Microsoft Azure Certifications (e.g. AZ-104, AZ-900) Cloud Concepts and Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900 Foundation) Syllabus

Cloud Concepts and Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900 Foundation) syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Cloud Concepts and Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900 Foundation) in Microsoft Azure Certifications (e.g. AZ-104, AZ-900), not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Cloud Computing Fundamentals

   4 topics

   • Defining cloud computing
     • Cloud as on-demand delivery of compute, storage and networking
     • The shared responsibility model between provider and customer
     • How responsibility shifts across IaaS, PaaS and SaaS
   • Cloud service models
     • Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) characteristics and use cases
     • Platform as a Service (PaaS) characteristics and use cases
     • Software as a Service (SaaS) characteristics and use cases
     • Serverless computing within the model spectrum
   • Cloud deployment models
     • Public cloud benefits and constraints
     • Private cloud and on-premises scenarios
     • Hybrid cloud and Azure Arc-enabled scenarios
     • Multi-cloud considerations
   • Consumption-based and cloud pricing models
     • Pay-as-you-go versus reserved capacity
     • Operating expenditure (OpEx) versus capital expenditure (CapEx)
2. 2

   Benefits of Cloud Services

   4 topics

   • High availability and scalability
     • Defining high availability and service uptime
     • Vertical scaling (scaling up) versus horizontal scaling (scaling out)
     • Elasticity and automatic scaling
   • Reliability and predictability
     • Reliability through fault tolerance and redundancy
     • Predictability of performance and cost
   • Security and governance benefits
     • Centralised security management
     • Governance through templates and policy
   • Manageability in the cloud
     • Management of resources via portal, CLI and automation
     • Automatic management by the platform
3. 3

   Core Azure Architecture

   4 topics

   • Azure regions and region pairs
     • Geographies and data residency for UK regions (UK South, UK West)
     • Region pairing for disaster recovery
     • Sovereign and special regions
   • Availability Zones and datacentres
     • Physical separation within a region
     • Zone-redundant versus zonal services
   • Azure resource hierarchy
     • Management groups
     • Subscriptions
     • Resource groups
     • Resources and resource providers
   • Azure Resource Manager (ARM)
     • ARM as the deployment and management layer
     • Declarative templates and infrastructure as code

Cloud Concepts and Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900 Foundation) flashcards for Microsoft Azure Certifications (e.g. AZ-104, AZ-900)

19 of 50 cards from the Cloud Concepts and Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900 Foundation) deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What is the definition of cloud computing?

   The delivery of computing services (servers, storage, databases, networking, software, analytics, and intelligence) over the internet ('the cloud') to offer faster innovation, flexible resources, and economies of scale, typically paying only for the services you use.

2. What is the shared responsibility model in cloud computing?

   A framework dividing security and operational duties between the cloud provider and the customer. The provider's and customer's responsibilities shift depending on the service model (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS): the customer always retains responsibility for their data, accounts/identities, and devices.

3. Name the three main cloud service models.

   Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS).

4. What is Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)?

   The most flexible service model that provides the basic building blocks of cloud IT — virtual machines, storage, and networking. The customer manages the OS, runtime, and applications, while the provider manages the physical hardware. It gives the customer the most control.

5. What is Platform as a Service (PaaS)?

   A service model providing a managed environment for building, testing, and deploying applications. The provider manages the hardware and OS; the customer manages only the applications and data. Example: Azure App Service.

6. What is Software as a Service (SaaS)?

   A service model delivering fully managed, ready-to-use software applications over the internet. The provider manages everything except the customer's data, devices, and accounts. Examples: Microsoft 365, Outlook.com.

7. In the shared responsibility model, which responsibilities does the customer ALWAYS retain regardless of service model?

   Information and data, devices (mobile and PCs), and accounts and identities.

8. Order IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS from most customer control/responsibility to least.

   IaaS (most control/responsibility) -> PaaS (moderate) -> SaaS (least control/responsibility, most managed by provider).

9. Name the three cloud deployment models.

   Public cloud, private cloud, and hybrid cloud.

10. What is a public cloud?

    A deployment model where services are owned and operated by a third-party cloud provider and delivered over the internet. Resources (hardware, storage, network) are shared among multiple organizations (multi-tenant). No capital expense for hardware.

11. What is a private cloud?

    A deployment model where cloud computing resources are used exclusively by a single organization. It can be hosted on-premises or by a third party, offering greater control and security but requiring more management and higher cost.

12. What is a hybrid cloud?

    A deployment model that combines public and private clouds (and/or on-premises infrastructure), bound together to allow data and applications to be shared between them, providing greater flexibility and deployment options.

13. What is the multi-cloud deployment model?

    The use of multiple public cloud providers simultaneously (e.g., Azure and AWS), often to avoid vendor lock-in, leverage best-of-breed services, or meet specific requirements.

14. What is Azure Arc used for in deployment models?

    Azure Arc simplifies governance and management of hybrid and multi-cloud environments by extending Azure management to on-premises, multi-cloud, and edge resources, letting them be managed as if they were running in Azure.

15. What is the consumption-based (pay-as-you-go) pricing model?

    A pricing model where you pay only for the IT resources you actually use. There is no upfront cost and no need to over-provision; you stop paying when you stop using a resource. It converts capital expense (CapEx) into operating expense (OpEx).

16. What is the difference between CapEx and OpEx in cloud pricing?

    CapEx (Capital Expenditure) is upfront spending on physical infrastructure (e.g., servers) that depreciates over time. OpEx (Operating Expenditure) is ongoing spending on services as consumed. Cloud computing favors OpEx via consumption-based pricing.

17. What benefits does consumption-based pricing provide?

    No upfront costs, no need to purchase and manage costly infrastructure, the ability to pay for more resources only when needed, and the ability to stop paying for resources no longer needed (elastic cost).

18. What is high availability in the cloud?

    The ability of a system to remain operational and accessible with minimal downtime. It is achieved through redundancy and is often expressed as a Service Level Agreement (SLA) percentage of uptime (e.g., 99.9%).

19. What is scalability in the cloud?

    The ability to increase or decrease resources to meet changing demand. It allows an application to handle growth in workload without redesigning the system.

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