DEA-C02 Storage and Data Protection Practice Question
What is the effect of the UNDROP command on a table that has already been recreated with the same name?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates assume an UNDROP command will automatically overwrite an existing table with the same name, forgetting that name collisions cause the command to fail.
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 UNDROP command fails due to a name collision.
If a table is dropped and a new table is created with the same name, the UNDROP operation will encounter a name conflict. In such cases, the UNDROP command fails, as the target namespace is already occupied. To recover the dropped table, the user must first rename or drop the new table, then execute UNDROP on the original. This safety mechanism prevents data loss and accidental overwriting of active production tables.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
It automatically renames the dropped table with a suffix.
Why it's wrong here
Snowflake does not automatically rename objects during an UNDROP operation to avoid collision. The command will simply fail with an error indicating that an object with the same name already exists. The user must resolve the naming conflict manually before the original table can be restored to the active namespace.
- ✗
It overwrites the existing table with the old version.
Why it's wrong here
UNDROP does not overwrite existing objects. This is a critical safety feature to prevent accidental loss of the newer table. The operation requires the name to be unique within the schema. If a conflict exists, the restore process is blocked until the namespace conflict is resolved by the user.
- ✓
The UNDROP command fails due to a name collision.
Why this is correct
Because the table name is already in use by the new table, the UNDROP operation will error out. This prevents the unintentional destruction of the new table. The user is required to intervene—either by renaming the new table or dropping it—before the older, dropped version can be successfully brought back.
- ✗
It merges the data from both tables.
Why it's wrong here
UNDROP is not a data-merging operation. It is a metadata restoration command that brings an object back from a 'dropped' state. It has no logic to combine rows or resolve data conflicts between an existing table and a restored one. It simply restores the object's previous existence.
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 Snowflake exam blueprint
This DEA-C02 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Snowflake 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-C02 exam.