If you are a Developer focusing on Internet of Things (IoT) solutions on Microsoft Azure, then the AZ-220 Microsoft Azure IoT Developer is for you. I am currently preparing for that exam, so I want to share my AZ-220 Microsoft Azure IoT Developer Certification Exam Study Guide with you. If you are passing the AZ-220 exam, you will earn the Microsoft Certified: Azure IoT Developer Specialty certification, that you understand how to implement the Azure services that form an IoT solution, including data analysis, data processing, data storage options, and platform-as-a-service options. IoT Developers must be able to recognize Azure IoT service configuration settings within the code portion of an IoT solution.
To learn and prepare for the exam, I usually use a couple of online resources, mainly Microsoft Docs and Microsoft Learn, which I am going to share with you. You can find more information about how I prepare for a Microsoft Certification exam on my blog post: How to prepare and pass Microsoft Certification Exam.
Also, check out other Microsoft Azure Certification Exam Study Guides:
- Exam AZ-900: Microsoft Azure Fundamentals Exam Study Guide
- Exam AZ-104: Microsoft Azure Administrator Exam Study Guide
- Exam AZ-204: Developing Solutions for Microsoft Azure Exam Study Guide
- Exam AZ-303: Microsoft Azure Architect Technologies Exam Study Guide
- Exam AZ-304: Microsoft Azure Architect Design Certification Exam Study Guide
- Exam AZ-500: Microsoft Azure Security Technologies Exam Study Guide
- Exam AZ-600: Configuring and Operating a Hybrid Cloud with Microsoft Azure Stack Hub Exam Study Guide
- Exam AZ-700: Microsoft Azure Network Engineer Exam Study Guide
- Exam SC-900: Microsoft Security, Compliance, and Identity Fundamentals Exam Study Guide
- Exam DP-300: Azure Database Administrator Exam Study Guide
Here is my AZ-220 Microsoft Azure IoT Developer Certification Exam Study Guide
It is essential to get familiar with the exam objectives and skills measured first. That is why I recommend reading the description of the exam and the skills measured.
Exam AZ-220: Microsoft Azure IoT Developer
The Azure IoT Developer is responsible for the implementation and the coding required to create and maintain the cloud and edge portion of an IoT solution. In addition to configuring and maintaining the devices by using cloud services, the IoT Developer also sets up the physical devices. The IoT Developer is responsible for maintaining the devices throughout the life cycle.
The IoT Developer implements designs for IoT solutions, including device topology, connectivity, debugging and security. The IoT Developer deploys compute/containers and configures device networking. The IoT Developer implements designs for solutions to manage data pipelines, including monitoring and data transformation as it relates to IoT. The IoT Developer works with data engineers and other stakeholders to ensure successful business integration.
IoT Developers should have a good understanding of how to implement the Azure services that form an IoT solution, including data storage options, data analysis, data processing, and platform-as-a-service options. IoT Developers must be able to recognize Azure IoT service configuration settings within the code portion of an IoT solution and perform specific IoT coding tasks in at least one Azure-supported language, including C#, Node, C, or Python.
The high-level view of the skills measured in the exam:
- Implement the IoT solution infrastructure (15-20%)
- Provision and manage devices (20-25%)
- Implement Edge (15-20%)
- Process and manage data (15-20%)
- Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimize IoT solutions (15-20%)
- Implement security (15-20%)
You can find more information on the exam website.
Free Online Microsoft Learn AZ-220 Exam Study Guide resources
Microsoft Learn provides you with free online training and learning paths for different Microsoft technologies. They not just offer reading material, but also control questions and free online labs. Here are some relevant Microsoft Learn modules and learning paths for the AZ-220 Microsoft Azure IoT Developer Certification Exam. Microsoft Learn is an important part of my AZ-220 exam study guide.
- Introduction to Azure IoT (8 modules)
- Securely connect IoT devices to the cloud (6 modules)
- Build the intelligent edge with Azure IoT Edge (3 modules)
- Develop IoT solutions with Azure IoT Central (3 modules)
Microsoft Docs AZ-220 study guide resources
One thing I always used to prepare for my Microsoft exams is Microsoft Docs. Here are the relevant Microsoft Docs which I used to prepare and study for the AZ-220 exam.
Implement the IoT solution infrastructure (15-20%)
Create and configure an IoT Hub
- create an IoT Hub
- register a device
- configure a device twin
- configure IoT Hub tier and scaling
Build device messaging and communication
- build messaging solutions by using SDKs (device and service)
- implement device-to-cloud communication
- implement cloud-to-device communication
- configure file upload for devices
Configure physical IoT devices
- recommend an appropriate protocol based on device specifications
- configure device networking, topology, and connectivity
Provision and manage devices (20-25%)
Implement the Device Provisioning Service (DPS)
- create a Device Provisioning Service
- create a new enrollment in DPS
- manage allocation policies by using Azure Functions
- link an IoT Hub to the DPS
Manage the device lifecycle
- provision a device by using DPS
- deprovision an autoenrollment
- decommission (disenroll) a device
Manage IoT devices by using IoT Hub
- manage devices list in the IoT Hub device registry
- modify device twin tags and properties
- trigger an action on a set of devices by using IoT Hub Jobs and Direct Methods
- set up Automatic Device Management of IoT devices at scale
Build a solution by using IoT Central
- define a device type in Azure IoT Central
- configure rules and actions in Azure IoT Central
- define the operator view
- add and manage devices from IoT Central
- monitor devices
Implement Edge (15-20%)
Set up and deploy an IoT Edge device
- create a device identity in IoT Hub
- deploy a single IoT device to IoT Edge
- create a deployment for IoT Edge devices
- install container runtime on IoT devices
- define and implement deployment manifest
- update security daemon and runtime
Develop modules
- create and configure an Edge module
- deploy a module to an Edge device
- publish an IoT Edge module to an Azure Container Registry
Configure an IoT Edge device
- select and deploy an appropriate gateway pattern
- implement module-to-module communication
- implement and configure offline support
Process and manage data (15-20%)
Configure routing in Azure IoT Hub
- implement message enrichment in IoT Hub
- configure routing of IoT Device messages to endpoints
- define and test routing queries
- integrate with Event Grid
Configure stream processing
- create ASA for data and stream processing of IoT data
- process and filter IoT data by using Azure Functions
- configure Stream Analytics outputs
Configure an IoT solution for Time Series Insights (TSI)
- Implement solutions to handle telemetry and time-stamped data
- create an Azure Time Series Insights (TSI) environment
- connect the IoT Hub and the Time Series Insights (TSI)
Monitor, troubleshoot, and optimize IoT solutions (15-20%)
Configure health monitoring
- configure metrics in IoT Hub
- set up diagnostics logs for Azure IoT Hub
- query and visualize tracing by using Azure monitor
Troubleshoot device communication
- establish maintenance communication
- verify device telemetry is received by IoT Hub
- validate device twin properties, tags and direct methods
- troubleshoot device disconnects and connects
Perform end-to-end solution testing and diagnostics
- estimate the capacity required for each service in the solution
- conduct performance and stress testing
- set up device D2C message tracing by using Azure Distributed Tracing
Implement security (15-20%)
Implement device authentication in the IoT Hub
- choose an appropriate form of authentication
- manage the X.509 certificates for a device
- manage the symmetric keys for a device
Implement device security by using DPS
- configure different attestation mechanisms with DPS
- generate and manage x.509 certificates for IoT Devices
- configure enrollment with x.509 certificates
- generate a TPM endorsements key for a device
- configure enrollment with symmetric keys
Implement Azure Security Center (ASC) for IoT
- enable ASC for IoT in Azure IoT Hub
- create security modules
- configure custom alerts
Additional Tips and Resources
I hope this AZ-220 Microsoft Azure IoT Developer Certification Exam Study Guide helps you pass the exam and get the Azure IoT Developer Speciality certification. I also recommend that you open a free Azure account if you don’t have one yet. You can create your free Azure account here. Also, check out my blog posts about Microsoft Azure Certification:
- Why you should become Microsoft Azure certified
- How to pick the right Azure exam certification path
- How to prepare and pass a Microsoft Azure exam
- Learn Microsoft Azure in 2020
I hope you enjoyed my AZ-220 Azure IoT Developer Study Guide. Did I miss any link, or do you have any recommended AZ-220 Microsoft Azure IoT Developer Certification Exam Study resources? Let me know in the comments.
