Salesforce Analytics-Admn-201 Salesforce Certified Tableau Server Administrator Exam Practice Test

Tableau Server is designed for production environments and is supported only on server-class operating systems, not desktop operating systems. As of the latest documentation (aligned with knowledge up to March 21, 2025), the supported operating systems for Tableau Server on Windows are:

Windows Server 2016

Windows Server 2019

Windows Server 2022 (added in later versions, but relevant as of 2025).

Desktop operating systems like Windows 7 or Windows 10 are not supported for production installations due to stability, security, and performance requirements.

Option A (Windows 7): Incorrect. Windows 7 is a desktop OS and is not supported for Tableau Server. It’s also end-of-life as of January 2020.

Option B (Windows 10): Incorrect. Windows 10 is a desktop OS and not supported for production Tableau Server deployments, though it may be used for testing in non-production scenarios.

Option C (Windows Server 2019): Correct. This is a supported server OS for Tableau Server.

Option D (Windows Server 2016): Correct. This is also a supported server OS for Tableau Server.

Tableau Server’s user-based licensing (Creator, Explorer, Viewer) ties licenses to individual users—let’s determine compatible authentication methods:

User-Based Licensing:

Licenses are assigned per user, tracked by username.

Authentication determines how users log in—must integrate with licensing.

Option A (Local authentication): Correct.

Details: Users are managed in Tableau Server’s internal database—username/password set manually or via import.

Why: Directly ties to user accounts, fully compatible with licensing.

Option C (Trusted authentication): Correct.

Details: Allows external apps to authenticate users via tickets (e.g., /trusted/).

Why: Maps to Tableau usernames, integrating with licensing—common for embedded analytics.

Config: Trusted IPs or credentials set in TSM.

Option D (Active Directory): Correct.

Details: Uses AD for authentication (LDAP or Kerberos)—users sync to Tableau Server.

Why: AD usernames align with licensing—supports SSO and user management.

Config: Enable via tsm authentication active-directory configure.

Option B (Reliance authentication): Incorrect.

Why: Not a recognized Tableau authentication method—likely a typo (e.g., for "Resilience" or misheard term). No such feature exists.

Why This Matters: Authentication flexibility ensures user-based licensing fits diverse IT environments—critical for adoption.

In Tableau Server, projects are containers for organizing and securing content. They help manage permissions and structure content hierarchically. Let’s define what can be contained:

Workbooks: Visualizations and dashboards published to the Server.

Data Sources: Published connections or extracts reusable across workbooks.

Nested Projects: Sub-projects within a parent project, introduced in later versions (e.g., 2018.2) for deeper organization.

Option B (Workbooks): Correct. Workbooks are the primary content type in projects, containing views and dashboards.

Option C (Nested Projects): Correct. Nested projects allow hierarchical structuring (e.g., a "Sales" project with "Q1" and "Q2" sub-projects), with inherited or custom permissions.

Option D (Data Sources): Correct. Published data sources reside in projects, providing reusable data connections.

Option A (Groups): Incorrect. Groups are collections of users managed at the site or server level, not stored within projects. Projects contain content, not user entities.

Why This Matters: Projects are key to content governance—knowing what they hold helps administrators organize and secure assets effectively.

Tableau Desktop and Tableau Server have versioning considerations when publishing content, particularly regarding compatibility between older Desktop versions (e.g., 10.5) and newer Server versions (e.g., 2020.1). Let’s break this down step-by-step:

Version Context: Tableau Desktop 10.5 was released in 2017 and used the .tde (Tableau Data Extract) format for extracts. Tableau Server 2020.1, released in 2020, introduced the .hyper extract format (starting with version 10.5, but fully standardized later). When publishing from an older Desktop version to a newer Server version, Tableau ensures backward compatibility but may upgrade certain components.

Publishing Process: With a Creator site role and Publisher permissions, you have the rights to publish workbooks to the specified project. Tableau Server accepts workbooks from older Desktop versions (e.g., 10.5) and upgrades them to the current Server version (2020.1) during publishing. This process is seamless for the workbook itself, but extracts require special handling.

Extract Handling: If the workbook contains embedded .tde extracts (stored within the .twb or .twbx file), Tableau Server 2020.1 converts these to .hyper format upon publishing. This conversion is necessary because .hyper replaced .tde as the default extract engine starting in Tableau 10.5 and beyond, offering better performance and scalability. During this process, Tableau Desktop or Server displays a warning to inform the user of the upgrade, as it’s a one-way conversion (you can’t revert to .tde on the Server).

Now, let’s evaluate the options:

Option A (You will successfully publish without any errors or warnings): Incorrect. While the publishing succeeds, a warning about the .tde to .hyper conversion appears if the workbook contains embedded extracts. Without extracts, no warning occurs, but the question’s context implies extracts are likely involved (common in visualizations).

Option B (Error message: unable to publish to a newer version): Incorrect. Tableau supports publishing from older Desktop versions to newer Server versions. There’s no outright error blocking this; compatibility is maintained.

Option C (Warning: embedded .tde extracts will be upgraded to .hyper): Correct. This is the precise warning displayed when a workbook with .tde extracts is published to a Server version that uses .hyper. It ensures the user is aware of the format change, which might affect extract refresh schedules or performance expectations.

Option D (Warning: workbook will be upgraded to a new version): Partially correct but less specific. The workbook is upgraded to 2020.1 compatibility, but the warning focuses on the extract format change (.tde to .hyper), not the workbook version generically. Option C is more accurate.

Why This Matters: The .tde to .hyper shift improves query performance and supports larger datasets, but users need to know about it for planning (e.g., extract refresh schedules might need adjustment). The warning ensures transparency.

Abandoned workbooks—those no longer actively used—can clutter Tableau Server and consume resources (e.g., disk space for extracts). Identifying them efficiently requires leveraging built-in administrative tools rather than manual or destructive methods. Let’s explore this in depth:

Tableau Server Admin Views: Tableau provides pre-built administrative views to monitor server health, usage, and content. The Stale Content view, accessible under Server > Status > Administrative Views, is specifically designed to identify content (workbooks, data sources) that hasn’t been viewed or modified recently. It shows:

Content name, owner, and project.

Last viewed date and last modified date.

View count over a period.This view uses Repository data to track usage metrics, making it ideal for spotting abandoned workbooks.

Option A (Use the Stale Content administrative view): Correct. This is the most efficient and non-invasive method. You can filter by last viewed date (e.g., >30 days ago) to identify workbooks with large extracts that users have stopped accessing. From there, you can contact owners or delete the content if policy allows. It’s a server administrator’s go-to tool for content management.

Option B (Examine extract files in ProgramData/.../extract): Incorrect and impractical. The ProgramData/Tableau/Tableau Server/data/tabsvc/dataengine/extract directory stores .hyper extract files, but:

File names are cryptic (e.g., GUIDs), not tied directly to workbook names.

It doesn’t indicate usage or abandonment—only file presence and size.

Manual inspection is time-consuming and error-prone compared to the Stale Content view.

Option C (Delete all extracts and allow them to be re-generated): Incorrect and risky. Deleting extracts (e.g., via tsm maintenance cleanup) removes them without identifying usage. Regeneration only occurs if a schedule or user triggers it, potentially disrupting active users and losing historical data unnecessarily.

Option D (View all workbooks, and sort by the Modified date): Partially effective but inefficient. In the Tableau Server UI (e.g., under Content > Workbooks), you can sort by "Last Modified," but:

It doesn’t show viewership (a workbook might be modified recently but unused).

It’s manual and doesn’t scale for large deployments compared to the Stale Content view.

Why This Matters: The Stale Content view leverages Tableau’s metadata to provide actionable insights, saving time and reducing risk compared to manual or destructive alternatives. It’s part of Tableau’s governance toolkit.

Data-driven alerts notify users when data meets conditions (e.g., sales > $10K). Let’s examine when Tableau checks these:

Alert Mechanics:

Enabled per site (Settings > General > Data-Driven Alerts).

Backgrounder evaluates conditions against extract data.

Check Intervals: Configurable via tsm configuration set -k dataAlerts.checkIntervalInMinutes (default: 60 minutes).

Refresh Trigger: Also checks post-extract refresh for immediate updates.

Option A (Every 60 minutes): Correct.

Details: Default interval—Backgrounder polls every hour to evaluate alert conditions.

Config: Adjustable (e.g., -v 30 for 30 minutes).

Option D (Whenever extracts in the related workbook are refreshed): Correct.

Details: An extract refresh updates the data, triggering an immediate alert check to catch changes promptly.

Why: Ensures timely notifications without waiting for the next poll.

Option B (Every 10 minutes): Incorrect.

Why: Not the default—possible via config, but not standard.

Option C (Whenever a new extract is published): Incorrect.

Why: Publishing creates the extract; alerts trigger on refreshes or polling, not initial publication.

Why This Matters: Timing affects alert responsiveness—balancing frequency and server load is key.

In Tableau Server, roles and permissions dictate who can perform specific administrative tasks. A "server administrator" has full control over the entire Tableau Server deployment, while site administrators manage specific sites. Some tasks are restricted to server administrators due to their server-wide impact.

Option B (Adding a site): Creating a new site in a multi-site Tableau Server environment is a server-level task that only a server administrator can perform. Sites are logical partitions within the server, and adding a site affects the overall server structure. Site administrators cannot create new sites; they can only manage existing ones.

Option D (Adding users): Adding users to Tableau Server (e.g., via the TSM interface or tabcmd) is a server administrator task when it involves adding users at the server level or assigning them to the default site. While site administrators can add users to their specific site in a multi-site environment, the initial addition of users to the server requires server administrator privileges. The question’s phrasing (“always require”) suggests a server-wide context, making this a correct choice.

Option A (Creating a schedule): This is incorrect because both server administrators and site administrators can create schedules for tasks like extract refreshes or subscriptions within their scope. It’s not exclusive to server administrators.

Option C (Locking project permissions): This is incorrect because locking project permissions can be done by a site administrator or project leader with appropriate permissions. It’s a project-level action, not a server-level task requiring a server administrator.

Comments on Tableau Server visualizations facilitate collaboration. Let’s explore what’s supported:

Comments Feature: Enabled per site (Settings > General > Allow Comments). Users with "Add Comment" permission can post on views.

Option B (Text): Correct.

Details: The primary content type—users type free-form text in the comment box.

Use: Notes, questions, or feedback (e.g., "Sales spiked here—why?").

Option C (@mentions): Correct.

Details: Typing @username notifies the mentioned user via email or the UI (if notifications are enabled).

Use: Directs comments to specific people (e.g., "@John, check this trend").

Option A (Interactive snapshots of a view): Incorrect.

Details: Snapshots (static images) aren’t supported in comments—users must take screenshots externally and can’t embed them interactively.

Option D (Images - jpg, png): Incorrect.

Details: No attachment or image embedding in comments—text and mentions only. Workaround: Link to an image hosted elsewhere.

Why This Matters: Comments enhance teamwork, but their simplicity (text + mentions) keeps the interface lightweight and focused.

Tableau Server supports multiple authentication methods, including Local Authentication, Active Directory, Kerberos, SAML, and OpenID Connect. OpenID Connect (OIDC) is an identity layer built on OAuth 2.0, commonly used for single sign-on (SSO). In Tableau Server, OIDC is implemented as a variant of SAML (Security Assertion Markup Language) authentication because both are SSO protocols managed through the same configuration workflow.

To use OpenID Connect:

Configure Tableau Server for SAML/SSO.

Provide an OIDC-compatible identity provider (IdP) configuration (e.g., Google, Okta).

Set up the IdP metadata and certificates in TSM.

Option D (SAML): Correct. Tableau Server treats OIDC as a subset of its SAML authentication framework, so you configure it under the SAML settings in TSM.

Option A (Local Authentication): Incorrect. Local Authentication uses Tableau’s internal user database, not an external SSO protocol like OIDC.

Option B (Kerberos): Incorrect. Kerberos is a network authentication protocol for Windows environments, unrelated to OIDC.

Option C (Active Directory): Incorrect. AD uses LDAP or Kerberos, not OIDC, for authentication.

Tableau Server’s user-based licensing model assigns licenses to individual users (Creator, Explorer, Viewer) rather than machines or cores. Key features include:

Subscription license: Licenses are typically subscription-based, renewed annually or monthly, aligning with Tableau’s pricing model.

Distinct user roles: It supports three roles (Creator, Explorer, Viewer), each with specific capabilities, enabling granular access control.

Option A (A subscription license): Correct. User-based licenses are subscription-based by default.

Option B (Enables distinct user roles): Correct. The model defines Creator, Explorer, and Viewer roles.

Option C (Restricts the number of machine cores): Incorrect. This applies to core-based licensing, not user-based.

Option D (A perpetual license): Incorrect. Perpetual licenses were phased out; user-based licenses are subscription-based as of recent models.

Tableau Services Manager (TSM) is the administrative tool for managing Tableau Server’s configuration, processes, and topology. To log in to TSM (via the web UI at https:// :8850 or CLI), you need:

TSM administrator credentials: These are distinct from site roles and are set during installation or reset via tsm reset.

Local administrative rights: On Windows, the account used to access TSM must be in the local Administrators group on the initial node, as TSM interacts with system-level services.

In a test cluster, the engineer’s inability to log in suggests they lack either the correct TSM credentials or sufficient OS-level permissions. Since the question focuses on a Windows environment and “initial node,” the most immediate requirement is local administrative rights to run TSM commands or access the UI.

Option C (An account with administrative rights to the computer): Correct. The engineer must use an account in the local Administrators group on the initial node to authenticate to TSM. After that, they’ll need the TSM admin username/password set during installation.

Option A (An account with a Creator site role): Incorrect. Site roles (e.g., Creator) apply to content access within Tableau Server, not TSM administration.

Option B (An account with a Site Administrator role): Incorrect. Site Administrators manage site content, not server-level TSM functions.

Option D (An account for the Tableau Server administrator): Partially correct but incomplete. This likely refers to the TSM admin account, but without local admin rights on the machine, login will fail. Option C is more precise.

When Tableau Server uses Active Directory (AD) for authentication, group synchronization imports AD groups and assigns a minimum site role (e.g., Viewer, Explorer) to users in that group. This ensures users meet a baseline access level. The behavior for existing users during sync is:

If the user’s current site role provides more access than the minimum (e.g., Explorer vs. Viewer), their role remains unchanged.

If the user’s current role provides less access than the minimum (e.g., Unlicensed vs. Viewer), their role is upgraded to the minimum.

This preserves higher privileges while enforcing a floor. “Reduces access” means the minimum role is lower than the current role (e.g., Viewer vs. Explorer), in which case the existing role stays.

Option A (It will change to the minimum site role only if the minimum site role reduces access): Correct. The user’s role changes only if the minimum increases access (e.g., Unlicensed to Viewer); otherwise, it stays higher.

Option B (It will change only if the minimum provides more access): Incorrect wording. This is the inverse of the actual behavior—change occurs when needed to meet the minimum, not to exceed it.

Option C (It will always change): Incorrect. Existing higher roles are preserved.

Option D (It will never change): Incorrect. It changes if the current role is below the minimum.

In Tableau Server, schedules manage tasks such as extract refreshes and subscriptions. The execution mode of a schedule determines how tasks within that schedule are processed by the Backgrounder process:

Parallel: Tasks run simultaneously (up to the Backgrounder’s capacity), which is the default setting.

Serial: Tasks run one-at-a-time in sequence, ensuring that one task completes before the next begins.

To ensure tasks associated with a particular schedule run one-at-a-time, you must configure the schedule’s execution mode to Serial. This is done in the Tableau Server web interface:

Go to Schedules.

Select the schedule, click Actions > Edit Schedule.

Under Execution, choose Serial instead of Parallel.

Option A (Set Execution to Serial): Correct. This directly addresses the requirement by forcing tasks to execute sequentially.

Option B (Set Default priority to 0): Incorrect. Priority (1–100) determines the order of task execution across all schedules, not whether tasks run one-at-a-time within a single schedule. Also, 0 is not a valid priority value (minimum is 1).

Option C (Set Frequency to Hourly): Incorrect. Frequency (e.g., hourly, daily) controls when the schedule runs, not how tasks within it are executed.

Option D (Set Execution to Parallel): Incorrect. Parallel execution allows tasks to run simultaneously, which contradicts the requirement.

Backing up Tableau Server ensures recovery from failures or migrations. A full backup includes multiple data types—let’s dissect this comprehensively:

Backup Components:

Repository Data: PostgreSQL database with metadata (users, permissions, workbooks). Backed up via tsm maintenance backup -f .tsbak.

Configuration Data: Server settings (e.g., ports, authentication) also in the .tsbak file.

Server Secrets: Encryption keys, internal tokens, Repository passwords—critical for restoring functionality.

Extracts: .hyper files in File Store (optional, separate backup).

Option A (Server secrets and Repository passwords): Correct.

Details: Includes encryption keys (for extracts), internal tokens (process communication), and Repository credentials. Backed up separately or stored securely (e.g., tsm security export-keys).

Why Critical: Without these, restored data may be inaccessible or services may fail.

Option C (Configuration data): Correct.

Details: Ports, authentication settings, process topology—part of the .tsbak file.

Why Critical: Restores server behavior and connectivity post-recovery.

Option D (Repository data): Correct.

Details: Core metadata database—also in .tsbak.

Why Critical: Without it, all content and user data is lost.

Option B (Topology data): Incorrect.

Details: Topology (process distribution) is part of configuration data in the .tsbak, not a separate entity. It’s not distinctly backed up as “topology data.”

Why This Matters: A complete backup (secrets, config, repository) ensures full restoration—missing any piece risks an unusable server.

When a user reports slow performance for a newly-published workbook on Tableau Server, troubleshooting requires isolating the cause—e.g., data source issues, server load, workbook design, or caching. The first question should establish a baseline to narrow the scope. Let’s analyze this step-by-step with depth:

Performance Context:

A workbook’s speed depends on:

Data Source: Query complexity, size, network latency (e.g., database vs. extract).

Workbook Design: Filters, calculations, dashboard complexity.

Server Resources: VizQL rendering, Backgrounder load, caching.

"Newly-published" implies it’s not yet optimized or cached on the server.

Option A (Does it run any faster in Tableau Desktop?): Correct.

Why First: Comparing Desktop vs. Server performance is the most foundational diagnostic step:

Desktop Baseline: If it’s slow in Desktop (local machine), the issue likely lies in the workbook (e.g., complex queries, large data) or data source (e.g., slow database)—not Server-specific.

Server Difference: If it’s fast in Desktop but slow on Server, the problem could be server-side (e.g., resource contention, network latency to the data source from Server).

Practical Next Steps:

Slow in Desktop: Optimize workbook (e.g., simplify calcs, use extracts).

Fast in Desktop: Check Server (e.g., caching, VizQL load).

Why Critical: Establishes whether the issue is inherent to the workbook/data or introduced by Server—guides all further investigation.

Option B (Does the workbook always run slowly or does performance vary?): Useful but secondary.

Why Not First: Variability (e.g., slow at peak times) points to server load, but without a Desktop baseline, you can’t rule out workbook design. It’s a follow-up question after A.

Detail: Variability might suggest caching or concurrent user impact, but it assumes Server-side causation prematurely.

Option C (How many times have you opened the workbook in Tableau Server?): Less relevant initially.

Why Not First: Frequency of access might affect caching (first load is slower, subsequent loads faster), but it’s too specific and doesn’t isolate Desktop vs. Server. It’s a niche follow-up.

Option D (Did you enable caching on the workbook?): Misleading and incorrect.

Why Not First: Caching is server-managed (e.g., VizQL cache settings via tsm data-access caching set), not a user-toggle per workbook. Users don’t "enable" it—admins do. Plus, it’s premature without a baseline.

Why This Matters: Starting with Desktop performance cuts through assumptions, pinpointing whether the root cause is client-side (workbook/data) or server-side—essential for efficient resolution in production.