Configuring Windows Server Hybrid Advanced Services AZ-801 Practice Exam

The Microsoft Azure AZ-801: Configuring Windows Server Hybrid Advanced Services exam assesses your ability to configure and manage advanced services for Windows Server in a hybrid cloud environment. This builds upon the foundational skills measured in the AZ-800 exam, focusing on areas like disaster recovery, high availability, and server migration strategies. Earning the AZ-801 certification demonstrates your expertise in optimizing hybrid cloud deployments for Windows Server workloads.

Who Should Take This Exam?

This exam is ideal for IT professionals who have mastered the basics of hybrid cloud administration with Windows Server (covered in AZ-800) and want to specialize in advanced configurations. Here are some examples:

• Cloud Architects (Advanced Windows Server): Designing and implementing advanced services for Windows Server within hybrid cloud architectures.
• Windows Server Hybrid Specialists: Specializing in configuring disaster recovery, high availability, and migration solutions for Windows Server in hybrid environments.
• IT Consultants (Hybrid Cloud Focus): Providing consulting services to organizations on optimizing their hybrid cloud deployments using advanced Windows Server features.

Prerequisites

• Successful Completion of AZ-800 Exam: Earning the AZ-800 certification demonstrating a solid foundation in administering Windows Server in a hybrid cloud environment is highly recommended before taking the AZ-801 exam.
• Experience with Advanced Windows Server Features: Familiarity with features like Hyper-V, Failover Clustering, Storage Replica, and Azure Site Recovery is beneficial.

Roles and Responsibilities

Earning the AZ-801 certification can open doors to various roles with a focus on advanced Windows Server hybrid cloud management, such as:

• Hybrid Cloud Solutions Architect: Designing and implementing advanced cloud solutions leveraging Windows Server in a hybrid environment.
• Disaster Recovery Specialist (Windows Server): Specializing in planning, configuring, and testing disaster recovery solutions for Windows Server within hybrid deployments.
• High Availability Engineer (Windows Server Focus): Ensuring high availability of Windows Server applications and services in a hybrid cloud environment.

Exam Details

• Provider: Microsoft
• Format: Computer-based exam with multiple-choice and some scenario-based questions
• Number of Questions: Typically around 60 questions (subject to change)
• Duration: 120 minutes
• Passing Score: around 70%

Course Outline

Module 1 - Describe securing Windows Server on-premises and hybrid infrastructures (25–30%)

1.1 Understanding securing Windows Server operating system

• Learning configuring and managing exploit protection
• Learning to configure and manage Windows Defender Application Control
• Explaining configuring and managing Windows Defender for Servers
• Explaining configuring and managing Windows Defender Credential Guard
• Explaining configuring SmartScreen
• Explaining implementing operating system security (using Group Policies)

1.2 Understanding securing a hybrid Active Directory (AD) infrastructure

• Explaining configuring password policies
• Learning to enable password blocklists
• Learning to manage protected users
• Learning managing account security on a Read-Only Domain Controller (RODC)
• Explaining harden domain controllers
• Learning configuring authentication policy silos
• Ability to restrict access to domain controllers
• Explaining configuring account security
• Explaining managing AD built-in administrative groups
• Learning managing AD delegation
• Learning implementing and managing Microsoft Defender for Identity

1.3 Understanding identifying and remediating Windows Server security issues by using Azure services

• Learning monitoring on-premises servers and Azure IaaS virtual machines (VMs) by use Azure Sentinel
• Learning identifying and remediating security issues on-premises servers and Azure IaaS VMs by using Azure Security Center

1.4 Understanding to secure Windows Server networking

• Learning managing Windows Defender Firewall
• Learning implementing domain isolation
• Learning implementing connection security rules

1.5 Understanding secure Windows Server storage

• Learning managing Windows BitLocker Drive Encryption (BitLocker)
• Learning to manage and recovering encrypted volumes
• Learning enabling storage encryption by using Azure Disk Encryption
• Learning managing disk encryption keys for IaaS virtual machines

Module 2 - Describe implementing and managing Windows Server high availability (10–15%)

2.1 Understanding implementing a Windows Server failover cluster

• Learning implementing a failover cluster on-premises, hybrid, or cloud-only
• Learning creating a Windows failover cluster
• Learning to Implement a stretch cluster across datacenters or Azure regions
• Explaining configuring storage for failover clustering
• Explaining modifying quorum options
• Explaining configuring network adapters for failover clustering
• Explaining configuring cluster workload options
• Learning configuring cluster sets
• Learning configuring Scale-Out File Servers
• Learning creating an Azure witness
• Learning configuring a floating IP address for the cluster

Ability to implement load balancing for the failover cluster

2.2 Understanding managing failover clustering

• Explaining implementing cluster-aware updating
• Learning to recover a failed cluster node
• Learning to upgrade a node to Windows Server 2022
• Explaining failover workloads between nodes
• Learning installing Windows updates on cluster nodes
• Learning managing failover clusters using Windows Admin Center

2.3 Understanding the process of implemening and managing Storage Spaces Direct

• Learning to create a failover cluster using Storage Spaces Direct
• Learning to upgrade a Storage Spaces Direct node
• Learning implementing networking for Storage Spaces Direct
• Learning configuring Storage Spaces Direct

Module 3 - Describe implementing disaster recovery (10–15%)

3.1 Understanding managing backup and recovery for Windows Server

• Learning to back up and restore files and folders to Azure Recovery Services vault
• Learning installing and managing Azure Backup Server
• Learning to back up and recover using Azure Backup Server
• Learning managing backups in Azure Recovery Services vault
• Learning to create a backup policy
• Learning configuring backup for Azure Virtual Machines using the built-in backup agent
• Learning to recover a VM using temporary snapshots
• Learning to recover VMs to new Azure Virtual Machines
• Learning to restore a VM

3.2 Understanding implementing disaster recovery by using Azure Site Recovery

• Learning configuring Azure Site Recovery networking
• Learning configuring Site Recovery for on-premises VMs
• Learning configuring a recovery plan
• Learning configuring Site Recovery for Azure Virtual Machines
• Explaining implementing VM replication to secondary datacenter or Azure region
• Explaining configuring Azure Site Recovery policies

3.3 Understanding to Protect virtual machines by using Hyper-V replicas

• Explaining configuring Hyper-V hosts for replication
• Explaining managing Hyper-V replica servers
• Explaining configuring VM replication
• Explaining performing a failover

Module 4 - Describe migrating servers and workloads (20–25%)

4.1 Understanding Migrating on-premises storage to on-premises servers or Azure

• Learning transferring data and share
• Learning to cut over to a new server by using Storage Migration Service
• Learning utilizing Storage Migration Service to migrate to Azure Virtual Machines
• Learning migrating to Azure file shares

4.2 Understanding Migrate on-premises servers to Azure

• Explaining deploying and configure Azure Migrate appliance
• Explaining migrating VM workloads to Azure IaaS
• Explaining migrating physical workloads to Azure IaaS
• Explaining to migrate by using Azure Migrate

4.3 Understanding migrating workloads from previous versions to Windows Server 2022

• Learning to migrate Internet Information Services (IIS)
• Learning to migrate Hyper-V hosts
• Learning to migrate Remote Desktop Services (RDS) host servers
• Learning to migrate Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP)
• Learning to migrate print servers

4.4 Understanding migrating IIS workloads to Azure

• Overview of migrating IIS workloads to Azure Web Apps
• Overview of migrating IIS workloads to containers

4.5 Understanding migrating an AD DS infrastructure to Windows Server 2022 AD DS

• Overview of migrating AD DS objects, including users, groups and Group Policies, using Active Directory Migration Tool
• Overview of migrating to a new Active Directory forest
• Overview of upgrading an existing forest

Module 5 - Describe monitoring and troubleshooting Windows Server environments (20–25%)

5.1 Understanding and monitor Windows Server using Windows Server tools and Azure services

• Learning monitoring Windows Server by using Performance Monitor
• Learning creating and configure Data Collector Sets
• Learning monitoring servers and configure alerts by using Windows Admin Center
• Learning to analyze Windows Server system data by using System Insights
• Learning managing event logs
• Learning deploying Log Analytics agents
• Learning collecting performance counters to Azure
• Learning creating alerts
• Learning monitoring Azure Virtual Machines by using Azure diagnostics extension
• Learning monitoring Azure Virtual Machines performance by using VM insights

5.2 Understanding troubleshooting Windows Server on-premises and hybrid networking

• Learning troubleshooting hybrid network connectivity
• Learning troubleshooting on-premises connectivity

5.3 Understanding troubleshooting Windows Server virtual machines in Azure

• Learning troubleshooting deployment failures
• Learning to troubleshoot booting failures
• Learning troubleshooting VM performance issues
• Learning troubleshooting VM extension issues
• Learning troubleshooting disk encryption issues
• Learning troubleshooting storage
• Learning troubleshooting VM connection issues

5.4 Understanding Troubleshooting Active Directory

• Learning restoring objects from AD recycle bin
• Learning recovering Active Directory database using Directory Services Restore Mode
• Learning recovering SYSVOL
• Learning troubleshooting Active Directory replication
• Learning troubleshooting hybrid authentication issues
• Learning troubleshooting on-premises Active Directory