SNOWPROⓇ CORE

COF-C02 AND COF-R02

EXAM STUDY GUIDE
Last Updated: May 4, 2023
SNOWPROⓇ EXAM STUDY GUIDE OVERVIEW
Welcome to the SnowProⓇ Core Certification exam study guide. As you prepare for your
upcoming exam, it is important to have a comprehensive understanding of the topics covered on
the exam. Use this guide to develop a study plan, identify the areas you need to improve, and
review the recommended resources.

This exam study guide is grouped into two sections:

➔ SnowPro Core Exam content and format

➔ Study and Training assets for exam preparation

If you are ready to register to take the exam, please navigate here for registration details.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR USING THIS GUIDE

Before you start studying for an exam, it is important to understand the exam content and format.
This is a self-paced guide and will outline the Snowflake domains, objectives, and topics that
will be covered on the exam. Pay attention to the domain weightings as this can help you develop
your study plan and outline what to expect on the exam.

With a clear understanding of the exam content and format, the next step is to start preparing for
the exam. The second section of this exam study guide will provide you with tips and resources
consisting of videos, whitepapers, blogs, and exercises to help you understand Snowflake. Some
links may have more value than others depending on your experience, the same amount of time
should not be spent on each link.

Prior to reviewing the exam study guide, please make sure you complete the following
configurations:

o Snowflake University (using your Community log in)

o Snowflake 30-day free trial Account for Hands-On Labs

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EXAM STUDY GUIDE TABLE OF CONTENTS:

SNOWPRO ⓇEXAM STUDY GUIDE OVERVIEW 1

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR USING THIS GUIDE 1
Ⓡ
SNOWPRO CORE EXAM CONTENT AND FORMAT 2
CERTIFICATION OVERVIEW 2
PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE 2
EXAM FORMAT FOR CORE CERTIFICATION 3
EXAM FORMAT FOR CORE RECERTIFICATION 3
SUBJECT DOMAIN BREAKDOWNS 3
EXAM OUTLINE: OBJECTIVES AND TOPICS 4
Domain 1.0: Snowflake Data Cloud Features and Architecture 4
Domain 2.0: Account Access and Security 5
Domain 3.0: Performance Concepts 5
Domain 4.0: Data Loading and Unloading 6
Domain 5.0: Data Transformations 7
Domain 6.0: Data Protection and Data Sharing 7
STUDY AND TRAINING ASSETS FOR EXAM PREPARATION 8
RECOMMENDED STUDY RESOURCES 10
Snowflake Documentation 10
Domain 1.0: Snowflake Data Cloud Features and Architecture Study Resources 10
Domain 2.0: Account Access and Security Study Resources 10
Domain 3.0: Performance Concepts Study Resources 10
Domain 4.0: Data Loading and Unloading Study Resources 11
Domain 5.0: Data Transformations Study Resources 12
Domain 6.0: Data Protection and Data Sharing Study Resources 12
Snowflake Product Releases 12
Ⓡ
SNOWPRO CORE CERTIFICATION SAMPLE QUESTIONS 13

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SNOWPROⓇ CORE EXAM CONTENT AND FORMAT
CERTIFICATION OVERVIEW

This exam will validate knowledge to apply specific core expertise implementing and migrating
to Snowflake. A SnowPro Core Certified individual has a thorough understanding of the
Snowflake Data Cloud, and has the knowledge necessary to develop and manage secure, scalable
Snowflake solutions to drive business objectives.

The candidate is expected to have knowledge of:

● Data Loading and Transformation in Snowflake

● Virtual Warehouse Performance and Concurrency
● DDL and DML Queries
● Using Semi-Structured and Unstructured Data
● Cloning and Time Travel
● Data Sharing
● Snowflake Account Structure and Management

Target Audience:
We recommend that individuals have at least 6 months of knowledge using the Snowflake
platform prior to attempting this exam. Familiarity with basic ANSI SQL is recommended.

PREREQUISITE KNOWLEDGE

The exam does not cover cloud fundamentals or basics of SQL syntax, but some questions on the
exam assume knowledge of these concepts. If you need assistance learning these concepts, we
recommend you review some additional resources.

Database Basic Concepts

Basic Terminology Related to Databases and SQL
Tables and Data Types
Selecting and Manipulating Data
Views, Store Procedures, Functions
Security (Authentication and Authorization)

Basics of Cloud Fundamentals

Types of Cloud Computing and Benefits
Types of Cloud Services
Cloud Computing Architecture (Storage and Compute)

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EXAM FORMAT FOR CORE CERTIFICATION

Exam Version: COF-C02

Total Number of Questions: 100

Question Types: Multiple Select, Multiple Choice

Time Limit: 115 minutes

Languages: English and Japanese

Passing Score: 750 + Scaled Scoring from 0 - 1000

EXAM FORMAT FOR CORE RECERTIFICATION

The SnowPro Core Recertification exam offers candidates a route to maintain their certification
status with Snowflake. The Recertification exam shares the same outline as the regular Core
Certification exam, but is shorter and is offered at a reduced rate. You must hold the Core
Certification in good standing to take the Core Recertification exam.

Exam Version: COF-R02

Total Number of Questions: 60

Question Types: Multiple Select, Multiple Choice

Time Limit: 85 minutes

Languages: English and Japanese

Passing Score: 750 + Scaled Scoring from 0 - 1000

Prerequisites: SnowPro Core Certified

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SUBJECT DOMAIN BREAKDOWNS

The following table contains the domains and weightings covered on the exam. It is not a
comprehensive listing of all the content that will be presented on the exam.

Domain Domain Weightings on Exams

1.0 Snowflake Data Cloud Features and Architecture 25%

2.0 Account Access and Security 20%

3.0 Performance Concepts 15%

4.0 Data Loading and Unloading 10%

5.0 Data Transformations 20%

6.0 Data Protection and Data Sharing 10%

EXAM OUTLINE: OBJECTIVES AND TOPICS

This exam outline includes test domains, objectives, and topics. It is not a comprehensive listing
of all the content that will be presented on the exam.

Domain 1.0: Snowflake Data Cloud Features and Architecture

1.1 Outline key features of the Snowflake Data Cloud.

● Elastic Storage
● Elastic Compute
● Snowflake’s three distinct layers
● Data Cloud/ Data Exchange/ Partner Network
● Cloud partner categories

1.2 Outline key Snowflake tools and user interfaces.

● Snowflake User Interfaces (UI)
● Snowsight
● Snowflake connectors
● Snowflake drivers
● SQL scripting
● Snowpark

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 1.3 Outline Snowflake’s catalog and objects.
● Databases
● Schemas
● Tables types
● View types
● Data types
● User-Defined Functions (UDFs) and User Defined Table Functions (UDTFs)
● Stored procedures
● Streams
● Tasks
● Pipes
● Shares
● Sequences

1.4 Outline Snowflake storage concepts.

● Micro-partitions
● Types of column metadata clustering
● Data storage monitoring
● Search optimization service

Domain 2.0: Account Access and Security

2.1 Outline security principles.

● Network security and policies
● Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
● Federated authentication
● Single Sign-On (SSO)

2.2 Define the entities and roles that are used in Snowflake.
● Outline how privileges can be granted and revoked
● Explain role hierarchy and privilege inheritance

2.3 Outline data governance capabilities in Snowflake.

● Accounts
● Organizations
● Databases
● Secure views
● Information schemas
● Access history and read support

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Domain 3.0: Performance Concepts

3.1 Explain the use of the Query Profile.

● Explain plans
● Data spilling
● Use of the data cache
● Micro-partition pruning
● Query history

3.2 Explain virtual warehouse configurations.

● Multi-clustering
● Warehouse sizing
● Warehouse settings and access

3.3 Outline virtual warehouse performance tools.

● Monitoring warehouse loads
● Query performance
● Scaling up compared to scaling out
● Resource monitors

3.4 Optimize query performance.

● Describe the use of materialized views
● Use of specific SELECT commands

Domain 4.0: Data Loading and Unloading

4.1 Define concepts and best practices that should be considered when loading data.
● Stages and stage types
● File size
● File formats
● Folder structures
● Ad hoc/bulk loading using the Snowflake UI

4.2 Outline different commands used to load data and when they should be used.
● CREATE PIPE
● COPY INTO
● GET
● INSERT/INSERT OVERWRITE
● PUT
● STREAM

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 ● TASK
● VALIDATE

4.3 Define concepts and best practices that should be considered when unloading data.
● File formats
● Empty strings and NULL values
● Unloading to a single file
● Unloading relational tables

4.4 Outline the different commands used to unload data and when they should be used.
● LIST
● COPY INTO
● CREATE FILE FORMAT
● CREATE FILE FORMAT … CLONE
● ALTER FILE FORMAT
● DROP FILE FORMAT
● DESCRIBE FILE FORMAT
● SHOW FILE FORMAT

Domain 5.0: Data Transformations

5.1 Explain how to work with standard data.

● Estimating functions
● Sampling
● Supported function types
● User-Defined Functions (UDFs) and stored procedures

5.2 Explain how to work with semi-structured data.

● Supported file formats, data types, and sizes
● VARIANT column
● Flattening the nested structure

5.3 Explain how to work with unstructured data.

● Define and use directory tables
● SQL file functions
● Outline the purpose of User-Defined Functions (UDFs) for data analysis

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Domain 6.0: Data Protection and Data Sharing

6.1 Outline Continuous Data Protection with Snowflake.

● Time Travel
● Fail-safe
● Data encryption
● Cloning
● Replication

6.2 Outline Snowflake data sharing capabilities.

● Account types
● Snowflake Marketplace and Data Exchange
● Private data exchange
● Access control options
● Shares

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STUDY AND TRAINING ASSETS FOR EXAM PREPARATION
Effective exam preparation requires more than reading and attending a training course. It
involves using a variety of study and training assets to enhance your understanding of the exam
content. This section will provide you with an overview of the different study and training assets
aligned to each domain covered on the SnowPro Core Certification exam.

First, let’s review some effective strategies for exam preparation:

1) Set a timeline: Schedule your exam and use that date as your target date. Plan
ahead and create a study plan.
2) Understand the exam format and content: When reviewing the exam domain
percentages, pay attention to the weightings in each domain and plan your study
time accordingly. Some domains will have more questions than others.
3) Study with Snowflake assets: Use the exam outline as a checklist. Identify the
objectives and topics you understand and the objectives you feel like you need
more experience with. The next section of this guide will list recommended free
resources for each domain.
4) Review Snowflake Documentation: All Core exam questions are 100%
referenceable with Snowflake Documentation.
5) Practice with sample questions: Gain familiarity with the question formats.
Sample questions can be found at the end of this guide.

Learning is different for everyone! If you learn better with an instructor leading the way,
consider our Snowflake Instructor-Led Training recommendations:
➔ Snowflake Fundamentals Course

➔ SnowPro Core OnDemand Preparation Course

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RECOMMENDED STUDY RESOURCES
Snowflake Documentation
As the SnowPro Core Certification is Snowflake’s foundational-level certification, the best place
to review Snowflake concepts and features is the Snowflake Documentation. Core exam
questions are tightly aligned to and referenceable from the Snowflake Documentation.

Domain 1.0: Snowflake Data Cloud Features and Architecture Study Resources

Snowflake University On Demand Trainings

Snowflake University, LevelUp: Snowflake’s Key Concepts
Snowflake University, Level Up: Snowflake Ecosystem

Getting Started With Snowflake

Module 2: Prepare your Lab Environment
Module 3: The Snowflake User Interface & Lab Story

Domain 2.0: Account Access and Security Study Resources

Snowflake University On Demand Trainings

Snowflake University, LevelUp: Accounts & Assurances
Snowflake University, Level Up: Container Hierarchy

Getting Started With Snowflake

Module 9: Working with Roles, Account Admin & Account Usage

Video
Snowflake Security Overview (Video)

Reading Asset
Quickly Visualize Snowflake’s Roles, Grants and Privileges (Article)

Domain 3.0: Performance Concepts Study Resources

Snowflake University On Demand Trainings

Snowflake University, Level Up: Query History & Caching
Snowflake University, LevelUp: Query & Result
Snowflake University, LevelUp: Context
Snowflake University: LevelUp: Resource Monitoring
Snowflake University, Essentials - Data Warehousing Workshop

Getting Started With Snowflake

Module 6: Working with Queries, The Results Cache & Cloning

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 Videos
Accelerating BI Queries with Caching in Snowflake (Video)
Snowflake Workloads Explained: Data Warehouse (Video)
Tackling High Concurrency with Multi-Cluster Warehouses (Video)

Reading Assets
Caching in Snowflake Data Warehouse (Article)
How to: Understand Result Caching (Article)
Managing Snowflake’s Compute Resources (Blog)
Performance Impact from Local and Remote Disk Spilling (Article)
Search Optimization: When & How to Use (Article)
Snowflake Materialized Views: A Fast, Zero-Maintenance Accurate Solution (Blog)
Tuning Snowflake (Article)
Using Materialized Views to Solve Multi-Clustering Performance Problems (Article)

Domain 4.0: Data Loading and Unloading Study Resources

Snowflake University On Demand Trainings

Snowflake University, Level Up: Data Loading
Badge 1: Data Warehousing Workshop

Getting Started With Snowflake

Module 4: Preparing to Load Data
Module 5: Loading Data

Videos
Building and Deploying Continuous Data Pipelines (Video)
Easily Loading and Analyzing Semi-Structured Data in Snowflake (Video)

Reading Assets
Best Practices for Data Unloading (Article)
Best Practices for Using Tableau with Snowflake (White Paper, requires email for access)
How to Load Terabytes into Snowflake - Speeds, Feeds and Techniques (Blog)

Domain 5.0: Data Transformations Study Resources

Snowflake University On Demand Training

Badge 2: Data Application Builders Workshop

Getting Started With Snowflake

Module 7: Working with Semi-Structured Data, Views & Joins

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 Video
Easily Loading and Analyzing Semi-Structured Data in Snowflake (Video)

Reading Assets
Best Practices for Managing Unstructured Data (E-book)
Structured vs Unstructured vs Semi-Structured Data (Blog)
Understanding Unstructured Data With Language Models (Blog)

Domain 6.0: Data Protection and Data Sharing Study Resources

Snowflake University On Demand Trainings

Snowflake University, Level Up: Container Hierarchy
Snowflake University, Level Up: Backup and Recovery
Snowflake University, Essentials - Sharing, Marketplace & Exchanges Workshop
Badge 3: Sharing, Marketplace, & Exchanges Workshop

Getting Started With Snowflake

Module 8: Using Time Travel
Module 10: Data Sharing

Videos
Data Protection with Time Travel in Snowflake (Video)
Getting Started on Snowflake with Partner Connect (Video)
Top 10 Cool Snowflake Features, #7: Snowflake Fast Clone (Blog + Video)

Reading Assets
Meta Data Archiving with Snowflake (Article)
Snowflake Continuous Data Protection (White Paper)

Snowflake Product Releases

If you are studying for the SnowPro Core Recertification exam, make sure you are up to date
with what’s new with Snowflake:
Snowflake Documentation: What’s New?

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SNOWPROⓇ CORE CERTIFICATION SAMPLE QUESTIONS

1. Which type of data integration tools leverage Snowflake's scalable compute for data transformation?

A. Database replication
B. ELT
C. ETL
D. Streaming

2. What is the maximum number of consumer accounts that can be added to a share object?

A. 1
B. 10
C. 100
D. Unlimited

3. What technique does Snowflake use to limit the number of micro-partitions scanned by each query?

A. Pruning
B. Indexing
C. Map Reduce
D. B-Tree

4. Which of the following are options when creating a virtual warehouse? (Select TWO).

A. Auto-suspend
B. Storage size
C. Auto-resume
D. Cache size
E. Default role

5. Which role in Snowflake allows a user to administer users and manage all database objects?

A. SYSADMIN
B. SECURITYADMIN
C. ACCOUNTADMIN
D. ROOT

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Correct responses for sample questions:
1: B, 2: D, 3: A, 4: A and C, 5: C

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IN ADDITION, THIS STUDY GUIDE IS PROVIDED “AS IS”. NEITHER SNOWFLAKE

NOR ITS SUPPLIERS MAKES ANY OTHER WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED,
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