AZ-204 Tips and Resources to Overcome the Certification Exam
Passing the AZ-204 — Developing Solutions for Microsoft Azure exam
Two weeks ago, I passed the AZ-204 exam. As I collected a considerable amount of resources and tips during the preparation and the exam, I decided to organize all the information and share it in this post.
Disclaimer: I took the exam remotely using Pearson Vue. Hence some of the tips may not apply to people going to take the exam at a Microsoft certification center.
Tips on the preparation and exam
Tip 1 — During preparation, invest more time in the most valuable modules.
Download and analyze the skills outline. All the skills measured by the exam are grouped and listed by the module. Look for the per-module percentages and invest more in the most valuable modules. You may also want to rank first the modules you are least familiarized with.
The updated skills outline for the AZ-204 exam is always up to date on the following page.
Search for “Download exam skills outline”, and you will find it. I could share the direct link to the PDF here, but it is dangerous as it will become obsolete with time.
Tip 2 — Get familiarized with both Azure Powershell and Azure Cli
After a while of interacting with Azure using the command line, one of the tools becomes favorite. If you don’t have a windows machine and you don’t have PowerShell available, it’s quite common that Azure Cli becomes the default. This is a mistake because you may have questions that require knowledge of both tools on the exam. Use and get familiar with both tools. It’s completely worth it.
Tip 3 — Try out Azure Cli interactive
Don’t get me wrong here. The online documentation is awesome, and you can always find good information and sample commands online. However, it is time-intensive always to search online or rely on the help commands. Azure Cli interactive provides auto-completion and displays documentation and samples for pretty much all commands and its parameters. It’s an excellent learning tool!
As you can see, Microsoft mentions when executing the az interactive command:
This command is in preview. It may be changed/removed in a future release.
I really hope it remains supported and up to date for a long time. It’s an amazing tool.
Tip 4 — Do as many practice questions and braindumps as possible.
After reading the exam skills outline and going through the knowledge covered on the exam, it’s easy to become a bit overwhelmed. It’s a lot of knowledge and details to retain to be prepared for the exam. Read and explore the topics and practice tutorials, but invest a big chunk of time taking as many practice questions and braindumps as possible. It’s on the details mentioned in the practice questions and braindumps that you should invest the most while studying.
Tip 5 — Perform the exam on a good laptop (with at least 15” inches) and a stable internet connection.
The Pearson Vue app is a bit demanding - it records video, audio, closes all unnecessary apps, enters fullscreen mode, and continually monitors your system to avoid cheating. Probably, it also performs screen recording. I am not sure about it. The more powerful is the computer, the better.
Some questions have code samples and diagrams. To answer them, you may need to navigate (scroll and resize) between the question and the resources given. I found my 13" inches display too small. It became frustrating. A 15" inches display is more suitable to take the exam.
A stable internet connection is a must, the exam takes place online, and you are streaming webcam video and audio at the same time. Without a stable internet connection, you may not be able to complete the exam.
Tip 6— Execute the Pearson Vue System Test days before the exam.
After scheduling the AZ-204 exam, you will receive all the details on how to proceed before and during the exam. It covers topics from Admission Policy to Cancellation Policy.
One of the advice I found most important is to run a system test. You can never be sure the app runs smoothly on your computer and that your webcam and mic are also working properly with it. Test it and be sure you will not have unexpected hardware and software surprises on the exam day. Here are the links to the system test and system requirements:
Tip 7— Start the exam 30 minutes ahead of schedule.
Pearson Vue suggests the login for the exam 15 minutes ahead of schedule. For me, it was not enough, the ID verification took more time than I expected, and my computer didn’t collaborate either. At the beginning of the exam, my computer blocked completely, and I had to perform a forced reboot. If the exam were today, I would start 30 minutes ahead of schedule to have more room for unexpected issues.
Tip 8— Have at least two ID cards or an ID card and a passport with you.
I had to perform the signup process twice because my ID does not have an expiration date. I explained the why’s, but they didn’t accept it. So, I had to repeat the signup process with another ID. The safest option is to use a passport if you have a valid one. Have at least a fallback ID with you and ensure both have an expiration date.
Tip 9— Calculate the available time per question.
The exam has between 40 and 60 questions, and you have 210 minutes to complete it. The exam is divided into parts, and after you submit each part it’s no longer possible to review those questions again. In the end, when I submitted the last part, I still had 74 minutes left. However, this time was worthless as I couldn’t review the previously submitted parts.
If the exam were today, I wouldn’t rush to go to the next parts. There’s a calculator available on the exam app. You can divide the time per the number of questions and then invest the time on a per-group basis. As the cases require more reading and analysis, give more time for those questions. For example:
210 minutes / 47 questions give more or less 4.5 minutes per question. Consider it 4 minutes to have space for error. If a group has 10 questions, you can invest 40 minutes on it. If the group is a case, you will need more reading and analysis. You give it 5 minutes per question to have a little more time.
Tip 10— Review questions per group.
There’s a button on the top left part (if I still remember it correctly!) of the exam app that enables marking questions for reviewal. I strongly recommend marking all the ones you are unsure of and then only review those at the end of the group before submitting it. It is way easier than go through all of them again to find the ones needing reviewal.
Tip 12 — Try to face the camera at all moments.
There were at least two times I started to read the questions more on the diagonal. I was tired and didn’t understand the question the first time, so I relaxed. A pop-up immediately came, and the guys monitoring the exam started writing to me asking to adjust the camera and make sure I was visible. It’s distracting and frustrating. Try to avoid it.
Tip 13 — Don’t use the mobile phone at all, even after submitting the exam.
After I submitted the exam, the page with the result appeared saying, “you’ve passed the exam”. I took the smartphone and photographed it. I really didn’t think, just wanted preliminary proof that I had passed. It turns out that a pop-up came up, and I was instructed to delete the photo. I had to show the smartphone on the camera and delete the photo. Basically, I risked being disqualified after submitting the exam. Certainly, something to avoid!
Resources
AZ-204 learning paths
Azure Limits and quotas per service
Page with Labs per module covered on the Exam
Comparison tables between Azure messaging services
Free Braindumps and Practice Questions on the web
AZ-400
I am currently preparing myself for the AZ-400. After taking and passing the exam, I will write a second article with resources and tips to overcome it. Stay tuned!
