Microsoft Azure Developer AssociateStudy guide
The associate certification for developing on Azure (AZ-204).
About Microsoft Azure Developer Associate (AZ-204)
Microsoft Azure Developer Associate (AZ-204) is a Associate-level certification from Microsoft. This page organizes the exam scope into a 5-chapter, 11-section study guide and lets you check your understanding with exam-style practice questions. A good flow is to read the chapters below in order, then test yourself via "Practice questions."
Exam domains (approximate weighting)
- Develop Azure compute solutions~27%
- Develop for Azure storage~18%
- Implement Azure security~22%
- Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimize Azure solutions~15%
- Connect to and consume Azure and third-party services~18%
Weights are approximate guidance for the live exam. Each domain is covered in detail in the chapters and sections below.
Note: This exam is scheduled to retire on 2026-07-31 (successor: AI-200).
Official exam information: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/resources/study-guides/az-204
1Develop Azure Compute Solutions
- 1.1Developing Web Apps with App Service
Understand managed hosting of web apps/APIs with Azure App Service, App Service plans, deployment slots (staging → swap), and scaling (up/out). The starting point for "Develop Azure compute solutions" in AZ-204.
- 1.2Azure Functions (Serverless)
Understand serverless development with Azure Functions: triggers and bindings, the Consumption plan, Durable Functions for workflows, and hosting-plan choices.
- 1.3Container Development (ACR, ACI, Container Apps)
Understand container development options: Azure Container Registry (store/build images), Container Instances (simple container runs), and Container Apps/AKS (scaling microservices).
2Develop for Azure Storage
- 2.1Developing for Blob Storage
Understand developing for Blob storage: SDK operations (client → container → blob; upload/download/list), access tiers and lifecycle, and secure access via SAS and Entra ID. The starting point for "Develop for Azure storage" in AZ-204.
- 2.2Developing for Cosmos DB
Understand developing for Azure Cosmos DB: partition-key design, throughput (RU/s; provisioned/serverless), consistency levels (strong to eventual), and the change feed.
3Implement Azure Security
- 3.1Authentication and Authorization (Entra ID, MSAL)
Understand implementing auth: app authentication with Microsoft Entra ID, acquiring OAuth2 tokens with MSAL, app registrations and scopes/roles, and protecting APIs. The starting point for "Implement Azure security" in AZ-204.
- 3.2Secret Management (Key Vault, Managed Identity)
Understand secret management with Azure Key Vault, key-free authentication via managed identities, and Key Vault references from App Service/Functions.
4Monitor, Troubleshoot, and Optimize
- 4.1Monitoring with Application Insights
Understand monitoring: telemetry collection with Application Insights (requests, dependencies, exceptions, custom metrics), KQL analysis, the application map, and alerts. The starting point for "Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimize" in AZ-204.
- 4.2Caching and Performance Optimization
Understand caching with Azure Cache for Redis (cache-aside, sessions), edge delivery with Azure CDN/Front Door, and optimization principles.
5Connect to and Consume Azure and Third-Party Services
- 5.1Exposing APIs with API Management
Understand exposing backend APIs with Azure API Management (APIM): authentication, throttling, policies (transform/cache), and products/subscriptions. The starting point for "Connect to and consume services" in AZ-204.
- 5.2Messaging and Events
Understand choosing among Service Bus (enterprise messaging), Storage Queue (simple queue), Event Grid (reactive event delivery), and Event Hubs (high-volume streaming).