Microsoft Azure Architect Design (AZ-301) Practice Exam 2025 - Free Azure Architect Practice Questions and Study Guide

Using Azure Policy is the best choice for providing developers the ability to provision Azure virtual machines with restrictions because it enables organizations to enforce specific rules and regulations across their Azure resources. By defining policies, you can ensure that resources comply with organizational standards, such as the type of virtual machine sizes that can be created, the regions in which resources can be deployed, and the configurations that must be adhered to.

Azure Policy operates through a system of assignments that monitor and manage compliance in real-time. It also allows for the auditing of existing resources and can automatically remediate non-compliant resources if set up to do so. This ensures that developers are guided within the confines of the established governance while still allowing them the flexibility to create resources as needed, thus maintaining control over cloud usage and costs.

While Azure Active Directory provides identity and access management, it does not govern resource provisioning directly. Azure Automation is designed for automating repetitive tasks and managing resources rather than enforcing restrictions on provisioning. Azure DevOps focuses on application lifecycle management and collaboration among teams, which is separate from resource provisioning controls. Therefore, utilizing Azure Policy is essential for governing how developers can provision Azure virtual machines while adhering to necessary restrictions.