Microsoft Azure Administrator (AZ104) Practice Exam

Before deleting a Recovery Services vault with protected virtual machines, what is the first step needed?

1. Stop the backup of each backup item

2. Delete the backup data

3. Modify the disaster recovery properties

4. Modify the locks of each virtual machine

The correct answer is: Stop the backup of each backup item

The first step before deleting a Recovery Services vault that has protected virtual machines is to stop the backup of each backup item. This action is critical because the Recovery Services vault is specifically used to manage and store backup data for those protected items. Stopping the backup prepares the environment by ensuring that the vault is no longer actively managing or monitoring the virtual machines. Stopping the backup essentially disassociates the virtual machines from the backup process, which is necessary before you can proceed to safely delete the vault itself and its associated backup data. Once the backups are stopped, you can then follow up with additional steps, such as deleting the backup data and ultimately deleting the vault. This sequence helps ensure data integrity and compliance with backup policies.