Databricks-DA-Assoc Understanding the Databricks Platform Practice Question
A data analyst joined a new Databricks workspace and sees a catalog named 'sales_prod' containing schemas 'bronze', 'silver', and 'gold'. The analyst needs to query only the 'gold' schema tables and must not see or query the 'bronze' or 'silver' tables. Which Unity Catalog object should the workspace administrator grant to satisfy this least-privilege requirement?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming a single broad grant at the catalog level can be scoped down, when Unity Catalog privileges only widen access and never restrict it.
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
✓
USE CATALOG on sales_prod and USE SCHEMA plus SELECT on the gold schema
Unity Catalog enforces a privilege hierarchy where traversing a catalog requires USE CATALOG and reading a schema's tables requires USE SCHEMA and SELECT on that schema. Granting USE CATALOG on sales_prod and USE SCHEMA plus SELECT on gold gives read access to only the gold tables, while the absence of grants on bronze and silver keeps them hidden.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
USE CATALOG on sales_prod and USE SCHEMA plus SELECT on the gold schema
Why this is correct
Unity Catalog privileges are hierarchical: USE CATALOG lets the analyst traverse the catalog, and USE SCHEMA plus SELECT on gold grants read access to that schema's tables only. Without USE SCHEMA or SELECT on bronze and silver, the analyst cannot see or query those tables, achieving least privilege exactly as required.
- ✗
USE SCHEMA on bronze and silver only
Why it's wrong here
Granting USE SCHEMA on bronze and silver gives traversal rights to exactly the schemas the analyst must not access, and it provides no SELECT on gold, so the analyst still cannot query the required tables. This is the opposite of the intended least-privilege configuration.
- ✗
SELECT on the sales_prod catalog
Why it's wrong here
Unity Catalog does not grant table read access at the catalog level through SELECT alone, and no such catalog-wide SELECT privilege exists in the intended sense. Even if broader access were granted, it would expose bronze and silver tables, violating the requirement that the analyst see only the gold schema.
- ✗
ALL PRIVILEGES on the sales_prod catalog
Why it's wrong here
Granting ALL PRIVILEGES at the catalog level would cascade access to every schema and table, including bronze and silver, which directly contradicts the least-privilege requirement. This over-privileges the analyst and would let them query raw and cleansed layers they are not supposed to see.
About these practice questions
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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 Databricks exam blueprint
This Databricks-DA-Assoc practice question is part of Courseiva's free Databricks 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 Databricks-DA-Assoc exam.