Answer: The table was managed

## Explanation In Databricks/Spark SQL, there are two types of tables: 1. **Managed Tables** (also called internal tables): - The data is managed by Spark/Databricks - When you drop a managed table using `DROP TABLE`, both the metadata (table definition) AND the actual data files are deleted - Spark controls the lifecycle of the data - The data is stored in the Spark SQL warehouse directory 2. **External Tables**: - The data is stored in an external location (like ADLS, S3, etc.) - When you drop an external table using `DROP TABLE`, only the metadata (table definition) is deleted - The actual data files remain intact in the external location - You specify the location using `LOCATION` clause when creating the table In this scenario, since both the data files AND metadata files were deleted after running `DROP TABLE`, this indicates that `my_table` was a **managed table**. **Key points**: - Option A is correct because managed tables have their data deleted when dropped - Option B is incorrect - the size of data doesn't affect deletion behavior - Option C is incorrect - all tables have a location (managed tables have default locations) - Option D is incorrect - external tables only delete metadata, not data files **Additional context**: - To create a managed table: `CREATE TABLE my_table ...` (without LOCATION clause) - To create an external table: `CREATE TABLE my_table ... LOCATION 'path/to/data'` - To check if a table is managed or external: `DESCRIBE EXTENDED my_table` (look for 'Type' field)

Author: Keng Suppaseth