FC0-U71 Applications and Software Practice Question
Which of the following is a valid SQL statement to retrieve all records from a table named 'Employees'?
⚠ Common exam trap
FC0-U71 often tests the confusion between SQL keywords and similar terms from other languages or contexts, such as GET, FETCH, and READ, which are not valid for retrieving all records in a standard SQL query.
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
✓
SELECT * FROM Employees
The correct SQL statement to retrieve all records from a table named 'Employees' is SELECT * FROM Employees. The SELECT clause specifies the columns to return, and the asterisk (*) is a wildcard meaning all columns. The FROM clause specifies the table to query. This is standard SQL syntax defined by ANSI/ISO and supported by all major relational database management systems (RDBMS) such as MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, and Oracle.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
GET * FROM Employees
Why it's wrong here
GET is not a SQL keyword; the statement fails to parse because SQL retrieves rows with SELECT, specifying columns or the asterisk wildcard. It is tempting because GET describes retrieval in HTTP, but SQL's data-retrieval verb is SELECT, as in SELECT * FROM Employees.
- ✓
SELECT * FROM Employees
Why this is correct
SELECT * FROM Employees uses the asterisk wildcard to return every column for all rows, satisfying the requirement to retrieve all records. The FROM clause names the source table, and no WHERE filter restricts the result set, so the full table contents are returned.
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FETCH * FROM Employees
Why it's wrong here
FETCH is used inside cursor definitions to retrieve rows one at a time, not as a top-level statement returning an entire table. It is tempting because it sounds like data retrieval, and it would be correct within a stored procedure iterating a cursor over a result set.
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READ * FROM Employees
Why it's wrong here
READ is not a SQL data-retrieval keyword; the language defines SELECT for querying tables. It is tempting because reading records describes the intent in plain English, and it would be correct in file-handling or permissions contexts rather than a database query.
Visual reference
About these practice questions
This FC0-U71 question is part of Courseiva's 988-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CompTIA exam blueprint
This FC0-U71 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA 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 FC0-U71 exam.