Top 250 Big Data Interview Questions and Answers

Updated 4 Jul 2025

Asked in Genpact

2w ago

Q. Write a spark submit command.

Ans.

Spark submit command to run a Scala application on a cluster

  • Include the path to the application jar file

  • Specify the main class of the application

  • Provide any necessary arguments or options

  • Specify the cluster manager and the number of executors

  • Example:...read more

Asked in GitLab

1w ago

Q. How can the MR be improved? Discuss design improvements.

Ans.

Improving merge requests through design enhancements

  • Implement a clearer review process with defined roles and responsibilities

  • Utilize templates for MRs to ensure consistency and completeness

  • Integrate automated testing and code quality checks to strea...read more

Asked in EPAM Systems

3d ago

Q. How does Spark process data in parallel?

Ans.

Spark processes data in parallel using its distributed computing framework.

  • Spark divides data into partitions and processes each partition independently.

  • Tasks are executed in parallel across multiple nodes in a cluster.

  • Spark uses in-memory processing...read more

Asked in Acmegrade

2w ago

Q. What skills are required for a Business Development Associate?

Ans.

Skills required for a Business Development Associate include strong communication, negotiation, analytical, and networking abilities.

  • Strong communication skills to effectively interact with clients and team members

  • Negotiation skills to secure deals a...read more

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Asked in HCLTech

6d ago

Q. How do you connect to Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 from Databricks?

Ans.

To connect to ADLS Gen2 from Databricks, you can use the Azure Blob Storage API.

  • Use the Azure Blob Storage API to connect to ADLS Gen2 from Databricks

  • Provide the storage account name and key for authentication

  • Use the storage account name as the files...read more

Asked in MathCo

1w ago

Q. Explain the Spark application lifecycle.

Ans.

The Spark application lifecycle involves stages from submission to execution and completion of tasks in a distributed environment.

  • 1. Application Submission: The user submits a Spark application using spark-submit command.

  • 2. Driver Program: The driver...read more

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Asked in Luxoft

2w ago

Q. What is PySpark streaming?

Ans.

Pyspark streaming is a scalable and fault-tolerant stream processing engine built on top of Apache Spark.

  • Pyspark streaming allows for real-time processing of streaming data.

  • It provides high-level APIs in Python for creating streaming applications.

  • Pys...read more

Asked in CA Monk and 4 others

2w ago

Q. What is a Reducer?

Ans.

Reducer is a function in Redux that specifies how the application's state changes in response to actions.

  • Reducer functions take the current state and an action as arguments, and return the new state.

  • Reducers are pure functions, meaning they do not mo...read more

1w ago

Q. How do you approach Spark optimization?

Ans.

Spark optimization involves tuning configurations, partitioning data, using appropriate transformations, and caching intermediate results.

  • Tune Spark configurations based on cluster resources and workload requirements

  • Partition data to distribute workl...read more

4d ago

Q. How do you optimize a Spark job?

Ans.

Optimizing Spark job involves tuning configurations, partitioning data, caching, and using efficient transformations.

  • Tune Spark configurations like executor memory, cores, and parallelism for optimal performance.

  • Partition data correctly to distribute...read more

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Bangalore / Bengaluru
1w ago

Q. Why does Spark use lazy execution?

Ans.

Spark is lazy execution to optimize performance by delaying computation until necessary.

  • Spark delays execution until an action is called to optimize performance.

  • This allows Spark to optimize the execution plan and minimize unnecessary computations.

  • La...read more

1w ago

Q. Briefly describe Batch Data Communication (BDC).

Ans.

BDC stands for Batch Data Communication. It is a method used in SAP to upload data from external systems into SAP.

  • BDC is used to automate data entry into SAP systems.

  • There are two methods of BDC - Call Transaction and Session Method.

  • BDC is commonly u...read more

3d ago

Q. How do you decide on Spark cluster sizing?

Ans.

Spark cluster sizing depends on workload, data size, memory requirements, and processing speed.

  • Consider the size of the data being processed

  • Take into account the memory requirements of the Spark jobs

  • Factor in the processing speed needed for the workl...read more

Asked in Wipro

1w ago

Q. How do you handle large Spark datasets?

Ans.

Large Spark datasets can be handled by partitioning, caching, optimizing transformations, and tuning resources.

  • Partitioning data to distribute workload evenly across nodes

  • Caching frequently accessed data to avoid recomputation

  • Optimizing transformatio...read more

Asked in TVS Motor

2w ago

Q. How can shuffling be reduced?

Ans.

Shuffling can be reduced by optimizing data partitioning and minimizing data movement.

  • Use partitioning techniques like bucketing and sorting to minimize shuffling

  • Avoid using wide transformations like groupBy and join

  • Use broadcast variables to reduce ...read more

Asked in EXL Service

3d ago

Q. What is the Hadoop architecture?

Ans.

Hadoop architecture is a framework for distributed storage and processing of large data sets across clusters of computers.

  • Hadoop consists of HDFS for storage and MapReduce for processing.

  • It follows a master-slave architecture with a single NameNode a...read more

Asked in Wells Fargo

2w ago

Q. How would a big data system be distributed for storage and compute?

Ans.

Big data system distribution for storage and compute involves partitioning data across multiple nodes for efficient processing.

  • Data is partitioned across multiple nodes to distribute storage and processing load.

  • Hadoop Distributed File System (HDFS) i...read more

Q. How do you create an RDD?

Ans.

RDD can be created in Apache Spark by parallelizing an existing collection or by loading data from an external dataset.

  • Create RDD by parallelizing an existing collection using sc.parallelize() method

  • Create RDD by loading data from an external dataset...read more

Asked in BT Group

1w ago

Q. How do you load data into BigQuery using Dataflow?

Ans.

Data can be loaded into BigQuery using Dataflow by creating a pipeline in Dataflow that reads data from a source and writes it to BigQuery.

  • Create a Dataflow pipeline using Apache Beam SDK

  • Read data from a source such as Cloud Storage or Pub/Sub

  • Transfo...read more

2w ago

Q. What is Spark context?

Ans.

Spark context is the main entry point for Spark functionality and represents the connection to a Spark cluster.

  • Main entry point for Spark functionality

  • Represents connection to a Spark cluster

  • Used to create RDDs, broadcast variables, and accumulators

Asked in LTIMindtree

1w ago

Q. How do you combine two columns in a PySpark DataFrame?

Ans.

Use the withColumn method in PySpark to combine two columns in a DataFrame.

  • Use the withColumn method to create a new column by combining two existing columns

  • Specify the new column name and the expression to combine the two columns

  • Example: df = df.wit...read more

Asked in Accenture

1w ago

Q. Why is RDD resilient?

Ans.

RDD is resilient due to its ability to recover from failures and maintain data integrity.

  • RDDs are fault-tolerant and can recover from node failures by recomputing lost data from the original source.

  • RDDs store data lineage information, allowing them t...read more

Asked in Wipro

1w ago

Q. What is executor memory?

Ans.

Executor memory is the amount of memory allocated to each executor in a Spark application.

  • Executor memory is specified using the 'spark.executor.memory' configuration property.

  • It determines how much memory each executor can use to process tasks.

  • It is...read more

3d ago

Q. How does Apache Airflow work?

Ans.

Apache Airflow is a platform to programmatically author, schedule, and monitor workflows.

  • Apache Airflow allows users to define workflows as Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs) in Python scripts.

  • It provides a web-based UI for users to visualize and monitor...read more

1w ago

Q. Explain how you handle large data processing in PySpark.

Ans.

Large data processing in Pyspark involves partitioning, caching, and optimizing transformations for efficient processing.

  • Partitioning data to distribute workload evenly across nodes

  • Caching intermediate results to avoid recomputation

  • Optimizing transfo...read more

2w ago

Q. What is SparkConf?

Ans.

SparkConfig is a configuration object used in Apache Spark to set various parameters for Spark applications.

  • SparkConfig is used to set properties like application name, master URL, and other Spark settings.

  • It is typically created using SparkConf clas...read more

2w ago

Q. What is the difference between Delta Lake and Delta Warehouse?

Ans.

Delta Lake is an open-source storage layer that brings ACID transactions to Apache Spark and big data workloads, while Delta Warehouse is a cloud-based data warehouse service.

  • Delta Lake is an open-source storage layer that brings ACID transactions to...read more

Asked in LTIMindtree

1w ago

Q. What is a Spark cluster?

Ans.

Spark cluster is a group of interconnected computers that work together to process large datasets using Apache Spark.

  • Consists of a master node and multiple worker nodes

  • Master node manages the distribution of tasks and resources

  • Worker nodes execute th...read more

Asked in IBM

2w ago

Q. When have you used HUDI and Iceberg?

Ans.

I have used HUDI and Iceberg in my previous project for managing large-scale data lakes efficiently.

  • Implemented HUDI for incremental data ingestion and managing large datasets in real-time

  • Utilized Iceberg for efficient table management and data versi...read more

Asked in GoDaddy

1w ago

Q. Explain the spark-submit command in detail.

Ans.

Spark submit command is used to submit Spark applications to a cluster

  • Used to launch Spark applications on a cluster

  • Requires specifying the application JAR file, main class, and any arguments

  • Can set various configurations like memory allocation, numb...read more

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