SnowPro Core Certification (COF-C02) - Cheat Sheet

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SnowPro Core Certification (COF-C02) - Cheat Sheet

SnowPro Core Certification (COF-C02) Exam Cheatsheet

Quick Reference Guide for Exam Preparation

1. Snowflake Architecture

  • Cloud Services Layer: Handles authentication, metadata management, query optimization, and infrastructure management.
  • Compute Layer: Virtual warehouses execute queries and perform data processing. Warehouses are independent and scalable.
  • Storage Layer: Stores structured and semi-structured data in a compressed, columnar format. Data is automatically encrypted.
  • Separation of Storage and Compute: Enables independent scaling and efficient resource allocation.


2. Key Concepts & Terminology

  • Virtual Warehouse: Cluster of compute resources used for query processing.
  • Database & Schema: Logical containers for organizing tables, views, and other objects.
  • Stages: Locations for storing files for loading/unloading (internal/external).
  • Snowflake Roles: Define access permissions; hierarchy includes ACCOUNTADMIN, SYSADMIN, PUBLIC, etc.
  • Data Clustering: Used for optimizing query performance on large tables.


3. Data Loading & Unloading

  • Bulk Loading: Use COPY INTO for loading data from stages into tables.
  • Supported Formats: CSV, JSON, Avro, ORC, Parquet, XML.
  • Unload Data: Use COPY INTO to export data from tables to stages.
  • File Formats: Define parsing rules for data files (e.g., delimiter, compression).


4. Security & Access Control

  • Role-Based Access Control (RBAC): Grants privileges to roles, which are assigned to users.
  • Network Policies: Restrict access based on IP addresses.
  • Data Encryption: Data is encrypted in transit and at rest.
  • Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Strengthens login security.


5. Querying & Performance Optimization

  • Query Caching: Results are cached to speed up repeated queries.
  • Automatic Clustering: Snowflake manages clustering for performance, but manual clustering can be set.
  • Result Caching: Cached results are used for identical queries.
  • Warehouse Scaling: Scale up for performance, scale out for concurrency.


6. Semi-Structured Data Support

  • Variant Data Type: Stores semi-structured data (JSON, XML, Avro).
  • Functions: Use FLATTEN, PARSE_JSON, OBJECT, ARRAY functions for handling semi-structured data.
  • Querying: Use dot notation to access elements within VARIANT columns.


7. Data Sharing & Marketplace

  • Secure Data Sharing: Share data across Snowflake accounts without copying.
  • Snowflake Marketplace: Access third-party datasets and data products.


8. Time Travel & Fail-safe

  • Time Travel: Recover data from previous versions (up to 90 days, depending on edition).
  • Fail-safe: Additional recovery period for system failures (7 days).


9. Key SQL Commands

  • CREATE DATABASE/SCHEMA/TABLE: Set up data structures.
  • COPY INTO: Load/unload data.
  • SELECT: Query data.
  • ALTER: Modify objects.
  • GRANT/REVOKE: Manage permissions.
  • SHOW: List objects (SHOW TABLES, SHOW WAREHOUSES).


10. Best Practices

  • Use appropriate warehouse sizes for workloads.
  • Monitor query performance using Query History.
  • Schedule automatic warehouse suspension to save costs.
  • Apply RBAC for secure access control.
  • Leverage Time Travel for backup and recovery.


11. Exam Tips

  • Review official Snowflake documentation.
  • Practice with sample questions and labs.
  • Understand core concepts, features, and terminology.
  • Focus on architecture, security, data loading, and semi-structured data topics.
  • Use the official exam guide for topic weighting.


Note: This cheatsheet covers essential topics and terminology to help you prepare for the SnowPro® Core Certification (COF-C02) exam. For deeper understanding, refer to the official Snowflake documentation and practice hands-on exercises.

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