Expressing itemA's Dependency on itemB with the Successor Link Type in Azure Boards

AZ-400 By islever Editorial Last updated

Design and implement traceability and flow of work

Short answer

D Open itemA's Links tab, add a link, set Link type to Successor, and add itemB, because Successor records that itemA cannot complete until itemB is finished.

Question

You manage projects by using Azure Boards. You have a current work item name itemA that is dependant on a work item named itemB. You need to define the dependency for itemA. What should you do in the web portal for Azure DevOps?
  1. Add a Parent link to the user story of itemA.
  2. From Backlogs, open the context menu, select Add link, and then select itemA. Set Link type to References and add the ID of itemB.
  3. From itemA, open the Links tab, and then select Add link. Set Link type to References and add the ID of itemB.
  4. From itemA, open the Links tab, and then select Add link. Set Link type to Successor and add the ID of itemB. Correct Answer

Key Takeaways

A dependency where itemA cannot proceed until itemB is finished is expressed with the Successor link type, added from itemA's Links tab by pointing at itemB, because Successor records that itemA comes after itemB.

Work item itemA depends on work item itemB, and that dependency must be defined in the Azure DevOps web portal. In Azure Boards, dependencies between work items are expressed through link types rather than through parent-child hierarchy, so the correct link type must be chosen to represent the ordering.

Common mistake: Using the References link type. References records a loose association between two work items and carries no ordering or dependency semantics, so it does not express that itemA is blocked by itemB. Adding a Parent link is also wrong, since parent-child expresses hierarchy and containment, not sequencing.

Expert Analysis

Why the Answer Is Correct

The scenario requires defining a dependency, and in Azure Boards dependency relationships between work items are represented by the predecessor and successor link types rather than by hierarchy. Since itemA depends on itemB, itemA is the successor and itemB is the predecessor, so from itemA you open the Links tab, select Add link, set the link type to Successor, and supply the ID of itemB. The vote was 64 for D and 36 for B. FeriAZ explained the semantics directly, noting that Successor signifies itemA cannot be completed until itemB is finished, and that opening the Links tab within itemA to add the ID of itemB establishes the specific dependency.

Why the Other Options Are Wrong

From Backlogs, using the context menu to add a link and setting Link type to References (B) uses the wrong link type, because References is a general association with no dependency or ordering meaning. ctrung made this precise, pointing out that there is no such thing as a References dependency link type in the form the option describes, which is the same reason the option fails. Adding a Parent link to the user story of itemA (A) expresses a parent-child hierarchy and containment relationship, which is a different concept: a dependency says itemA is blocked by itemB, not that itemA contains itemB. Note that the navigation steps in option B are otherwise the same as in D, so the single discriminating factor is the link type.

Community Comment Notes

The community favored D at 64 votes, and the highest-liked comment, FeriAZ, explained both the dependency semantics and the correct navigation path. ctrung gave the decisive technical point, noting that B and D describe the same steps but that no References link type exists for dependencies, making D the only correct choice. Kalaisuran cited the Microsoft Learn page on link type reference, which documents the predecessor and successor types. One voter, crowpl86, noted the question appears twice in the same dump, which explains the split votes and does not affect the answer.

Official Reference

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/devops/boards/queries/link-type-reference?view=azure-devops

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

Community Votes

D
64%
B
36%

64% of anonymous learners picked answer D. Votes are pick records left by other test-takers — they are not the verified answer.

Discussion 8 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 8

  1. FeriAZ 👍 3 Answered B
    In Azure Boards, dependencies between work items are established using links. When itemA is dependent on itemB (meaning itemB needs to be completed before work on itemA can start), you create a "Predecessor-Successor" dependency.
  2. Kalaisuran 👍 2 Answered D
    https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/devops/boards/queries/link-type-reference?view=azure-devops
  3. FeriAZ 👍 1 Answered D
    Successor is the appropriate link type to indicate a dependency. It signifies that itemA cannot be completed until itemB is finished. Opening the Links tab within itemA allows you to manage its linked work items. Adding the ID of itemB establishes the specific dependency between the two work items.
  4. ctrung 👍 1 Answered D
    Both B and D shows the correct step to add a link. However, there is no such thing as References link type. So D is the correct answer.
  5. crowpl86 👍 1 Answered B
    Should be B, duplicated question in page 18
Show 3 more comments
  1. Munwalinwali 👍 2 Answered D
    The answe is correct
  2. Mattt 👍 1 Answered D
    D is correct
  3. Blackbirds 👍 1
    B or D ?

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