DEA-C01 Data Operations and Support Practice Question
A data engineer manages an AWS Glue ETL job that reads JSON files from Amazon S3 and writes to Amazon Redshift. The job recently started failing with the error: 'Unable to find catalog table' when trying to access a table in the AWS Glue Data Catalog. The engineer confirms that the table exists in the Data Catalog and that the IAM role used by the job has glue:GetTable permissions. What is the most likely cause of this error?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that the error is due to missing IAM permissions when the scenario already confirms that glue:GetTable is allowed.
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 table name in the Glue job script is misspelled or uses incorrect casing.
The error indicates that the Glue job cannot locate the specified table in the Data Catalog. Since the table exists and the IAM role has the necessary glue:GetTable permission, the most likely cause is a mismatch between the table name referenced in the job script and the actual table name in the catalog. The Data Catalog is case-sensitive, so even a minor typo or casing difference will result in this error.
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 job is running in a different AWS region than the Data Catalog.
Why it's wrong here
If the job and Data Catalog are in different regions, the error would typically indicate that the catalog is not found or access is denied, not a specific table missing. AWS Glue jobs default to the region where the job is created, and cross-region catalog access is not standard without explicit configuration.
- ✓
The table name in the Glue job script is misspelled or uses incorrect casing.
Why this is correct
The AWS Glue Data Catalog is case-sensitive for table names. If the job script references a table name with incorrect casing or a typo, the catalog lookup fails, producing the 'Unable to find catalog table' error. Verifying the exact table name in the Glue job script against the Data Catalog resolves this issue.
- ✗
The Glue job's IAM role lacks permissions to access the S3 bucket containing the table's data.
Why it's wrong here
While S3 permissions are necessary for reading data, the error 'Unable to find catalog table' specifically indicates a failure to locate the table definition in the Data Catalog, not an S3 access issue. Missing S3 permissions would typically result in an access denied error when reading objects, not a catalog lookup failure.
- ✗
The Glue job's IAM role lacks permissions to access the AWS Glue Data Catalog.
Why it's wrong here
The scenario states that the engineer confirmed the IAM role has glue:GetTable permissions. Therefore, lack of catalog permissions is not the cause. The error message specifically points to the table not being found, which could be due to naming issues rather than authorization.
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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Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Amazon Web Services exam blueprint
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.