DEA-C01 Data Operations and Support Practice Question
A company uses AWS Lake Formation to manage data lake permissions. A data analyst cannot query a table in Athena, although the table appears in the catalog. The analyst has IAM permissions to run Athena. What is the MOST likely cause?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The analyst lacks Lake Formation permissions on the table.
Lake Formation permissions are separate from IAM; even if the analyst has IAM permissions to run Athena, they also need specific Lake Formation permissions (e.g., SELECT) on the table to query it. The table appears in the catalog because the analyst has DESCRIBE permission on the database or table, but querying requires additional data access permissions. Option A is incorrect because the table appears in the catalog, so it is registered. Option B is incorrect because the S3 bucket policy might allow access, but Lake Formation can override it. Option D is incorrect because the workgroup output location affects where query results are stored, not the ability to query a specific table.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The Glue Data Catalog does not have the table registered.
Why it's wrong here
The table appears, so it is registered.
- ✗
The S3 bucket policy denies access to the analyst's IAM role.
Why it's wrong here
Lake Formation permissions are separate; S3 policy is not the issue if Lake Formation is used.
- ✓
The analyst lacks Lake Formation permissions on the table.
Why this is correct
Lake Formation grants fine-grained permissions; the analyst needs SELECT.
- ✗
The Athena workgroup is not configured with the correct output location.
Why it's wrong here
Workgroup configuration affects query results, not table visibility.
Quick reference
AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison
| Storage Class | Min Duration | Retrieval | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3 Standard | None | Immediate | Frequently accessed data |
| S3 Standard-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Infrequent access, rapid retrieval |
| S3 One Zone-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Non-critical infrequent data |
| S3 Intelligent-Tiering | None | Immediate–hours | Unknown or changing access patterns |
| S3 Glacier Instant | 90 days | Milliseconds | Archive with instant retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Flexible | 90 days | Minutes–hours | Archive, flexible retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Deep Archive | 180 days | Hours | Long-term compliance archive |
Go deeper
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This DEA-C01 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Amazon Web Services certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the DEA-C01 exam.