Tableau-Desktop-Found Connecting to and Preparing Data Practice Question
You have a dataset containing sales information for different years. You want to connect to this data but only need to keep records from the last two years. Which approach is the most efficient?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often select standard worksheet filters or global filters, which still require Tableau to query or load all historical data before filtering it out in the view.
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 a Data Source filter to exclude older years
Data source filters allow you to limit the data loaded into the Tableau environment at the connection level. By applying a filter before the data is ingested, you reduce the size of the extract or the volume of data queried live. This improves performance, reduces memory usage, and ensures that the workbook only processes the records relevant to the current analytical scope.
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 a Data Source filter to exclude older years
Why this is correct
A data source filter is applied before the data is fully loaded, meaning Tableau never processes the unnecessary older records. This makes the workbook lighter and faster, as the underlying query is constrained at the source, preventing the system from reading and storing irrelevant historical data.
- ✗
Use a hide field command on the Year column
Why it's wrong here
Hiding a field does not remove the data from the dataset. The records still exist in the extract or the live query, they are just not visible in the worksheet view. This does not provide any performance improvements and leaves unnecessary data in the workbook's memory.
- ✗
Create a worksheet-level filter for every view
Why it's wrong here
Applying filters at the worksheet level is inefficient because all data is still loaded into memory first. You would have to manually add the filter to every sheet you create, which is prone to error and doesn't solve the performance issues caused by the large, unnecessary dataset.
- ✗
Delete the old data from the source file
Why it's wrong here
While this works, it is not recommended because it is destructive. Modifying the original data source file can cause issues for other users or systems that rely on that historical data. A data source filter is a non-destructive way to achieve the same goal within Tableau.
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 Tableau (Salesforce) exam blueprint
This Tableau-Desktop-Found practice question is part of Courseiva's free Tableau (Salesforce) 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 Tableau-Desktop-Found exam.