USMLE STEP2 Exam Prep
Step2 (Page 25 )

• Warehouse size: Larger warehouses use more credits per unit of time than smaller ones.
• Number of clusters: A multi-cluster warehouse can run multiple clusters, and each active cluster consumes credits. Therefore, increasing the maximum or active cluster count can increase consumption.

• Number of users: More users may cause more workload, but users themselves do not consume credits.
• Amount of data processed: Snowflake warehouses are not charged directly by the amount of data scanned. However, processing more data may cause the warehouse to run longer, indirectly increasing credits.

• Sales revenue is affected because internal sales are recorded at the transfer price.
• Operating profit is affected because revenue changes while costs may remain unchanged.
• Return on investment (ROI) is affected because ROI depends on operating profit and the division’s investment.
• Cost of components purchased is not affected by the transfer price. These are costs incurred when buying components from external suppliers, not the internal price charged for the division’s output.

• Amazon EC2 instances — ???????? ?? ?? ??????? CPU, memory ??? instance size ???????? ???????
• AWS Lambda functions — memory configuration ?????????? ???????
• Amazon EBS volumes — volume type ?? size optimize ???? ???????
• ??????? ECS workloads — resource configuration ? cost optimization-?? ???????

• Memory ? compute usage ?????????? ???? custom code ????? ???? development ? maintenance ??????
• Cost allocation tags ???? ????? ??? ?????? ???? ??????? ???; inefficient resource ??????? ?? recommendation ???? ???
• CloudTrail resource ???? ?? API activity ??????, resource utilization ????

• Existing Eventhouse data: remains available only in the KQL database.
• Data ingested after enabling the feature: is copied to OneLake and can be accessed through OneLake file explorer.
• New databases: are irrelevant; the setting applies to the selected KQL database.

• Wireshark captures packets and allows you to examine their contents, potentially revealing usernames and passwords sent without encryption.
• Netcat creates network connections and can send or receive data, but it is not primarily a packet-analysis tool.
• Nessus scans for known vulnerabilities and configuration issues; it generally would not prove that credentials are visible in transit.
• Nmap performs network discovery and port/service scanning, not detailed packet-content inspection.

• A — Tables
• B — Named file formats
• C — Schemas
• E — Databases

Why these are correct

• Tables: Can be cloned using CREATE TABLE ... CLONE. The clone initially uses zero-copy cloning, so storage is shared until changes are made.
• Named file formats: Can be cloned as database objects, preserving the file-format definition.
• Schemas: A schema and its eligible objects can be cloned.
• Databases: A database and its eligible schemas and objects can be cloned.

Why the others are incorrect

• Shares: A share is an account-level data-sharing object, not a normal cloneable database object.
• Users: Users are security principals and cannot be cloned with CLONE.

• Distinct values = 69

• Unique values = 4

• Azure Cosmos DB is a globally distributed NoSQL database service. It stores and retrieves application data, but it does not provide the complete environment for building, testing, and deploying predictive analytics models.
• Azure Machine Learning is the appropriate service for this requirement. It supports creating experiments, training and testing models, and deploying them for predictions.
• Azure Machine Learning Studio provides the browser-based interface for these tasks.

• A — Use getRecordTypeInfosByDeveloperName()

apex 
  Id rtId = Schema.SObjectType.Account 
      .getRecordTypeInfosByDeveloperName() 
      .get('Business_Account') 
      .getRecordTypeId();

• C — Query the RecordType object

apex 
  RecordType rt = [ 
      SELECT Id 
      FROM RecordType 
      WHERE SObjectType = 'Account' 
      AND Name = 'Business Account' 
      LIMIT 1 
  ];

• B: An outbound SOAP call is unnecessary and inefficient.
• D: Hardcoding an ID is not dynamic, and IDs can differ between orgs.

• Static IP address: Not needed if the workstation already has network connectivity.
• Subnet mask: Incorrect subnetting would usually prevent local communication, including pinging the server.
• Default gateway: Primarily affects communication outside the local network; it does not normally prevent finding an internal domain controller.

• Filtering harmful or inappropriate content
• Blocking specified topics
• Detecting and masking sensitive information
• Enforcing content policies suitable for children

• Amazon Rekognition analyzes images and videos; it does not control text generated by a language model.
• Amazon Bedrock playgrounds are for testing models and prompts, not enforcing production safety policies.
• Agents for Amazon Bedrock help models complete tasks and use tools; they do not primarily provide content-safety controls.

• Amazon SageMaker — charges apply for compute, storage, and other resources used.
• AWS Config — generally charges for configuration recording and rule evaluations.
• Amazon CloudWatch — has a limited free tier, but many metrics, logs, alarms, and API usage can incur charges.

• Products ? OrderHistory: Products is 1, OrderHistory is many (1:*)

• Date ? OrderHistory: Date is 1, OrderHistory is many (1:*)

• Customer needs: Primary focus in agile; guides prioritization and decision-making.
• Organization’s needs: Important constraints, but processes should be tailored when they create waste.
• Agile lead/project manager: Their role is to facilitate value delivery, not prioritize their own preferences.

• Required response and resolution times
• Availability or uptime targets
• Performance standards
• Support obligations
• Remedies or penalties for failing to meet the terms

• SOW (Statement of Work): Defines the project’s scope, tasks, deliverables, and schedule.
• MOA (Memorandum of Agreement): Describes agreed responsibilities between parties, often for a specific activity.
• MOU (Memorandum of Understanding): Records a mutual understanding or intention, usually less formal than a contract.

• A: Not expanding would increase its dependence.
• B: More business from the same corporation would make dependence worse.
• D: Passing work to other minority businesses does not solve its own dependence.
• E: The passage does not suggest that it can force or influence the corporation to give work to others.

• Error correction (ECC): Improves data reliability but does not maximize bandwidth.
• RAM voltage: Increasing voltage may affect stability or speed, but it is not the primary method for increasing module bandwidth.
• Physical module size: Refers to the capacity or form factor of the RAM, not its data-transfer bandwidth.

• Ramen is a Linux worm associated with Red Hat Linux 6.2 and 7.0 systems.
• It spreads by scanning randomly generated IP addresses using tools such as synscan.
• It exploits vulnerable network services, including web-related services, and may leave malicious files or altered web content.
• The tar.gz file is also a clue because it is a common Linux archive/package format.

• Code Red: Primarily targeted Microsoft IIS servers running Windows.
• LoveLetter: Spread mainly through email attachments.
• Nimda: A Windows-based worm that spread through email, web servers, and network shares.

1. Wireless AP

1. Router

1. Firewall

1. Device placement

• Espionage: Stealing confidential information, often for a competitor or government.
• Data exfiltration: Unauthorized transfer of data outside the organization. This could occur, but the question focuses on using unapproved access methods.
• Nation-state attack: An attack sponsored or conducted by a government.
• Shadow IT: Employees using technology or access methods outside the organization’s approved security controls.

• Record changes — a flow can start when a record is updated or otherwise changes.
• Schedules — a flow can run at a specified date/time or on a schedule.
• Record inserts — a flow can start when a new record is created.

• Subflows are reusable flow components called by another flow; they are not normally trigger types.
• Record views do not generally initiate a Flow Designer flow.

• IaaS: You deploy and manage virtual machines, including the operating system and installed software. Azure manages the physical datacenter, hosts, and networking infrastructure.
• PaaS: Azure manages the infrastructure and operating system, while you deploy and manage your application code. Examples include Azure App Service and Azure Functions.

• Annual interest payments net of tax relief (A): future cash outflows for the issuer.
• Redemption value (B): the final cash outflow when the bond is redeemed.
• Market value now (C): the cash proceeds received now, acting as the initial cash flow in the IRR calculation.

• Company documents
• Databases
• Knowledge bases
• Current web or business data

• A: Describes diversity and inclusive design, not grounding.
• B: Describes explainability or model interpretability.
• D: Describes documenting a model’s capabilities and limitations.

• Endpoint Manager: manages hosts and sensor-related settings.
• Falcon Investigator: supports investigation and analysis, but does not necessarily grant RTR access.
• Remediation Manager: handles remediation-related actions rather than interactive host access.

• D — Managers focus on keeping costs low in the short term to maximise profits.

• E — Managers are given incentives to meet or undercut budgets.

• F — Managers delegate responsibility simply to reduce their workload.

1. Discovery tries the SSH probe first.
2. SSH fails.
3. Discovery tries SNMP, which succeeds.
4. Discovery records SNMP as the preferred service for that IP.
5. Future discoveries try SNMP first.

• Classification identifies the type of device, such as a server, router, or printer.
• Credential affinity remembers which credentials work for a device.
• MID Server affinity associates a device or network with a particular MID Server.
• IP service affinity specifically controls the preferred discovery protocol or service.

sql 
ALTER TABLE dbo.DimCustomer 
ADD CONSTRAINT PK_DimCustomer 
PRIMARY KEY NONCLUSTERED (CustomerKey) 
NOT ENFORCED;

1. ALTER TABLE dbo.DimCustomer
2. ADD CONSTRAINT PK_DimCustomer PRIMARY KEY NONCLUSTERED (CustomerKey)
3. NOT ENFORCED

• AWS Network Firewall can inspect and block traffic across a VPC when traffic is routed through the firewall. A Drop action rule can deny traffic from the suspicious source IP.
• GuardDuty findings are sent to Security Hub.
• A Lambda function can be invoked when Security Hub receives a new GuardDuty finding, extract the source IP, and update the Network Firewall policy with a blocking rule.

• GuardDuty threat lists: Used to identify or increase the severity of findings; they do not directly block VPC traffic.
• AWS WAF: Protects supported web applications, such as CloudFront or Application Load Balancers. It does not provide general VPC-wide traffic blocking.
• GuardDuty suppression rules: Suppress or hide findings. They do not block the suspicious traffic.

• Install unauthorized or unapproved applications
• Access system areas normally restricted
• Add features unavailable in the default software
• Modify the device’s operating system

• SQL injection (SQLi): Attacks databases by inserting malicious SQL commands.
• Cross-site scripting (XSS): Injects malicious scripts into web pages viewed by users.
• Sideloading: Installs an application from outside the official app store, but it does not necessarily remove the phone’s operating-system restrictions.

• Disable default accounts: Default or unused accounts may have known usernames or predictable settings, making them targets. They should be disabled, removed, or securely configured.
• Remove unnecessary services: Every running service creates potential vulnerabilities. Removing services the server does not need reduces exploitable entry points.

• Add the server to the asset inventory: Important for asset management, but not a hardening step.
• Document default passwords: Default passwords should be changed or eliminated—not documented for continued use.
• Send server logs to the SIEM: Valuable for monitoring and detection, but generally performed as part of logging/monitoring configuration.
• Join the server to the corporate domain: May be necessary operationally, but does not itself harden the server.

• Two-part tariff pricing: $10 per unit
• Dual pricing: $20 per unit

Two-part tariff pricing

Dual pricing

• Division X, the seller, is credited with the market price: \(\$20\)
• Division Y, the buyer, is charged the marginal cost: \(\$10\)

• Outer packet: 10.5.1.1 > 52.165.16.154
• IPv4 protocol field: 41, which indicates IPv6 encapsulation
• Inner packet: IPv6 traffic between 2001:... addresses

• MAC address spoofing: Changes Layer 2 addressing; it does not explain the IPv6-in-IPv4 structure.
• Steganography: Hides data inside files or media, not visibly in a tunneled protocol.
• Broken encryption: No evidence of encryption being cracked.
• On-path sniffing: Involves intercepting traffic, not sending data to an external host.

DAX 
Previous Year Sales = 
CALCULATE( 
    [Total Sales], 
    PARALLELPERIOD('DATE'[Month], -1, YEAR) 
)

• CALCULATE evaluates [Total Sales] after modifying the filter context.
• PARALLELPERIOD shifts the current date period. -1 moves it backward, and YEAR specifies a one-year shift.
• 'DATE'[Month] is the date column used for the time calculation. In a proper date table, this should be a real date column or an appropriate calendar column—not merely text such as "January".

• \Pipeline1
• \Folder1\Lakehouse1

• Pipeline1 remains at the workspace root in Workspace1, so it is deployed to the root of Workspace2.
• Lakehouse1 was moved into Folder1, so its full path is preserved as \Folder1\Lakehouse1.
• Fabric deployment pipelines preserve folder paths because an item’s full path is treated as part of its name.

• Reporting relationships
• Organizational structures
• Leadership styles
• Team maturity
• Individual and group behavior
• Communication and motivation

• Acquire Project Team: Focuses on obtaining the people needed for the project.
• Develop Project Team: Focuses on improving team skills, relationships, and performance.
• Manage Project Team: Focuses on tracking performance, resolving issues, and managing changes within the team.

• The job keeps 31 days of regular restore points. A backup from the week of January 1 is older than 31 days by March 20, so it is no longer expected to remain on the performance tier.
• It is also a weekly GFS full backup, retained for 14 weeks. Therefore, it is still protected and has not been deleted.
• In a Scale-out Backup Repository, older backups can be moved from the performance tier to the capacity tier—typically object storage—according to the configured offload policy.
• The archive tier is not selected because the question’s configuration does not indicate that the backup has been archived there.

• Microsoft manages the physical datacenter, hardware, and virtualization.
• You manage the virtual machine’s operating system, installed software, configuration, and data.
• You choose the VM size, storage, networking, and scaling options.

• SaaS: You consume a complete application managed by the provider, such as Microsoft 365.
• PaaS: You deploy applications without managing the underlying operating system or VM infrastructure, such as Azure App Service.

• Driver node: Coordinates Spark jobs and runs in the compute environment.
• Worker node: Executes tasks and processes data.
• Databricks Filesystem (DBFS): Provides storage access for data used by compute resources.

1. CALCULATE
2. AND
3. FILTER

DAX 
Transaction Category = 
CALCULATE( 
    MAX('Transaction Size'[Size]), 
    FILTER( 
        'Transaction Size', 
        AND( 
            Sales[Sales Amount] >= 'Transaction Size'[Minimum], 
            Sales[Sales Amount] <= 'Transaction Size'[Maximum] 
        ) 
    ) 
)

• FILTER examines the rows in the Transaction Size table.
• AND ensures the sales amount falls between the category’s minimum and maximum values.
• CALCULATE evaluates the result in the modified filter context and returns the matching category.