DAA-C01 Exam Dumps - Snowflake SnowPro Advanced Certification Questions and Answers

In Snowsight, Snowflake's modern web interface, Filters are used to make dashboards and worksheets interactive. When a Data Analyst creates a custom filter, they define a "SQL Keyword" that acts as a variable within their SQL code. This allows users to select a value from a dropdown or date picker in the UI, which then dynamically updates the query's results.

The standard syntax for referencing a filter variable in a Snowflake worksheet or dashboard is the colon prefix (:) followed by the keyword name. In this specific scenario, the keyword is state. Therefore, the query must use :state to tell Snowflake that this value should be supplied by the dashboard's filter UI rather than being a literal string or a column reference.

Evaluating the Options:

Option A is the 100% correct syntax. It correctly uses the :state identifier to link the query logic to the dashboard filter.

Option B is incorrect because the @ symbol is typically used in Snowflake to reference stages (e.g., @mystage), not dashboard filters.

Option C is incorrect because state = state is a tautology that will always evaluate to true for non-null values; it does not reference an external filter.

Option D is incorrect because 'state' is a string literal. The query would literally look for a state named "state" rather than using the user's selection.

Using these filters effectively is a core requirement for the Data Presentation and Data Visualization domain, as it enables the creation of self-service analytics tools where non-technical users can explore data subsets without modifying SQL code.

Snowflake provides a powerful feature called Result Caching. When a query is executed, the results are persisted for 24 hours. To access the result set of a previously executed query without re-running the heavy computation (and thus saving credits), a Data Analyst can use the RESULT_SCAN table function.

The function RESULT_SCAN requires a Query ID as its input. The most common way to programmatically retrieve the ID of the most recently executed statement in the current session is by using the LAST_QUERY_ID() function. By wrapping this in the TABLE() operator, Snowflake treats the cached results as a virtual table that can be queried, filtered, or even joined with other tables.

Evaluating the Options:

Option B is incorrect because QUERY_HISTORY returns metadata about queries (like start time, user, and status) but does not return the actual data records produced by those queries.

Option C is incorrect as DESC (Describe) is used to see the columns and data types of an object, not to fetch its row data.

Option D is incorrect; while LAST_QUERY_ID(-1) might successfully retrieve a string representing a previous ID in some contexts, it does not actually "access the results" or display the data.

Option A is the 100% correct syntax. It is the standard method used by Data Analysts to perform post-processing on a large result set or to recover a result set if the worksheet was accidentally cleared. This is a key part of the Data Analysis domain, specifically regarding performance optimization and the utilization of Snowflake's unique caching layers.

Secure Views in Snowflake are specifically designed for data privacy and security, particularly when data is being shared across different business units or external accounts. The primary benefit of a secure view is that it prevents users from seeing the internal definitions (the underlying SQL) and protects against "trial-and-error" data discovery.

In a standard view, a savvy user might be able to deduce information about data they are not authorized to see by observing the query optimizer's behavior or by looking at the query profile. For example, by using specific filters or functions, a user might observe how long a query takes to execute or check the statistics to guess the distribution of values in hidden columns. Secure views prevent this by ensuring that Snowflake does not expose the internal metadata or the specific row/column counts that would allow a user to make observations about the quantity or nature of the underlying data that falls outside their access privileges.

Evaluating the Options:

Option B and C are incorrect because Snowflake does not merely obfuscate bytes or micro-partitions in a way that suggests a simple "hiding" of metrics; it fundamentally changes the query plan generation to ensure security.

Option D is a common misconception. In fact, secure views can sometimes be less performant than regular views. This is because the Snowflake optimizer is restricted from using certain optimizations (like predicate pushdown) that might inadvertently reveal data patterns to an unauthorized user.

Option A is the 100% correct answer. The "secure" nature of the view ensures that the user cannot use statistical side-channels or metadata observations to infer the existence or volume of data they are restricted from seeing.

To achieve the desired result, an analyst must understand the fundamental behavior of different JOIN types within Snowflake and how they affect the retention of records from the "left" or primary table. The goal here is to list all brokers, even those who have zero customers (like "Drew") or customers with zero orders (like "Debby").

In SQL, an INNER JOIN only returns rows when there is a match in both tables. If we were to use an INNER JOIN between BROKER and CUSTOMER, Drew would be excluded from the results because he has no associated records in the CUSTOMER table. Similarly, an INNER JOIN with the ORDERS table would exclude any broker whose customers haven't placed an order.

Evaluating the Join Logic:

Option C is the correct solution because it utilizes a chain of LEFT JOINs. A LEFT JOIN (or LEFT OUTER JOIN) ensures that every record from the left table (BROKER) is preserved in the result set. If no matching record exists in the joined table (CUSTOMER or ORDERS), Snowflake populates the columns with NULL. This is why "Drew" appears with a CUST_COUNT of 0 and "Debby" appears with a NULL for the total order amount.

Option A fails because it uses an INNER JOIN for the CUSTOMER table, which would immediately filter out "Drew."

Option B and Option D fail because they use INNER JOINs at different stages of the query, which would strip away brokers or customers that do not have matching order activity.

Additionally, the query correctly uses COUNT(DISTINCT c.customer_id) to ensure that customers are not double-counted if they have multiple orders, and GROUP BY 1 (referencing b.broker_name) to aggregate the data at the broker level. This pattern is essential for accurate Data Analysis in Snowflake when dealing with "optional" relationships in a star or snowflake schema.

Snowflake Cortex ML functions, such as the Forecasting and Anomaly Detection models, are designed to be "black boxes" that provide automated machine learning capabilities directly within SQL. However, for a Data Analyst to trust and validate these models, Snowflake provides specific Object Methods (invoked with the ! operator) to inspect the model's internal logic and performance.

The !EXPLAIN_FEATURE_IMPORTANCE() method is specifically designed to provide transparency into how the model reached its conclusions. When invoked on a trained forecast model, it returns a result set showing which features (such as exogenous variables or time-based components like seasonality and trend) had the most significant impact on the predicted values. This is a critical step in the Data Analysis workflow to ensure that the model is not relying on "noise" or irrelevant data points.

Evaluating the Options:

Option A (SHOW_EVALUATION_METRICS) is used to retrieve accuracy statistics like MSE (Mean Squared Error) or MAPE (Mean Absolute Percentage Error) from the training phase, but it does not explain the contribution of specific features.

Option B (SHOW_TRAINING_LOGS) is not a standard Cortex ML method; logging details are typically handled internally or through different system views.

Option D (FORECAST) is the primary method used to actually generate the future predictions once the model is trained; it outputs the forecast itself, not the underlying component importance.

Option C is the correct answer as it is the dedicated method for model interpretability, allowing analysts to see the "why" behind the forecast by quantifying the influence of each input variable. This aligns with Snowflake's focus on "Explainable AI" within the Data Cloud.

Snowflake provides several "approximate" functions designed to handle massive scale with high efficiency. While HyperLogLog (HLL) is the standard for estimating cardinality (unique counts), and APPROX_TOP_K is used for frequency estimation, the specific task of determining the similarity between two sets relies on a different probabilistic algorithm.

The MINHASH function is Snowflake's implementation for estimating the Jaccard similarity coefficient between two or more sets. Jaccard similarity is defined as the size of the intersection divided by the size of the union of the sample sets. Calculating an exact Jaccard similarity on billions of rows would be computationally expensive. MINHASH solves this by creating a "signature"—a small, fixed-size binary representation of the data. By comparing these signatures rather than the raw data, Snowflake can efficiently estimate how similar the original datasets are.

Evaluating the Options:

Option B (APPROX_PERCENTILE) is used to estimate the value at a specific percentile (e.g., the 95th percentile of latency).

Option C (HyperLogLog) is used for estimating cardinality (the number of unique elements), not the similarity between sets.

Option D (APPROX_TOP_K) identifies the most frequent elements in a dataset.

Option A is the 100% correct answer. It is the specific function built into Snowflake for similarity estimation using the MinHash scheme.

The provided image shows a specific section of a Snowflake Query Profile, which is a visual representation of the execution plan and the actual performance of a query. Analyzing this profile is a critical skill for a Data Analyst to identify performance bottlenecks.

1. Identifying the Exploding Join: The most striking evidence in this profile is the relationship between the input and output row counts of the Join [5] operator.

Input Row Counts: The join receives approximately 95.26k rows from one branch and 150k rows from the other.

Output Row Count: The join produces a staggering 571.6M rows.

When a join operation produces a significantly larger number of rows than the sum of its inputs, it is known as an exploding join (or a "Cartesian product-like" behavior). This typically occurs when the join condition is not restrictive enough or when there are many-to-many relationships with duplicate keys in both joining tables. In this specific case, joining on C1.C_NATIONKEY = C2.C_NATIONKEY has caused the row count to balloon from thousands to over half a billion.

2. Impact on Performance: Exploding joins consume excessive CPU and memory resources to process the massive intermediate result set. This often leads to secondary problems like spilling (Option A), where the data exceeds the virtual warehouse's memory and must be written to disk. However, the profile clearly identifies the join itself as the root cause.

Evaluating the Options:

Option A is a symptom, but the visual evidence of row expansion directly points to the join logic itself.

Option C (inefficient pruning) would be identified by a high percentage of partitions scanned in the Table Scan nodes, not by a row count explosion after a join.

Option D is irrelevant; while foreign keys can help the optimizer, their absence doesn't cause this specific visual profile on its own.

Option B is the 100% correct answer. The "exploded" arrow indicating 571.6M rows leaving a join fed by significantly smaller inputs is the textbook definition of an exploding join.

Understanding how Snowflake handles integrity constraints is vital, as it differs significantly from traditional transactional databases like PostgreSQL or SQL Server. In Snowflake, most constraints are not enforced by the system, with one major exception.

Enforcement vs. Documentation: Snowflake does not enforce PRIMARY KEY, FOREIGN KEY, or UNIQUE constraints during data loading or updates. If you define a primary key, Snowflake will still allow duplicate values to be inserted. The primary reason for including these is for documentation and metadata (Option C), allowing data analysts and BI tools to understand the intended relationships and schema design.

The NOT NULL Exception: The only integrity constraint that Snowflake actively enforces is NOT NULL (Option B). If a column is defined as NOT NULL, any attempt to insert or update a record with a null value in that column will result in an error.

Evaluating the Options:

Options A and D are incorrect because Snowflake does not actually enforce these constraints; it merely stores them as metadata.

Option E is incorrect because while keys can be used for clustering, defining them as constraints is not a prerequisite for specifying them as clustering keys.

Options B and C are the 100% correct reasons. They represent the practical application (enforcing data quality for nulls) and the architectural application (providing context for the data model).

Snowflake provides native support for geospatial analysis through the GEOGRAPHY and GEOMETRY data types, along with a suite of Standardized Spatial Functions. To calculate the "least distance" between two geographic points (such as an employee's home and a potential office site) on the Earth's surface, the most efficient and direct function is ST_DISTANCE.

The ST_DISTANCE function takes two GEOGRAPHY objects as input and returns the minimum geodesic distance between them. A key benefit of using this native function for Data Analysis is that it automatically returns the result in meters by default when used with the GEOGRAPHY type, which models the Earth as a spheroid. This eliminates the need for manual mathematical conversions or complex custom logic, satisfying the "least operational overhead" requirement.

Evaluating the Options:

Option A (ST_HAUSDORFFDISTANCE) is used to measure the similarity between two shapes (geometries), not the simple distance between two points.

Option B (HAVERSINE) is a mathematical formula that can be implemented manually in SQL, but it requires significantly more code and "operational overhead" compared to a single built-in function.

Option C (ST_LENGTH) is used to measure the total length of a LineString or the perimeter of a Polygon, rather than the distance between two distinct objects.

Option D is the 100% correct answer. It is the optimized, native Snowflake function for point-to-point distance calculations in the Data Cloud.

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To determine the correct output, a Data Analyst must understand the behavior of the STRTOK_SPLIT_TO_TABLE table function and how it interacts with different delimiters.

1. Functionality of STRTOK_SPLIT_TO_TABLE:

The STRTOK_SPLIT_TO_TABLE function tokenizes a string based on a set of specified delimiters. Unlike simple SPLIT functions that often look for a literal string as a delimiter, STRTOK treats the delimiter string as a set of individual characters. Any character present in the delimiter string will trigger a split. Crucially, it skips empty tokens—if multiple delimiters appear consecutively, it does not produce a row for the space between them.

2. Evaluating the Data and Delimiters ('*-'):

'JOHN*DOE': The * character is a delimiter. This results in two tokens: JOHN and DOE.

'ALICE-SMITH': The - character is a delimiter. This results in two tokens: ALICE and SMITH.

'BOB*-JOHNSON': Both * and - are delimiters. Because they appear consecutively (*-), the function splits at each but ignores the empty space between them. This results in two tokens: BOB and JOHNSON.

3. Analyzing the Resulting Rows:

The LATERAL join produces a row for every token generated. The columns SEQ (identifying the source row sequence) and INDEX (position of the token within that sequence) are used for sorting.

Student 1: 2 tokens (JOHN, DOE) $\rightarrow$ 2 rows.

Student 2: 2 tokens (ALICE, SMITH) $\rightarrow$ 2 rows.

Student 3: 2 tokens (BOB, JOHNSON) $\rightarrow$ 2 rows.

Evaluating the Options (image_8233d8.png):

Option A incorrectly only shows results for Student 3.

Option C incorrectly implies Student 1 and 2 produce three tokens each.

Option D incorrectly interprets the consecutive delimiters in Student 3's name as creating a different sequence count.

Option B is the 100% correct result set. It accurately shows that each student’s name is split into exactly two parts, properly handling the varying delimiters and the consecutive characters in the third record.