While working on the project, you realize that the delta table is not correct.
One of your friends suggests deleting the whole directory of the table and creating a new table on the same path.
Would you follow the suggested solution?
Click on the arrows to vote for the correct answer
A. B.Correct Answer: B
Deleting the whole directory of a Delta table and creating a new table on the same path is not a recommended solution as: A directory may consist of very large files and deleting the directory can consume days or even hours.
Therefore, it is not an efficient solution.
All the content of the deleted files is lost and if by mistake you delete a wrong file, it is very hard to recover it.
Deleting the directory is not atomic.
While table deletion is in progress, a concurrent query reading the table can view a partial table or even fail.
To know more about best practices while using Delta Lake, please visit the below-given link:
As a data engineer, it is important to ensure that the data is stored correctly and efficiently. When facing issues with a delta table, deleting the entire directory of the table and creating a new table on the same path may not always be the best solution.
Delta tables are designed to provide efficient and scalable processing of data through incremental updates, which is a significant advantage over traditional data warehousing methods. Deleting the whole directory of the table and creating a new table may result in loss of data, which is not desirable in most cases. Additionally, if the data is critical, deleting the entire directory of the table can be a risky approach as it could result in data loss and lead to serious consequences.
In case of a delta table issue, it is recommended to first analyze the root cause of the problem and then apply appropriate fixes to the affected data. For example, you could use the Delta Lake's data correction features, like the "merge" operation, to correct the data within the existing delta table. This allows for an efficient and non-destructive solution that preserves the original data while correcting the issues.
In summary, blindly deleting the entire directory of a delta table is not the best solution when facing issues with the table. As a data engineer, it is important to analyze the root cause of the problem and apply appropriate fixes to ensure that data is stored efficiently and without loss.