General SQL Interview Questions 2026
Published July 22, 2026 · Updated July 22, 2026
9 real SQL interview questions asked at General. Upvoted by engineers who cleared the loop. Covers Scenario rounds.
9 questions
478 engineers asked
666 upvotes
Company: General
Technology: SQL
All SQL Questions Asked at General
General
Medium
Scenario round
5–8 YearsSnowflakeSQL
A production table was accidentally deleted 2 hours ago. How would you recover the data using Snowflake Time Travel?
↑ 79 upvotes · 57 engineers asked this · Data Engineer
General
Hard
Scenario round
5–8 YearsSnowflakeSQL
A critical table was dropped 10 days ago and the Time Travel retention period has expired. What recovery options are available? Explain how Fail-safe works and its limitations.
↑ 61 upvotes · 44 engineers asked this · Data Engineer
General
Medium
Scenario round
5–8 YearsSnowflakeSQL
Your team needs a test environment containing production data without duplicating storage costs. How would you use Zero Copy Cloning and what are its benefits and limitations?
↑ 72 upvotes · 51 engineers asked this · Data Engineer
General
Hard
Scenario round
5–8 YearsSnowflakeSQLPython
Snowpipe is ingesting duplicate records from cloud storage. How would you detect, prevent, and remediate duplicate data in Snowflake?
↑ 83 upvotes · 59 engineers asked this · Data Engineer
General
Hard
Scenario round
5–8 YearsSnowflakeSQLPython
A query that previously completed in 2 minutes now takes 20 minutes. Describe your systematic approach to troubleshooting and optimizing performance in Snowflake.
↑ 91 upvotes · 65 engineers asked this · Data Engineer
General
Medium
Scenario round
5–8 YearsSnowflakeSQL
Compare Snowpipe and COPY INTO. When would you choose one over the other?
↑ 68 upvotes · 49 engineers asked this · Data Engineer
General
Medium
Scenario round
5–8 YearsSnowflakeSQL
Compare Time Travel and Fail-safe in Snowflake. What are the key differences and use cases for each?
↑ 64 upvotes · 46 engineers asked this · Data Engineer
General
Medium
Scenario round
5–8 YearsSnowflakeSQL
Compare Temporary, Transient, and Permanent tables in Snowflake. When would each table type be appropriate?
↑ 71 upvotes · 52 engineers asked this · Data Engineer
General
Medium
Scenario round
5–8 YearsSnowflakeSQL
Compare Streams and Tasks in Snowflake. How do they work together to support Change Data Capture (CDC) workflows?
↑ 77 upvotes · 55 engineers asked this · Data Engineer
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Frequently asked questions
A production table was accidentally deleted 2 hours ago. How would you recover the data using Snowflake Time Travel?
A production table was accidentally deleted 2 hours ago. How would you recover the data using Snowflake Time Travel?
A critical table was dropped 10 days ago and the Time Travel retention period has expired. What recovery options are available? Explain how Fail-safe works and its limitations.
A critical table was dropped 10 days ago and the Time Travel retention period has expired. What recovery options are available? Explain how Fail-safe works and its limitations.
Your team needs a test environment containing production data without duplicating storage costs. How would you use Zero Copy Cloning and what are its benefits and limitations?
Your team needs a test environment containing production data without duplicating storage costs. How would you use Zero Copy Cloning and what are its benefits and limitations?
Snowpipe is ingesting duplicate records from cloud storage. How would you detect, prevent, and remediate duplicate data in Snowflake?
Snowpipe is ingesting duplicate records from cloud storage. How would you detect, prevent, and remediate duplicate data in Snowflake?
A query that previously completed in 2 minutes now takes 20 minutes. Describe your systematic approach to troubleshooting and optimizing performance in Snowflake.
A query that previously completed in 2 minutes now takes 20 minutes. Describe your systematic approach to troubleshooting and optimizing performance in Snowflake.
Compare Snowpipe and COPY INTO. When would you choose one over the other?
Compare Snowpipe and COPY INTO. When would you choose one over the other?
Compare Time Travel and Fail-safe in Snowflake. What are the key differences and use cases for each?
Compare Time Travel and Fail-safe in Snowflake. What are the key differences and use cases for each?
Compare Temporary, Transient, and Permanent tables in Snowflake. When would each table type be appropriate?
Compare Temporary, Transient, and Permanent tables in Snowflake. When would each table type be appropriate?