Trainer Preparation Guide: AZ-305T00A November 2021

Purpose
This document is for Microsoft Certified Trainers preparing to teach the AZ-305 Designing
Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions course. This course is designed for students who are
planning to take the associated certification exam, or students who are performing Azure
solutions architect tasks in their day-to-day job.
This course is an advanced interactive and collaborative learning experience. Trainers are
expected to lead discussions and architect design sessions with the students. A lot of planning
and practice should go into preparing to teach this course. Shadowing another experienced MCT
delivering this course is recommended.

Solution Architect Role Definition

Both the certification exam and the courseware are based on the Azure Solution Architect role.
Azure Solution Architects have subject matter expertise in designing cloud and hybrid solutions
that run on Microsoft Azure, including compute, network, storage, monitor, and security.
Remember there are other roles, such as DevOps and Solutions Architect.

Audience and prerequisites

This course is for Azure Solution Architects. Successful Azure Solution Architects start this role
with experience in networking, compute, storage, and business continuity solutions. Before
attending this course, students must have previous experience deploying or administering Azure
resources and conceptual knowledge of:
• Azure Active Directory
• Azure compute technologies such as VMs, containers and serverless solutions
• Azure virtual networking to include load balancers
• Azure Storage technologies (unstructured and databases)
To help students prepare for class consider providing these links to the Microsoft Learn free
online training. Most instructors agree that completing AZ-104, Azure Administrator, is needed to
get the most out of this course.
• AZ-104: Manage identities and governance in Azure - Learn | Microsoft Docs
• AZ-104: Implement and manage storage in Azure - Learn | Microsoft Docs
• AZ-104: Deploy and manage Azure compute resources - Learn | Microsoft Docs
• AZ-104: Configure and manage virtual networks for Azure administrators - Learn |
Microsoft Docs

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• AZ-104: Monitor and back up Azure resources - Learn | Microsoft Docs

Certification Exam
Certification exams measure your ability to accomplish certain technical tasks for a job role. The
study areas are based on the Job Task Analysis that determines what day-to-day tasks are
performed in this role.
Each functional area has a percentage indicating the relative weight of the area on the exam. The
higher the percentage, the more questions you are likely to see in that area.
Study Area Percentage
Design identity, governance, and monitoring solutions 25-30%
Design data storage solutions 25-30%
Design business continuity solutions 10-15%
Design infrastructure solutions 25-30%

For more information, on the skills measured in the exam, please visit the Exam AZ-305:
Designing Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions page.

An AZ-305 Exam Study Guide Azure Solutions Architect Certification - Thomas Maurer is
available.

For more information regarding the Azure Solutions Architect Expert certification check out
this blog post: Reimagining the Azure Solutions Architect Expert certification - Microsoft Tech
Community

Preparing to Teach
In the next sections we will cover the main course components and how they can used in class.
There is a lot of flexibility in how you use this content to create the best learning experience for
your students.

Course Content
The course content is available on Skillpipe and on Microsoft Learn. You are not required to use
the Learn content however if you do a digital Collection has been created so your students can
follow along - https://aka.ms/AZ-305StudentMaterials. There are Module 00 slides to
demonstrate either Skillpipe or Learn to your students.

The course is organized into 11 areas. Always ensure you are covering the content most
applicable to your audience. This order is for teaching purposes and may not be order you plan or
think about designing or architecting an infrastructure.

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Here is the Skillpipe outline showing Modules and Lessons. Each Skillpipe Lesson is a Learn
Module in the collection. The Course Outline, in the MCT Download Center, provides more detail.

Module 00 - Welcome (including CAF and WAF)

Module 01 - Design governance and compute solutions
Lesson 01 - Design a governance solution*
Lesson 02 - Design a compute solution*
Module 02 - Design storage and integration solutions
Lesson 01 - Design a non-relational storage solution*
Lesson 02 - Design a relational storage solution*
Lesson 03 - Design a data integration solution
Module 03 - Design app architecture, access, and monitoring solutions
Lesson 01 - Design an app architecture solution*
Lesson 02 - Design authentication and authorization solutions*
Lesson 03 - Design a logging and monitoring solution
Module 04 - Design network, continuity, and migration solutions
Lesson 01- Design a network infrastructure solution*
Lesson 02 - Design a business continuity solution
Lesson 03 - Design a migration solution
* Case study

Remind students that no single resource can prepare them for the exam. Additional study
opportunities are listed at the end of each module ( Summary and resources page).

Timing
Module 00 has a slide with a proposed schedule. You should adjust this schedule to your
classroom situation. This course should have at least a 50/50 mix of lecture and case study.

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• Case studies are generally 60 – 120 minutes.

• Lectures, whiteboarding, and discussions are generally 60- 120 minutes.
• These timings will vary depending on your audience.

Case Studies
Case studies are provided for most modules. The student case studies instructions are in the AZ-
305 Microsoft Learning GitHub repository. The instructor case study solution is in the MCT DLC.
Modules that do not have a formal case study have an interactive discussion at the end of the
module.
To complete the case studies, you can:
• Break your students into groups or have them work individually. Use Teams or Zoom
feature Breakout rooms to facilitate the small group work. If you don’t have access to
such features, consider having them work individually.
• Have students create their solution on their media of choice (Word doc, PPT slide, Vizio,
or virtual whiteboard) Azure Architecture icons, if needed, can be downloaded here:
https://docs.microsoft.com/azure/architecture/icons/
• Have students present solutions by either sharing their screen or sending their solution to
you to share on screen. Consider just having students add to your whiteboard. Or
consider adding blank collaborative whiteboards for each team.
• Be sure to manage time wisely. Not every individual or group may have time to present
but there are multiple case studies over the course. Consider breaking out the case study
questions by group or individual.
• Consider the Cloud Adoption Framework and Well Architected Framework as you design
your case study solutions.
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• The Fabrikam Residences case study at the end of Day 3 is a broader case study covering
several modules.

If you have feedback on the student portion of the case study, create an Issue on the lab
GitHub repository. For instructor solution feedback please post in the MCT support forum so
that students don’t see any answers on GitHub.

Hands-on demonstrations and exercises

This course was designed with case studies and whiteboard discussions in mind. No Azure Pass is
provided for this course. No hosted lab environment is available.
• If you feel your audience would benefit from demonstrations the AZ-900T0x-
MicrosoftAzureFundamentals walk-throughs could be used.
• If you would like to deploy an Azure environment for your demonstrations consider the
Tailwind Traders sample reference application.
• For students who would like to try some administration tasks there are Learn module
sandboxes. These sandboxes do not require a subscription. Suggested sandboxes are
shown on the Course Outline and on the Summary and Resources page/slide. Not every
lesson will have optional hands-on exercises. Time to in class to complete the exercises is
not included in the course timing. These activities should be on the student’s own time.

Whiteboard discussions
Whiteboard discussions are encouraged. To help with ideas we have provided various
architecture diagrams. Ideally you would draw the architecture and explain to students each
component. You can use the diagrams in the content or use your own.
• Additional whiteboard slides are hidden at the end of each presentation. You can select
one or more of these whiteboards to include in your lecture.

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• Also Microsoft Customer Stories have been added into the content to provide context on
how solutions can meet business needs. You can use these stories during your lecture to
bring some real life examples.

PowerPoint Slides
Each module has a PowerPoint deck. Module overview and lesson overview slides are included so
you can introduce the content to your students.
• The Lesson Introduction slide includes the certification topics that are covered.
• Module 00 includes slides on Cloud Adoption Framework and Well Architect Framework
so you can present these concepts at the beginning of the course.
• Module 00 includes customizable slides for virtual teaching, in person teaching, student
content on Learn and Skillpipe. You should pick the slides most appropriate for your class.
• Some modules have a “matching” slide with a maze icon to signal this is a review or quiz
for the students. The intent of these activities is to encourage discussion.
• Notice that some slide titles have a link to reference documentation. You can use this link
to find more information on the topic and find the most up to date information on the
product.
• Be sure to review the PPT notes. There are reference links, questions, and other areas you
can explore with the students.

Every effort has been made to align the student content with the instructor slides. However,
some differences are to be expected. For example, topics might be grouped together to make
the concepts easier to explain. “Breaker” slides group the slides together under a course
outline topic.

Group Discussions
Included throughout the content are questions designed to help students reflect on what they
have learned or emphasize some important point.
You will find notes, tips, and important tool tips in the student content. Also, your PowerPoint
slides notes will have questions with proposed answers.

Assessment Questions
Review questions are provided throughout the course to check the student’s knowledge. You can
use these review questions in several ways:

• Have the student’s pre-test before the course starts and then at the end to see what they
have learned.

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• As a group, go through the questions before moving on to another section.

• Sprinkle the questions into the content as you cover the related material.

Note these questions are not at the level of the certification exam. You may wish to
supplement with questions of your own choosing.

Microsoft Learn - Additional Study Resources

At the end of each module is a slide with applicable Microsoft Learn modules. These modules can
be used as additional study opportunities. There are also dedicated Architect learning paths for
self-paced users.
• Architect network infrastructure in Azure learning path - Learn | Microsoft Docs
• Architect infrastructure operations in Azure learning path - Learn | Microsoft Docs
• Architect compute infrastructure in Azure learning path - Learn | Microsoft Docs
• Architect storage infrastructure in Azure learning path - Learn | Microsoft Docs
• Architect a data platform in Azure learning path - Learn | Microsoft Docs
• Architect migration, business continuity, and disaster recovery in Azure learning path -
Learn | Microsoft Docs

References
There are a lot of resources to help you and the student learn about Azure. We recommend you
bookmark these pages. The list is included in the Welcome section of the student materials.
• Azure Architecture Center. Is guidance for architecting solutions on Azure using
established patterns and practices.
• Azure Documentation. Stay informed on the latest products, tools, and features. Get
information on pricing, partners, support, and solutions.
• Azure forums . The Azure forums are very active. You can search the threads for a specific
area of interest. You can also browse categories like Azure Storage, Pricing and Billing,
Azure Virtual Machines, and Azure Migrate.
• Microsoft Learning Community Blog . Get the latest information about the certification
tests and exam study groups.
• Microsoft Azure Blog . Keep current on what's happening in Azure, including what's now
in preview, generally available, news & updates, and more.
• Azure Charts. Live visual exploration environment for Azure Cloud + ecosystem.

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Connect with Others

• MCT Central. Your one stop for all things MCT. Stay up to date with the latest MCT news,
learn about upcoming events, find job opportunities, or connect with other MCTs around
the world. You can also ask questions and discuss a variety of topics including courseware
and certification with Microsoft and other MCTs through the MCT Central Forums.
• MOC Courseware Support. If there are problems with a course or you need to log a
support ticket, please use the MCT Support Forum. Issues logged on this forum are
tracked and ensure the content developer is notified.

Feedback
In this course we have provided a framework for you to work with. Take time to prepare and
think about the value that only an instructor can bring to training. We hope to partner with you
to provide an exceptional student experience and we welcome your feedback.

Happy learning!
Azure Solution Architect Courseware Development Team