Setting a Bug Work Item to Resolved with a Fixes #123 Commit Message in Azure Repos

AZ-400 By islever Editorial Last updated

Design and implement traceability and flow of work

Short answer

D Fixes #123 uses a supported resolution keyword with the plain Azure Repos work item ID, so the commit sets bug 123 to Resolved; the AB123 form is GitHub-only.

Question

You manage a project by using Azure Board, and you manage the project code by using Azure Repos. You have a bug work item that has an ID of 123. You need to set the work item state to Resolved. What should you add to the commit message?
  1. #123 completes
  2. Resolves #AB-123
  3. Verifies #123
  4. Fixes #123 Correct Answer

Key Takeaways

Azure Repos recognizes a fixed set of resolution keywords such as Fixes, Resolves, and Closes placed before the work item reference, and it applies the state change to that work item. The reference format in Azure Repos is the plain ID, not the GitHub-style AB123 form.

A project is managed with Azure Boards while code is managed with Azure Repos, and bug work item 123 must move to the Resolved state. Azure Repos resolves work item state from the commit message, so a supported resolution keyword tied to the work item ID must be written into that message.

Common mistake: Using the GitHub-style AB123 reference, which is the Boards-to-GitHub form and does not resolve inside Azure Repos commits, or inventing a non-supported keyword such as completes or Verifies, which the resolution mention parser ignores entirely.

Expert Analysis

Why the Answer Is Correct

Azure Repos closes the loop between commits and work items through resolution mentions, where a recognized keyword in the commit message instructs Azure Boards to update the referenced work item's state. Fixes is one of the supported keywords, and the reference inside an Azure Repos commit is the plain work item ID, so a message of Fixes #123 sets bug 123 to Resolved. The vote was 83 for D and 17 for B. arr73 supplied the decisive documentation link and also explained the reference-format distinction, noting that the AB123 form applies to GitHub rather than Azure Repos, which is exactly why the answer is the plain #123 form.

Why the Other Options Are Wrong

Resolves #AB-123 (B) fails on the reference format, because AB123 is the Boards-to-GitHub identifier style and Azure Repos commit messages resolve plain work item IDs, so the mention parser does not bind it to work item 123. The community vote of 17 for B reflects the near-miss of having the right keyword with the wrong reference syntax. Verifies #123 (C) uses a keyword that is not in the supported resolution list, so it creates no association and changes no state. The message #123 completes (A) is doubly wrong, since the keyword comes after the ID and completes is not a supported keyword either, so nothing happens at all.

Community Comment Notes

The community favored D at 83 votes with arr73's comment carrying the most weight, as it cited the official resolution-mentions documentation and clarified the Azure Repos versus GitHub reference difference. FeriAZ noted that Fixes is a common convention among development teams for signaling bug resolution through commits, which is a practical rather than a documentary reason. 3a6495b posted two contradictory comments in the same thread, first favoring B by reasoning from the word resolve, then correcting to D after noting that Fix, fixes, and fixed are the keywords, which shows how easily this question is misread from the keyword list alone.

Official Reference

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/devops/repos/git/resolution-mentions?view=azure-devops

This link opens the official vendor documentation in a new tab.

Community Votes

D
83%
B
17%

83% of anonymous learners picked answer D. Votes are pick records left by other test-takers — they are not the verified answer.

Discussion 5 contributions

Compiled from public community threads and reader submissions, lightly edited for clarity. Handles and vote tallies are shown as recorded, and comments reflect the views of individual contributors.

From public community threads 5

  1. arr73 👍 2 Answered D
    Answer is D. The reference in documentation: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/devops/repos/git/resolution-mentions?view=azure-devops Note: it's similar to the integration between GitHub and Boards. In the case of github it should be #AB123, but since in this case is Azure Repos, answer is #123
  2. 3a6495b 👍 1 Answered B
    Resolve resolves resolved also are keywords, seeing the numbering i would go for B. But the question is wrong. You have to see in the exam how it will be written
  3. FeriAZ 👍 1 Answered D
    Using "Fixes" is a common convention within development teams to signal bug resolution through commits.
  4. 3a6495b 👍 1 Answered D
    Fix, fixes, fixed are the keywords you can use
  5. Munwalinwali 👍 1 Answered D
    Answer is correct

Reader comments & corrections

No reader corrections yet — spotted an error or have a note? Share it below.

Log in to comment, report an error, or add a note about this question.

Submitted for moderation before publishing. Keep it helpful and respectful.

Committing a 3-GB ZIP of VM Images to Git with Git LFS and Azure Blob Versioning

S-grade

Linking Azure Boards Work Item 123 to a GitHub Pull Request Two Ways

S-grade

Setting Work Item 456 to Done While Linking a GitHub Pull Request to Items 456 457 and 458

S-grade

Surfacing Azure Boards Work Item Status in README.md by Installing the Azure Boards App for GitHub

S-grade

Practice All AZ-400 Questions

Access 100 questions with complete answers and detailed explanations.

View Full AZ-400 Practice Test →

← Back to AZ-400 Study Guide