This DEA-C01 practice question tests your understanding of data store management. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 data engineering team is managing an Amazon Redshift cluster that is used for BI reporting. The cluster has a mix of large tables (some over 1 TB) and many smaller tables. The team notices that queries on a large fact table are slow. The fact table is distributed using KEY distribution on the customer_id column, which has high cardinality. The team wants to improve query performance. They have the option to change the distribution style and sort key. Which redesign should they implement?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Change the distribution style to EVEN and set the sort key to a date column used in WHERE clauses.
Option D is correct because using EVEN distribution ensures data is evenly distributed across all nodes, avoiding data skew that can occur with KEY distribution on a high-cardinality column like customer_id. Setting the sort key to a date column used in WHERE clauses enables range-restricted scans, significantly reducing the amount of data scanned for common BI queries that filter by date. This combination improves query performance by maximizing parallelism and minimizing I/O.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Keep the distribution style as AUTO and set the sort key to customer_id.
Why it's wrong here
AUTO may not provide optimal distribution.
✗
Change the distribution style to ALL and set the sort key to customer_id.
Why it's wrong here
ALL is not suitable for large tables.
✗
Change the distribution style to KEY on a different column with high cardinality.
Why it's wrong here
High cardinality may cause skew.
✓
Change the distribution style to EVEN and set the sort key to a date column used in WHERE clauses.
Why this is correct
EVEN distributes evenly; sort key on date improves query performance.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume KEY distribution on a high-cardinality column is optimal for large tables, but they overlook that even high-cardinality keys can cause severe data skew if the distribution key values are not uniformly distributed across nodes, leading to poor query performance.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In Amazon Redshift, EVEN distribution distributes rows in a round-robin fashion across all slices, ensuring uniform data distribution and maximizing parallel query execution. Setting a sort key on a date column used in WHERE clauses leverages zone maps to skip irrelevant blocks during table scans, dramatically reducing the number of blocks read. This approach is particularly effective for large fact tables in BI workloads where queries often filter by time ranges, as it combines I/O reduction with balanced compute resources.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A cloud solutions architect for a retail company is evaluating services for a new workload. The correct answer here reflects best practice for the specific scenario described — not a general cloud recommendation. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Cloud exam questions reward reading the constraint carefully: the same technology can be right or wrong depending on the use case.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Data Store Management — This question tests Data Store Management — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Change the distribution style to EVEN and set the sort key to a date column used in WHERE clauses. — Option D is correct because using EVEN distribution ensures data is evenly distributed across all nodes, avoiding data skew that can occur with KEY distribution on a high-cardinality column like customer_id. Setting the sort key to a date column used in WHERE clauses enables range-restricted scans, significantly reducing the amount of data scanned for common BI queries that filter by date. This combination improves query performance by maximizing parallelism and minimizing I/O.
What should I do if I get this DEA-C01 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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