The correct answer is to grant the Glue IAM role Lake Formation `CREATE_DATABASE` on the catalog, `CREATE_TABLE` on `sales_db`, and write permission on the S3 location. This is because Lake Formation acts as a fine-grained permissions layer over the AWS Glue Data Catalog; without explicit Lake Formation grants, the Glue role cannot create catalog objects even if its IAM policy allows it. On the AWS Certified Data Engineer Associate DEA-C01 exam, this scenario tests your understanding that Lake Formation supersedes IAM for catalog operations—a common trap is assuming IAM `glue:CreateTable` alone suffices. Remember that Lake Formation permissions are required for any Data Catalog write, while S3 write access must be granted separately to the target bucket. A helpful memory tip: "Lake for the catalog, S3 for the data."
DEA-C01 Data Ingestion and Transformation Practice Question
This DEA-C01 practice question tests your understanding of data ingestion and transformation. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A company is using AWS Lake Formation to manage permissions on data in Amazon S3. They need to ingest data from an external source into a new database 'sales_db' and a table 'transactions' using AWS Glue. The IAM role used by Glue must have the minimal permissions to create the database and table in the Data Catalog and write data to the S3 location. Which combination of permissions should be granted?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Lake Formation permissions: `CREATE_DATABASE` on the catalog, `CREATE_TABLE` on `sales_db`, and S3 location permission
Option C is correct because Lake Formation permissions are required to create databases and tables in the Data Catalog. IAM permissions alone are insufficient; the Glue role must have Lake Formation `CreateDatabase` and `CreateTable` permissions. Option A lacks Lake Formation. Option B is too broad. Option D lacks S3 write.
Key principle: NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
IAM policy with `glue:CreateDatabase`, `glue:CreateTable`, and `s3:PutObject`
Why it's wrong here
Missing Lake Formation permissions; Glue will fail.
✗
IAM policy with `lakeformation:GrantPermissions` on the database and table
Why it's wrong here
GrantPermissions is for granting to others, not for creating.
✗
IAM policy with `s3:GetObject` and `s3:PutObject` on the target location
Why it's wrong here
Missing Data Catalog permissions.
✓
Lake Formation permissions: `CREATE_DATABASE` on the catalog, `CREATE_TABLE` on `sales_db`, and S3 location permission
Why this is correct
Lake Formation controls Data Catalog operations; S3 write is also needed.
Related concept
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
→Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
→Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
→Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Key takeaway
NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related DEA-C01 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Data Ingestion and Transformation — This question tests Data Ingestion and Transformation — Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Lake Formation permissions: `CREATE_DATABASE` on the catalog, `CREATE_TABLE` on `sales_db`, and S3 location permission — Option C is correct because Lake Formation permissions are required to create databases and tables in the Data Catalog. IAM permissions alone are insufficient; the Glue role must have Lake Formation `CreateDatabase` and `CreateTable` permissions. Option A lacks Lake Formation. Option B is too broad. Option D lacks S3 write.
What should I do if I get this DEA-C01 question wrong?
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related DEA-C01 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
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Question Discussion
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