AZ-204 Exam Guide | Everything You Want To Know For Taking The Exam

Microsoft Azure is one of the fastest-growing platforms that offer a range of IT Certifications. There are 12 Azure Certifications categorized into three groups, i.e., Fundamentals, Associate, and Experts. The blog is basically an extensive guide for the AZ-204 exam preparation. Are you planning to take the Azure Certified Developing Solutions Exam but don’t know how and where to begin your preparation? This blog will help you discover every bit of knowledge you should have before attempting the AZ-204 certification exam.
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What is Azure Developing Solutions Certification?

AZ-204 is an associate-level certification specially designed for Azure Cloud Developers. It is evidence of your capabilities in designing, building, and maintaining cloud apps and services. The Certified Azure Developing Solutions professionals stay updated with modish developments in technologies and have the skills to utilize these technical processes to provide sustainable solutions for business problems.

Is AZ-204 Certification Worth It?

As the AZ-204 Certified individuals can develop solutions for the Azure environment, their demand is increasing gradually. These professionals can work with Cloud Database Administrators (DBAs), Cloud Administrators, Cloud Computing Architects, and many other cloud professionals. Moreover, the certification brings the following perquisites to your professional life.

  • Aid you land different lucrative and role-based jobs.
  • Highlight you in a competitive environment for specific in-demand skills.
  • Advances your knowledge and skills.
  • Brings promotions and higher salaries.
  • Open doors for numerous career opportunities.
  • Provides you with self-satisfaction.

Want to grasp all these perks? Follow this guide and take the AZ-204 exam to kick-start your developer career.

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How to register for the AZ-204 Exam?

Follow the following steps to register for the AZ-204 exam.

  1. Open the platform of Microsoft Learn.
  2. Click on the certifications bar in the main menu.
  3. Browse the certifications and select Microsoft Azure Developing Solutions.
  4. Decide the mode of taking the exam, i.e., online or onsite.
  5. Check your schedule and register for your exam according to it.
  6. Now devote your time to exam preparation.

Required Skills for the AZ-204 Exam

The candidates who want to enroll for this certification exam should have 1-2 years of experience in professional development and Microsoft Azure. You should have knowledge of programming in any Azure Supported Language. Some of the required skills are as follows:

  • Azure SDKs
  • Data storage options
  • Azure PowerShell
  • Azure CLI
  • Data connections
  • APIs
  • App authentication and authorization
  • Debugging 
  • Compute and container deployment
  • Performance tuning 
  • Monitoring

Elementary Exam Pattern

  • The English Version of the Azure Developing Solutions Certification exam was launched on April 19, 2022. You can access this exam by the code AZ-204. Here is the basic information about the exam.
  • The exam contains 40- 60 questions. 
  • You only have 120 minutes to complete this computerized exam.
  • The exam may contain MCQ, Short Questions, Mark Review, Best Answer, Drag and drop, and many other formats.
  • You need to score 700/1000 to pass this exam. The scores are highly dependent upon the difficulty level of the questions.
  • Expertise in at least one of the Azure Supported Languages is compulsory to take the exam.
  • The exam is available in the following languages: English, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, German, Korean, Chinese, French, Arabic, Portuguese, and Indonesian.
  • Candidates will take their exam at the VUE Pearson Exam Center.
  • The AZ-204 exam cost is $165, with the same retake charge.

AZ-204 Exam Blueprints

Administrators use exam blueprints to create exams and meet the exam requirements. Understanding a blueprint can help you identify the key topics that cover 80-85% of your exam.

Topic

Weightage

Develop Azure compute solutions

25-30%

Develop for Azure storage

15-20%

Implement Azure security

20-25%

Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimize Azure solutions

15-20%

Connect to and consume Azure services and third-party services

15-20%

AZ-204 Learning Path

Develop Azure compute solutions (25–30%)

  • Implement IaaS solutions

Provision of virtual machines (VMs)

Configuring, validating, and deploying ARM templates

Configuring container images for solutions

Publishing an image to the Azure Container Registry

Running containers by utilizing Azure Container Instance

  • Create Azure App Service Web Apps

Creating an Azure App Service Web App

Enabling diagnostics logging

Deploying code to a web app

Configuring web app settings, including SSL, API settings, and connection strings

Implementing autoscaling rules, such as scheduled autoscaling and autoscaling by operational or system metrics

  • Implement Azure functions

Creating and deploying Azure Functions apps

Implementing input and output bindings for a function

Implementing function triggers by using data operations, timers, and webhooks

Implementing Azure Durable Functions

Develop for Azure storage (15–20%)

  • Develop solutions that use Cosmos DB storage

Selecting the appropriate API and SDK for a solution

Implementing partitioning schemes and partition keys

Performing operations on data and Cosmos DB containers

Setting the appropriate consistency level for operations

Managing change feed notifications

  • Develop solutions that use blob storage

Moving items in Blob storage between storage accounts or containers

Setting and retrieving metadata and properties

Performing operations on data by using the appropriate SDK

Implementing storage policies, and data archiving and retention

Implement Azure security (20–25%)

  • Implement user authentication and authorization

Authenticating and authorizing users by using the Microsoft Identity platform

Authorizing and authenticating users and apps by using the Azure Active Directory

Creating and implementing shared access signatures

Implementing solutions that interact with Microsoft Graph

  • Implement secure cloud solutions

Securing app configuration data by using App Configuration Azure Key Vault

Developing code that uses keys, secrets, and certificates stored in Azure Key Vault

Implementing Managed Identities for Azure resources

Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimize Azure solutions (15–20%)

  • Implement caching for solutions

Configuring cache and expiration policies for Azure Cache for Redis

Implementing secure and optimized application cache patterns, including data sizing, connections, encryption, and expiration

  • Troubleshoot solutions by using metrics and log data

Configuring a service or app to use Application Insights

Reviewing and analyzing metrics and log data

Implementing Application Insights web tests and alerts

Connect to and consume Azure services and third-party services (15–20%)

  • Implement API Management

Creating an APIM instance

Creating and documenting APIs

Configuring authentication for APIs

Defining policies for APIs

  • Develop event-based solutions

Implementing solutions that use Azure Event Grid

Implementing solutions that use Azure Event Hub

  • Develop message-based solutions

Implementing solutions that use Azure Service Bus

Implementing solutions that use Azure Queue Storage queues

Click here for the  practice official test for azure developer 

AZ-204 Exam Preparation Tips

  • Look for the official certification page and start your exam preparation by thoroughly reading and comprehending the actual exam guide. Although our guide will provide you with the paramount knowledge of the exam, we recommend you go over the actual exam guide.
  • Once you are aware of the exam pattern and objectives, discover the topics you need to focus on. You can look for these topics by reading the learning path that we have provided in our blog.
  • If you want to go for the self-study, the Microsoft platform provides 12 learning paths to cover the whole AZ-204 Syllabus. You can access this course on the Microsoft Learn platform. These learning paths include:
  1. AZ-204: Create Azure App Service web apps
  2. AZ-204: Implement Azure Functions
  3. AZ-204: Develop solutions that use Blob storage
  4. AZ-204: Develop solutions that use Azure Cosmos DB
  5. AZ-204: Implement infrastructure as a service solutions
  6. AZ-204: Implement user authentication and authorization
  7. AZ-204: Implement secure cloud solutions
  8. AZ-204: Implement API Management
  9. AZ-204: Develop event-based solutions
  10. AZ-204: Develop message-based solutions
  11. AZ-204: Instrument solutions to support monitoring and logging
  12. AZ-204: Integrate caching and content delivery within solutions
  • Furthermore, if you think self-study is not enough for your preparation, you can enroll in an E-learning video course for exam preparation. There is a plethora of sites that offer online courses. But, we recommend you prefer the learning videos provided by Microsoft Learn.
  • Before attempting your exam, you can also have a demo exam experience. It is offered by Microsoft to provide you with a free trial of the AZ-204 exam.

Moreover, you can solve actual AZ-204 dumps to assess your exam preparation.

Market demand for Certified Azure Developers

Many MNCs are executing to transfer their services to cloud platforms. Which in return has increased the demand for certified cloud professionals and experts. As Azure is one of the top five cloud platforms, the market need for Certified Azure Developing Solutions professionals is also increasing. Some of the roles to which a developing solution professional can apply are as follows:

  • Cloud Engineer
  • DevOps Engineer
  • Senior Azure DevOps Engineer
  • SQL Developer
  • Software Engineer
  • ETL Developer
  • Azure Databricks Developer
  • Web Developer

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Salary of a Certified Azure Developer:

Attaining an Azure certification always helps you to anchor highly paying jobs. According to Glassdoor, A Certified Azure Developer can make $101360 annually.

Final Notes

In short, if you are planning to take the AZ-204 exam, this preparation guide will help you ace your exam on the first go. It is vital to select beneficial resources with the utmost information for your preparation. Are you aspire to pass your exam with flying colors? No need to take tension. Thoroughly go through the guide and start your preparation.

FAQ's

Azure Developers are professionals with skills in designing, developing, testing, and deploying cloud applications on the Azure Cloud platform. These individuals can develop websites, web platforms, applications, and software.

Your preparation for the AZ-204 exam entirely depends upon your prior Azure Cloud knowledge, your preparation resources as well as your ability to comprehend new skills. Many platforms provide online courses for your exam preparation. These courses can take from 1 month to 3 months to your preparation. However, a smart plan can also help you prepare for your exam in 2-3 weeks.

You can attempt your AZ-204 exam 5-times a year. If you fail your exam on the first go, you should wait 24 hours before registering for your second attempt. Unluckily if you fail your second attempt, you will have to wait for 14 days for further attempts (up to 5). You have to pay 165 USD for every exam retake.

No, the AZ-204 exam is not completely an MCQ-based exam. It can contain different formats of questions including:

  • Short Answer
  • Drag and Drop
  • Multiple Response Questions
  • Performance Based
  • Mark Review
  • Best Answer

The programming languages of Azure include C#, Java, Python, and Node. js. For the Azure 204 exam, you must know programming in at least one of these languages.

It is an associate-level certification. It can be difficult for those who have no experience working on the Azure Cloud platform. On the other hand, it will be a piece of cake for individuals with hands-on experience in Azure Cloud.

The AZ-204 exam focuses on the following skills

  • Develop Azure compute solutions 
  • Develop for Azure storage 
  • Implement Azure security 
  • Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimize Azure solutions 
  • Connect to and consume Azure services and third-party services

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