Azure AZ-104 Guide: Administrator

This section targets Microsoft Azure Administrator AZ-104, the operations-heavy Azure exam for identity, access control, storage, compute, networking, monitoring, backup, and day-two Azure operations. The guide is organized around the decisions administrators actually make under pressure: which scope to use, which control plane tool enforces the rule, which private-access pattern fits, and which monitoring or recovery action gives the fastest operational signal.

RBAC: Role-based access control for Azure resource actions at management-group, subscription, resource-group, or resource scope.

SSPR: Self-service password reset for Microsoft Entra users.

SAS: Shared Access Signature, which delegates time-limited access to storage data.

ACR: Azure Container Registry for storing and distributing container images.

Current exam facts

As of March 28, 2026, Microsoft’s certification page says AZ-104:

If you are building from scratch, start with the study plan and then work through Identities & Governance, Storage, Compute, Networking, and Monitoring & Recovery. Use the cheat sheet for last-mile review, the glossary when terms blur together, the FAQ for exam logistics, and the resources page for Microsoft Learn and official certification references.

Coverage map against the current study guide

Microsoft’s current live study guide lists the objective version as of April 17, 2026. This guide maps to that scope directly:

• Manage Azure identities and governance: Identities & Governance, 1.1 Users, Groups & SSPR, 1.2 Azure RBAC & Scope, and 1.3 Policy, Tags, Locks & Cost
• Implement and manage storage: Storage, 2.1 Design, Redundancy & Encryption, 2.2 Access, SAS & Private Connectivity, and 2.3 Azure Files, Blob Lifecycle & Recovery
• Deploy and manage Azure compute resources: Compute, 3.1 ARM, Bicep & Deployments, 3.2 VMs, Disks & Scale Sets, 3.3 Containers & ACR, and 3.4 App Service Plans, TLS & Slots
• Implement and manage virtual networking: Networking, 4.1 VNets, Peering & Routing, 4.2 Secure Private Access, and 4.3 Azure DNS & Load Balancing
• Monitor and maintain Azure resources: Monitoring & Recovery, 5.1 Monitor, Insights & Alerts, and 5.2 Backup, Recovery & Network Watcher

The appendix-style pages support those domains instead of replacing them. Use the study plan to sequence the material, the resources page to jump to Microsoft Learn and product docs, the cheat sheet for compressed review, and the FAQ for current exam logistics.

In this section

• Azure AZ-104 Identity and Governance Guide
  Study Azure AZ-104 Identity and Governance: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 Entra Users and Groups Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 Entra Users and Groups: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 RBAC and Scope Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 RBAC and Scope: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 Policy and Cost Control Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 Policy and Cost Control: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
• Azure AZ-104 Storage Guide
  Study Azure AZ-104 Storage: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 Storage Design Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 Storage Design: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 Storage Access Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 Storage Access: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 Files and Blob Recovery Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 Files and Blob Recovery: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
• Azure AZ-104 Compute Guide
  Study Azure AZ-104 Compute: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 ARM and Bicep Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 ARM and Bicep: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 VMs and Scale Sets Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 VMs and Scale Sets: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 Containers Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 Containers: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 App Service Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 App Service: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
• Azure AZ-104 Virtual Networking Guide
  Study Azure AZ-104 Virtual Networking: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 VNets and Routing Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 VNets and Routing: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 Private Access Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 Private Access: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 DNS and Load Balancing Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 DNS and Load Balancing: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
• Azure AZ-104 Monitoring Guide
  Study Azure AZ-104 Monitoring: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 Monitor and Alerts Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 Monitor and Alerts: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
  • Azure AZ-104 Backup and Recovery Guide
    Study Azure AZ-104 Backup and Recovery: key concepts, common traps, and exam decision cues.
• Azure AZ-104 Study Plan: 30, 60, and 90 Days
  Azure AZ-104 30-, 60-, and 90-day study plan with topic order, review loops, and final-week priorities.
• Azure AZ-104 Sample Questions with Explanations
  Azure AZ-104 sample questions with explanations, traps, and topic labels.
• Azure AZ-104 Cheat Sheet: Admin Traps
  Azure AZ-104 cheat sheet for Azure admin traps, services, monitoring, and final review.
• Azure AZ-104 Glossary: Key Terms
  Azure AZ-104 glossary of identity, storage, compute, networking, backup, and monitoring terms.
• Azure AZ-104 FAQ: Exam Format and Prep
  Azure AZ-104 FAQ for exam format, topics, prep strategy, practice, and common candidate traps.
• Azure AZ-104 Resources: Official Links and Study Tools
  Azure AZ-104 resources for official links, blueprint checks, study tools, and source review.