Databricks Data Engineer Associate Question 487
Single answerA data engineering team is setting up a Databricks workspace to allow an external application to programmatically access and manage resources. They want to avoid using personal accounts or user credentials for this purpose. Which statement correctly describes how a service principal can be used in this scenario?
- A
A service principal acts as a managed identity for the external application, allowing it to authenticate and perform actions on the Databricks workspace.
- B
A service principal is a Databricks cluster that is pre-configured to execute workloads on behalf of the external application.
- C
A service principal is a physical device used to secure external application access to the Databricks workspace.
- D
A service principal is an individual user account created specifically for external application access.
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
A service principal is a security identity often used to grant programmatic access to resources in a Databricks workspace. It is designed for non-human entities like external applications or automation scripts, allowing them to authenticate and perform operations securely without relying on user credentials. This ensures better security and scalability in managing access to the workspace.
- A. Correct.
This is the correct definition of a service principal. It is a managed identity that allows an external application to authenticate and interact with resources programmatically without using user credentials.
- B. Incorrect.
This is incorrect. A service principal is not a cluster; it is related to identity and access management, not compute infrastructure.
- C. Incorrect.
This is incorrect. A service principal is not a physical device but a digital entity used for authentication and authorization.
- D. Incorrect.
This is incorrect. A service principal is not an individual user account but a non-human identity used for programmatic access.