The AZ-802 training prepares you to administer Windows Server across on-premises and hybrid environments. This official Microsoft course succeeds AZ-800 and AZ-801, both retired on 30 September 2026, and brings together in five days the core of the server administrator role: Active Directory Domain Services, Group Policy, DNS, DHCP, Hyper-V virtualisation, storage, security and monitoring.
The official outline runs to 58 modules covering physical servers and Azure IaaS virtual machines alike. You connect servers to Azure Arc, automate their configuration, enforce security baselines, and troubleshoot networking, authentication and performance incidents. Every topic is practised in official Microsoft labs, on machines you can deploy and break without touching production.
Delivered by MCT certified trainers at ITTA in Geneva, in Lausanne or in a virtual classroom, this training targets administrators who already run Windows Server and want their skills recognised through the Microsoft Certified: Windows Server Administrator Associate certification.
Module 1: Deploy and manage Active Directory Domain Services domain controllers
Module 2: Deploy and manage Azure IaaS Active Directory domain controllers in Azure
Module 3: Manage AD DS domain controllers and FSMO roles
Module 4: Create and manage Active Directory objects
Module 5: Implement hybrid identity with Windows Server
Module 6: Create and configure Group Policy Objects in Active Directory
Module 7: Implement Group Policy Objects
Module 8: Manage advanced features of AD DS
Module 9: Administer and manage Windows Server IaaS Virtual Machine remotely
Module 10: Describe Windows Server administration tools
Module 11: Just Enough Administration in Windows Server
Module 12: Perform Windows Server secure administration
Module 13: Use advanced Windows PowerShell remoting techniques
Module 14: Manage single and multiple computers by using Windows PowerShell remoting
Module 15: Manage hybrid workloads with Azure Arc
Module 16: Manage Azure updates
Module 17: Automate the configuration of Windows Server IaaS Virtual Machines
Module 18: Enforce VM security configuration with Azure Machine Configuration
Module 19: Explore Azure Automation with DevOps
Module 20: Configure and manage Hyper-V virtual machines
Module 21: Configure and manage Hyper-V
Module 22: Secure Hyper-V workloads
Module 23: Implement high availability of Windows Server VMs
Module 24: Run containers on Windows Server
Module 25: Plan and deploy Windows Server IaaS Virtual Machines
Module 26: Implement scale and high availability with Windows Server VM
Module 27: Implement Windows Server IaaS VM IP addressing and routing
Module 28: Implement Windows Server IaaS VM network security
Module 29: Administer and manage Windows Server IaaS Virtual Machine remotely
Module 30: Implement Windows Server DNS
Module 31: Implement DNS for Windows Server IaaS VMs
Module 32: Secure Windows Server DNS
Module 33: Deploy and manage DHCP
Module 34: Implement IP Address Management
Module 35: Implement Windows Server IaaS VM IP addressing and routing
Module 36: Implement a hybrid file server infrastructure
Module 37: Manage Windows Server file servers
Module 38: Implement Storage Spaces and Storage Spaces Direct
Module 39: Implement Windows Server Data Deduplication
Module 40: Implement Windows Server iSCSI
Module 41: Implement Windows Server Storage Replica
Module 42: Manage Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Module 43: Manage Microsoft Defender in Windows client
Module 44: Understand Active Directory Group Policy security settings
Module 45: Manage security in Active Directory
Module 46: Understand Windows Server service accounts
Module 47: Secure Windows Server user accounts
Module 48: Manage security controls for identity and access
Module 49: Security monitoring and governance
Module 50: Monitor Windows Server performance
Module 51: Manage and monitor Windows Server event logs
Module 52: Implement Windows Server auditing and diagnostics
Module 53: Monitor Windows Server IaaS Virtual Machines and hybrid instances
Module 54: Monitor your Azure virtual machines with Azure Monitor
Module 55: Troubleshoot on-premises and hybrid networking
Module 56: Troubleshoot Windows Server Virtual Machines in Azure
Module 57: Windows Server update management
Module 58: Troubleshoot Active Directory
Microsoft retires the AZ-800 and AZ-801 courses on 30 September 2026. AZ-802 replaces both and merges into a single five day path what the two earlier courses handled separately: core infrastructure on one side, advanced services on the other. The result is a dense programme of 58 modules that follows the real working day of an administrator: deploy a domain controller, standardise thousands of endpoints through Group Policy, host virtual machines, publish a file share, lock down access, then monitor the whole estate.
The most visible change is the weight given to Azure Arc. Where the previous path still separated the local server from the cloud resource, AZ-802 treats them as one estate to govern. You onboard physical machines into Azure, apply compliance policies to them, drive their patching from Azure Update Manager and forward their logs into Azure Monitor, without switching tools depending on where a server happens to sit.
In French speaking Switzerland the move to a full cloud model remains partial. Banks, cantonal administrations, trust and accounting firms, watchmaking industry and service SMEs keep domain controllers, file servers and line of business applications on their own premises, often for data sovereignty or latency reasons. Those same organisations run Microsoft 365 and Azure every day. The administrator therefore sits at the junction, responsible for holding together two worlds with their own consoles, identity models and security rules.
That is precisely the profile AZ-802 addresses. The skills practised in class map directly onto the system administrator, infrastructure engineer and Microsoft consultant roles advertised in Geneva and Lausanne: Active Directory, GPO, Hyper-V, storage, PowerShell, privileged account hardening and hybrid monitoring.
The 58 modules fall into coherent blocks. Identity opens the path, with domain controller deployment on-premises and in Azure virtual machines, FSMO role management, Active Directory objects and synchronisation to Microsoft Entra ID. Administration follows: Windows Admin Center, Just Enough Administration, PowerShell remoting, Azure Automation and machine configuration. Virtualisation takes a large share, with Hyper-V, Windows containers, high availability and Azure IaaS virtual machines.
The AZ-802 exam leads to the Microsoft Certified: Windows Server Administrator Associate certification. It is sat online or in an authorised test centre, contains around sixty items mixing multiple choice questions, scenarios and case studies, and leans heavily on operational situations rather than theory recall. Preparation therefore relies far more on repeated hands-on practice than on memorisation.
This certification supersedes the former Windows Server Hybrid Administrator Associate path, which required two exams. One is now enough, which shortens the route without narrowing the scope you need to master. If you already hold the previous certification, AZ-802 acts as an upgrade, particularly on governance and Azure Arc.
The reference content is public and many administrators try to work through it alone. The exercise quickly shows its limits: 58 modules swallow weeks of reading, the dependencies between topics are far from obvious, and most of the real difficulty appears when you build the lab, not when you read about it. A classroom brings three things reading cannot: a lab environment that is already wired up, a trainer who has met your production incident before, and the experience of other participants who usually run comparable infrastructures.
Format matters too. Five consecutive days create a continuity that evenings spread across weeks never reproduce, especially on dependency chains such as identity, then Group Policy, then service account hardening.
Two follow-ups pair naturally with this course. The AZ-040 training, Automating Administration with PowerShell, turns the repetitive tasks discovered here into reliable, repeatable scripts: it is the best return on invested time for anyone managing more than a handful of servers. The AZ-104 training, Microsoft Azure Administrator, picks up on the cloud side and goes deeper into virtual networking, storage, governance and Azure monitoring, which AZ-802 only covers from a server perspective.
In the weeks after the session, the most useful habit is to replay the labs on your own lab environment, then pick one real and bounded project: onboard ten servers into Azure Arc, rebuild a GPO structure, or move a file share to Azure File Sync. Sitting the exam within six to eight weeks remains the surest way to consolidate what you learned.
Do I need to take AZ-800 or AZ-801 before AZ-802?
No. AZ-802 replaces both courses and stands on its own. It covers core infrastructure as well as the advanced services.
What technical level is expected over the five days?
Real Windows Server administration experience is required. You should be able to create a user in Active Directory, read an IP configuration and run a PowerShell command. The pace is demanding and the programme does not revisit those basics.
Does the course cover Windows Server 2025?
Yes. The official content tracks the supported Windows Server releases and the labs run on recent editions, including the points to watch when upgrading from an older estate.
Is a single certification really enough now?
Yes. The AZ-802 exam alone leads to the Microsoft Certified: Windows Server Administrator Associate certification, whereas the previous path required two exams.
Can the training be attended remotely?
Yes. Every session runs in person in Geneva and Lausanne and as a virtual classroom, with the same trainer and the same labs as the group on site.
Which training should follow this one?
The AZ-040 training (Automating Administration with PowerShell) for automation, and the AZ-104 training (Microsoft Azure Administrator) to go further on the cloud side.
Monday to Friday
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Monday to Friday, from 8:30 am to 06:00 pm.
