The Complete Azure Administrator Guide: Master AZ-104 in 2025

Why Azure Administrator Is Essential for Cloud Careers

Microsoft Azure holds approximately 24% of the global cloud market, and the AZ-104 certification is the core credential for Azure infrastructure management. As enterprises migrate to Azure, administrators who can manage these environments are in high demand.

Who This Guide Is For

• System administrators moving to cloud infrastructure
• IT professionals in Microsoft-centric organizations
• Cloud engineers seeking Azure specialization
• Developers expanding into DevOps roles

The AZ-104 Exam Structure

The Azure Administrator exam tests practical management skills.

Domain Weight Distribution

Exam Format

• 40-60 questions
• 150 minutes (including lab time)
• Multiple choice + case studies + labs
• Passing score: 700/1000

Domain 1: Identity and Governance (20-25%)

Azure Active Directory

User and Group Management:

• Create and manage users
• Bulk operations
• Dynamic group membership
• Guest user access (B2B)

Administrative Units:

• Scoped administration
• Delegation scenarios

Role-Based Access Control (RBAC)

Built-in Roles:

• Owner, Contributor, Reader
• Resource-specific roles
• Custom role creation

Scope Hierarchy:

• Management groups
• Subscriptions
• Resource groups
• Resources

Azure Policy and Governance

Azure Policy:

• Policy definitions and assignments
• Initiative bundles
• Compliance reporting
• Remediation tasks

Resource Locks:

• Delete and ReadOnly locks
• Lock inheritance

Blueprints:

• Organizational compliance
• Template deployments

Domain 2: Storage (15-20%)

Storage Account Configuration

Account Types:

• Standard vs. Premium
• Hot, Cool, Archive tiers
• Replication options (LRS, ZRS, GRS, RA-GRS)

Security:

• Access keys and SAS tokens
• Azure AD authentication
• Encryption at rest

Blob Storage

Blob Types:

• Block blobs (most common)
• Append blobs
• Page blobs (VHDs)

Lifecycle Management:

• Tier transitions
• Deletion policies
• Immutable storage

Azure Files

File Shares:

• SMB and NFS protocols
• Azure File Sync
• Mounting from Windows/Linux

Storage Tools

• Azure Storage Explorer
• AzCopy for bulk transfers
• Data Box for large migrations

Domain 3: Compute Resources (20-25%)

Virtual Machines

Configuration:

• VM sizing and series (B, D, E, F)
• Availability sets and zones
• Disk types (Standard HDD, Standard SSD, Premium SSD, Ultra)

Extensions:

• Custom Script Extension
• DSC Extension
• Azure Monitor agent

Maintenance:

• Backup and recovery
• Update management
• Resize operations

Virtual Machine Scale Sets

• Automatic scaling rules
• Instance management
• Load balancing integration

Azure App Service

Web Apps:

• Deployment slots
• Custom domains and SSL
• Scaling options

App Service Plans:

• Tier selection
• Regional deployment

Containers

Azure Container Instances:

• Serverless containers
• Container groups
• YAML deployment

Azure Kubernetes Service (Overview):

• Managed Kubernetes
• Node pools
• Basic concepts for AZ-104

Domain 4: Virtual Networking (15-20%)

Virtual Networks

VNet Configuration:

• Address space planning
• Subnet design
• Service endpoints
• Private endpoints

Network Security:

• Network Security Groups (NSGs)
• Application Security Groups
• NSG flow logs

Connectivity

VNet Peering:

• Regional and global peering
• Transit peering
• Gateway transit

VPN Gateway:

• Site-to-site connectivity
• Point-to-site connectivity
• Gateway SKUs

ExpressRoute:

• Private connectivity concepts
• Use cases

Load Balancing

Azure Load Balancer:

• Public vs. internal
• Health probes
• Load balancing rules

Application Gateway:

• Layer 7 load balancing
• WAF integration
• URL-based routing

DNS

Azure DNS:

• Public DNS zones
• Private DNS zones
• Record set management

Domain 5: Monitoring (10-15%)

Azure Monitor

Metrics and Logs:

• Metric types and dimensions
• Log Analytics workspace
• KQL queries basics

Alerts:

• Metric alerts
• Activity log alerts
• Action groups

Diagnostic Settings

• Resource diagnostic logs
• Archive to storage
• Stream to Log Analytics

Azure Backup

VM Backup:

• Recovery Services vault
• Backup policies
• Restore options

Azure Site Recovery:

• Disaster recovery concepts
• Failover and failback

Network Monitoring

• Network Watcher
• Connection troubleshoot
• NSG flow logs analysis

The 10-Week Study Plan

Weeks 1-2: Identity and Governance

• Azure AD user and group management
• RBAC configuration
• Azure Policy implementation
• 50 domain-specific practice questions

Weeks 3-4: Storage Deep Dive

• Storage account configuration
• Blob lifecycle management
• Azure Files setup
• AzCopy practice

Weeks 5-6: Compute Resources

• VM deployment and management
• Scale sets configuration
• App Service deployment
• Container instances

Weeks 7-8: Virtual Networking

• VNet design and peering
• NSG configuration
• Load balancer setup
• VPN Gateway basics

Weeks 9-10: Monitoring & Review

• Azure Monitor configuration
• Backup implementation
• 3 full-length practice exams
• Weak area review

Hands-On Labs Are Non-Negotiable

AZ-104 includes performance-based labs. You must practice in Azure.

Essential Lab Exercises

1. Configure Azure AD with RBAC

   • Create users and groups
   • Assign roles at different scopes
   • Implement conditional access

2. Build a multi-tier application

   • VNet with subnets
   • NSGs for traffic control
   • VMs with availability

3. Implement storage solution

   • Blob containers with lifecycle
   • Azure Files with sync
   • Access control with SAS

4. Configure monitoring

   • Log Analytics workspace
   • VM diagnostics
   • Alert rules and action groups

Lab Resources

• Microsoft Learn free sandbox
• Azure free account ($200 credits)
• Azure pass (if available)
• Personal subscription (budget carefully)

Study Resources

Official Materials

• Microsoft Learn AZ-104 path (free)
• Microsoft Certification exam page
• Azure documentation

Third-Party Resources

• John Savill’s AZ-104 course (YouTube, free)
• Scott Duffy’s course (Udemy)
• Whizlabs practice tests

Practice Exams

• Microsoft Practice Assessment (free)
• MeasureUp official practice tests
• Whizlabs AZ-104 tests

Career Impact

Immediate Benefits

• Role Access: Azure Administrator, Cloud Engineer
• Salary Range: $90,000-$130,000
• Enterprise Demand: Microsoft shops prioritize Azure certs

Certification Pathway

From AZ-104:

• AZ-305 (Solutions Architect)
• AZ-500 (Security Engineer)
• AZ-400 (DevOps Engineer)

Common Roles

• Azure Administrator
• Cloud Infrastructure Engineer
• Systems Engineer (Cloud)
• DevOps Engineer

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Studying without hands-on practice. Labs are part of the exam
2. Ignoring identity and governance. It’s 20-25% of your score
3. Memorizing portal steps only. Know CLI and PowerShell too
4. Skipping network fundamentals. VNet design is critical

The Bottom Line

The Azure Administrator certification is achievable in 10-12 weeks with focused study. At $165, it provides strong ROI for a credential that unlocks cloud administration roles in Microsoft environments.

Focus on hands-on labs, master the Azure Portal and CLI, and practice with real scenarios. Your Azure career accelerates here.