Snowflake SnowPro Advanced: Architect Recertification ARA-R01 Exam Practice Test

Answer : A, B, C

These three statements are true according to the Snowflake documentation and the web search results. A row access policy is a feature that allows filtering rows based on user-defined conditions. A row access policy can be applied to an external table, which is a table that reads data from external files in a stage. However, there are some limitations and considerations for using row access policies with external tables.

An external table can be created with a row access policy by using the WITH ROW ACCESS POLICY clause in the CREATE EXTERNAL TABLE statement.The policy can be applied to the VALUE column, which is the column that contains the raw data from the external files in a VARIANT data type1.

A row access policy can also be applied to the VALUE column of an existing external table by using the ALTER TABLE statement with the SET ROW ACCESS POLICY clause2.

A row access policy cannot be directly added to a virtual column of an external table. A virtual column is a column that is derived from the VALUE column using an expression.To apply a row access policy to a virtual column, the policy must be applied to the VALUE column and the expression must be repeated in the policy definition3.

External tables are not supported as mapping tables in a row access policy. A mapping table is a table that is used to determine the access rights of users or roles based on some criteria.Snowflake does not support using an external table as a mapping table because it may cause performance issues or errors4.

While cloning a database, Snowflake clones the row access policy, but not the external table. Therefore, the policy in the cloned database refers to a table that is not present in the cloned database.To avoid this issue, the external table must be manually cloned or recreated in the cloned database4.

A row access policy can be applied to a view created on top of an external table. The policy can be applied to the view itself or to the underlying external table.However, if the policy is applied to the view, the view must be a secure view, which is a view that hides the underlying data and the view definition from unauthorized users5.

CREATE EXTERNAL TABLE | Snowflake Documentation

ALTER EXTERNAL TABLE | Snowflake Documentation

Understanding Row Access Policies | Snowflake Documentation

Snowflake Data Governance: Row Access Policy Overview

Secure Views | Snowflake Documentation

Answer : A

A stage is a named location in Snowflake that can store files for data loading and unloading. A stage can be internal or external, depending on where the files are stored.

The query in the question uses theLISTfunction to list the files in a stage named FILEROWS. The function returns a table with various columns, including FILE_ROW_NUMBER, which is the line number of the file in the stage.

Therefore, the query can be interpreted as listing the files in a stage named FILEROWS and showing the line number of each file in the stage.

: Stages

: LIST Function

Answer : A

The image shows a SQL query that can be used to identify which queries are spilled to remote storage and suggests changing the warehouse parameters to address this issue. Spilling to remote storage occurs when the memory allocated to a warehouse is insufficient to process a query, and Snowflake uses disk or cloud storage as a temporary cache. This can significantly slow down the query performance and increase the cost. To troubleshoot this issue, a Snowflake Architect can run the query shown in the image to find out which queries are spilling, how much data they are spilling, and which warehouses they are using.Then, the architect can adjust the warehouse size, type, or scaling policy to provide enough memory for the queries and avoid spilling12.Reference:

Recognizing Disk Spilling

Managing the Kafka Connector

Answer : A

A transient table is a type of table in Snowflake that does not have a Fail-safe period and can have a Time Travel retention period of either 0 or 1 day.Transient tables are suitable for temporary or intermediate data that can be easily reproduced or replicated1.

A temporary table is a type of table in Snowflake that is automatically dropped when the session ends or the current user logs out.Temporary tables do not incur any storage costs, but they are not visible to other users or sessions2.

A permanent table is a type of table in Snowflake that has a Fail-safe period and a Time Travel retention period of up to 90 days.Permanent tables are suitable for persistent and durable data that needs to be protected from accidental or malicious deletion3.

In this case, the use case requires loading some data that can be visualized through Tableau. The data is updated every day and the old data is no longer required. Therefore, the best type of table to use in this case to optimize cost is a transient table, because it does not incur any Fail-safe costs and it can have a short Time Travel retention period of 0 or 1 day. This way, the data can be loaded and queried by Tableau, and then deleted or overwritten without incurring any unnecessary storage costs.

Answer : A, E, F

A securable object is an entity to which access can be granted in Snowflake.Securable objects include databases, schemas, tables, views, stages, pipes, functions, procedures, sequences, tasks, streams, roles, warehouses, and shares1.

The Snowflake object hierarchy is a logical structure that organizes the securable objects in a nested manner. The top-most container is the account, which contains all the databases, roles, and warehouses for the customer organization. Each database contains schemas, which in turn contain tables, views, stages, pipes, functions, procedures, sequences, tasks, and streams. Each role can be granted privileges on other roles or securable objects.Each warehouse can be used to execute queries on securable objects2.

Based on the Snowflake object hierarchy, the securable objects that belong directly to a Snowflake account are databases, roles, and warehouses. These objects are created and managed at the account level, and do not depend on any other securable object. The other options are not correct because:

Schemas belong to databases, not to accounts.A schema must be created within an existing database3.

Tables belong to schemas, not to accounts.A table must be created within an existing schema4.

Stages belong to schemas or tables, not to accounts. A stage must be created within an existing schema or table.

1: Overview of Access Control | Snowflake Documentation

2: Securable Objects | Snowflake Documentation

3: CREATE SCHEMA | Snowflake Documentation

4: CREATE TABLE | Snowflake Documentation

[5]: CREATE STAGE | Snowflake Documentation

Answer : A, C

According to the Snowflake documentation, these two system functions are provided by Snowflake to monitor clustering information within a table. A system function is a type of function that allows executing actions or returning information about the system. A clustering key is a feature that allows organizing data across micro-partitions based on one or more columns in the table. Clustering can improve query performance by reducing the number of files to scan.

SYSTEM$CLUSTERING_INFORMATION is a system function that returns clustering information, including average clustering depth, for a table based on one or more columns in the table. The function takes a table name and an optional column name or expression as arguments, and returns a JSON string with the clustering information.The clustering information includes the cluster by keys, the total partition count, the total constant partition count, the average overlaps, and the average depth1.

SYSTEM$CLUSTERING_DEPTH is a system function that returns the clustering depth for a table based on one or more columns in the table. The function takes a table name and an optional column name or expression as arguments, and returns an integer value with the clustering depth. The clustering depth is the maximum number of overlapping micro-partitions for any micro-partition in the table.A lower clustering depth indicates a better clustering2.

SYSTEM$CLUSTERING_INFORMATION | Snowflake Documentation

SYSTEM$CLUSTERING_DEPTH | Snowflake Documentation

Answer : B

The warehouse MY_WH will only be active when there are results in the stream. This is because the task is created based on a stream, which means that the task will only be executed when there are new data in the stream. Additionally, the warehouse is set to auto_suspend - 60, which means that the warehouse will automatically suspend after 60 seconds of inactivity. Therefore, the warehouse will only be active when there are results in the stream.Reference:

[CREATE TASK | Snowflake Documentation]

[Using Streams and Tasks | Snowflake Documentation]

[CREATE WAREHOUSE | Snowflake Documentation]