italian. Microsoft notes that English updates first and localized versions may not always be updated on the same schedule. Check the Schedule Exam section for the language and version available to you.
The certification page states that you will have 100 minutes to complete the assessment and that the exam is proctored. Microsoft also provides an exam sandbox showing the look and feel of the exam. Use it before appointment day to become familiar with the interaction model rather than spending preparation time trying to predict live questions. Sources: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/register-schedule-exam, https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/resources/study-guides/az-104, and https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/azure-administrator/
What to do in the final review
The final review should confirm decisions and procedures, not introduce a large new collection of services. Recheck each skill domain, complete one short task in your weakest area, and verify that your account, language, delivery method, accommodation status, and appointment details are correct.
Use a readiness checklist with five lines, one for each official domain. Beside each line, write the tasks you can perform without notes and the concepts you still need to explain. A blank or vague entry is a signal to study; a list of product names is not evidence of readiness.
Review access and governance together, then storage and recovery, then compute dependencies, then network paths, and finally monitoring evidence. This order mirrors the way an administrator often investigates a workload: establish who and what is allowed, confirm data and compute, trace connectivity, and inspect health or backup information.
Keep the last study session controlled. Read the current study guide, review your own lab notes, and use the sandbox if you have not already done so. Do not substitute exam dumps or leaked-question claims for preparation; they are not a reliable measure of current skills and do not replace the ability to administer Azure safely.
If you do not pass, Microsoft’s certification page states that you can retake the exam 24 hours after the first attempt; subsequent retake timing varies. Use the score report and your domain checklist to identify the next study action instead of immediately repeating the same preparation routine. Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/azure-administrator/
Your next actions
Start by opening the current AZ-104 study guide and recording the five domain names, their published weights, and the detailed bullets for the version relevant to your appointment. Then compare those bullets with your actual Azure experience and mark each area as practiced, familiar, or new.
If the fundamentals are weak, begin with the prerequisite learning path. If identity and governance are your largest gap, use the six-module identity and governance path and follow it with a small RBAC and policy lab. If you already administer Azure, begin with a practice assessment and let its report determine the order of your review.
Create one integrated lab plan covering an identity, a governed resource, storage, compute, network connectivity, monitoring, and backup. Write down the success condition before deploying anything. Afterward, remove test resources and retain the deployment notes, command examples, and troubleshooting observations.
Once your gaps are closed, use the Microsoft exam sandbox, confirm delivery requirements, and schedule through the certification page when your preparation and appointment constraints align. Keep checking the official study guide for updates because exam content and localized versions can change.
The strongest preparation record is not a pile of copied notes. It is a small set of repeatable tasks, clear explanations of administrative trade-offs, and a current checklist mapped directly to the AZ-104 skills measured.
Conclusion
AZ-104 preparation is a decision about demonstrated administration ability, not a memorization exercise. Use the current Microsoft blueprint to set priorities, build hands-on capability across all five domains, and verify weak areas with practice assessment results and targeted labs. Before scheduling, confirm the current delivery, language, accommodation, and account requirements on Microsoft Learn. That process gives you a defensible readiness decision and a practical foundation for maintaining Azure environments after the exam.
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