Looker is a vital business intelligence tool that helps businesses build perceptive visualizations. It offers an easy-to-use workflow, is entirely browser-based, and promotes dashboard collaboration. Besides other advantages, we can create dynamic and interactive dashboards, and automate and schedule the distribution of the report. Companies like CircleCI, DigitalOcean, Chime, and Typeform use the Looker tool for generating visuals and dashboards. According to payscale.com, the average salary of a Looker developer in the USA is around $87K per annum. So, you have the opportunity to build a promising career in Looker. In this Looker interview questions 2022 article, we will provide interview questions that are asked frequently in the job interviews. Go through the Looker interview questions and answers to crack the interview effortlessly.

Looker Interview Questions and Answers

Looker Interview Questions For Beginners

1. Define the term “Business Intelligence”?

Business Intelligence is a set of strategies that we use for assessing the business progress, records, and performing different transactions or processes that result in developing uniform data. The uniform data contains information that can help us to enhance our business. By using some business intelligence tools, we can analyze that consistent data.  In this way, business intelligence and its tools help us to make informative and data-driven decisions.

2. Explain the term SSIS?

The full form of SSIS in SQL Server Integration Services. SSIS is an element of the Microsoft SQL Server that we use to generate the workflows for data migrating tasks. It is an ETL tool used for retrieving data from different sources and, after that, transforms and loads the data into various destinations.

3. What are the different kinds of data flows?

There are different kinds of data flows they are:

• Transformations: The transformation data flow filters the database through different calculations and modifies the data format.
• Sources: The data sources can be Excel Files, XML files, Flat files, and Relational databases.
• Destination Files: The destination files can be PDF files, XML files, Flat files, and Relational databases.

4. What are the cache modes of Looker?

In Looker, we have three cache modes they are:

• Fully reserve mode
• No reserve mode
• Mostly store mode.

5. Describe Pivoting

Pivoting is defined as a mechanism of shifting the data from column to row and vice versa. Pivoting assures that no data is abandoned in either column or row while exchanging the same data.

6. What are the benefits of Looker?

The following are the benefits of Looker:

• Data Management: We evaluate and quantify representing the organization’s developments and future possibilities.
• Integrations: It is the capability to connect with the other systems to provide different sources and functionalities.
• Document Management: Looker transforms the reports into various file formats and shares analytical discoveries.

7. Describe OLAP?

Online Analytical Processing is an approach that we use to organize multidimensional data.

8. List the tools that we deploy for the data analysis?

For data analysis, we can deploy the following tools:

• RapidMiner
• KNIME
• SOLVER
• Node XL
• Tableau
• Wolfram Alpha
• Fusion Tables through Google.

9. Describe Drilling?

Drilling is an approach that we use for studying the data details that is useful. We can also consider it for removing the issues like authenticity and copyright.

10. What are the critical steps of an analytics project?

 The following are the critical steps of the analytics project:

• Specifying solutions and problems
• Data Modeling
• Data Validation
• Data Exploration
• Data Preparation
• Tracking and implementing the data.

11. Explain drill-down analysis?

The drill-down analysis is an ability through business tools. This assists us in seeing the data in a comprehensive manner and offers deep penetrations. We can drill down on a component in a report or dashboard to get more crude details.

12. Name the types of Looker blocks?

We have six types of looker blocks, they are:

• Analytic blocks
• Data blocks
• Data tools
• Embedded blocks
• Viz blocks
• Source blocks.

13. What are the general troubleshooting steps of PDTs?

Following are some general troubleshooting steps of PDTs:

• Verifying the PDT state
• Verifying the locking and permissions
• Verifying the regenerator state.

Intermediate Looker Interview Questions

14. Does the log have any association with the packages?

Yes, the log is closely associated with the package deal stage. Even when there is a need for the configuration, the same is implemented only on the package deal degree.

15. What is the full form of NDTs?

The full form of NDTs is Native Derived Tables. We can create the NDTs by specifying the explore parameter on the base table through desired columns.

16. What is data cleansing?

Data Cleansing is also known as the data cleaning process. Generally, we have various ways of removing the errors and differences from the datasets. The combination of these approaches is known as data cleansing. The objective of these approaches is to enhance the data quality.

17. What is the security difference between the Looker and Tableau?

Tableau provides data security at any level.

In Looker, we have to change the security settings based on our requirements.

18. What are the Operating systems that Looker supports?

Looker supports the following operating systems:

• Mac
• Linux
• Windows.

19. What are the issues in the data that trouble the data analysis?

The main issue that creates trouble is redundant entries. Even though we can eliminate it, there is no complete precision. It is because similar data is available in different formats or different sentences. Another big problem is the misspelling. Also, diverse values can generate plenty of issues. Values that are missing, unlawful, and unrecognized can improve the probability of multiple errors and impact the quality up to a significant range.

20. What are the methods that we can deploy for data validation?

There are two methods we can deploy for the data validation, they are:

• Data Validation
• Data Screening.

21. What are the essential qualities that an expert data analyst must have?

The first essential skill for a data analyst expert is collecting, distributing, and organizing massive data without involving accuracy. The second important skill is having an in-depth understanding of the course. Having technical proficiency in the database domain is also helpful at different levels. Besides this, a data analyst should also have qualities like patience and leadership. 

22. What is the purpose of the “Rebuild Derived tables and Run button”?

We use the “Rebuild Derived tables and the Run button for beginning a rebuild of all the persistent derived tables covered in the query. We also use this for launching the rebuild of all the upstream PDTs.

23. Name the approaches that we have to examine for data cleaning?

The first thing we have to consider is data size. If the data size is too big, we must categorize it into tiny components. Studying the overall statistics is another way that we can implement. Developing utility functions are also helpful and reliable.

24. Describe Logistic Regression?

Logistic Regression is a way identified for the detailed verification of the dataset that integrates unbiased variables. The verification level relies on how exactly the final results rely on these variables. It is not constantly clean to modify them once specified.

25. What are the differences between DTS and SSIS?

DTS refers to Data transformation services, while SSIS refers to SQL Server Integration Services.

DTS	SSIS
The error-handling capabilities of DTS is restricted.	SSIS handles plenty of errors regardless of source, size, and difficulty,
In DTS, we don’t have business intelligence functionality.	In SSIS, we have complete business intelligence integration.
DTS does not have a development wizard.	SSIS has an excellent development wizard.
DTS supports X scripting.	SSIS supports the .NET scripting.

 

26. What do you mean by package deployment in SSIS?

In SSIS, we have a file tagged as the manifest file. In fact, it should run along with the operation. It always assures reliable or authorized information for the containers and without policy violation. Users can deploy the same in the File system or into the SQL Server according to the allocation or requirements. 

Looker Interview Questions for Experienced

27. Is it feasible for the business to utilize the same resources for business intelligence, or do they require specialists?

It completely depends on the business type. Most enterprises have identified there is no requirement for specialists. We can train the existing employees and get the desired results. Actually, it will not take much time to train them in the domain. As BI is easily approachable, we can support every phase.

28. Define Slicing?

Slicing is defined as the process that assures that the data is available at its specified position or location and also ensures that information is error-free.

29. What is the use of SQL runner?

SQL runner provides direct access to our databases and endorses its access in different methods. SQL runner explores and creates queries.

30. What is the price of Looker?

Looker charges $35/user/month for on-site deployment and $42/user/month for cloud deployment.

31. Which container of the package is enabled for data logging to a package log?

Every container or task is enabled for data logging.  But, they should be allowed in the initial stage of the operation.

32. Differentiate partial cache mode and no-cache mode?

We use no-cache mode when the reference data is very huge for loading into the memory. We use the partial cache mode when the data site is comparatively low. The lookup index in the partial cache mode provides rapid responses.

33. Explain full cache mode?

Full cache mode is the default cache mode. It will cache the reference result set before the implementation. After that, it will store and retrieve the complete data set from a particular lookup location. Full cache mode is ideal for dealing with a big data set.

34. Which one is best among SQL Server deployment and File System Deployment?

The SQL Server deployment is better when compared to File System deployment. The processing time of SQL server deployment is rapid. Thus, it gives fast results. It also maintains data security.

35. Describe user flow analysis by heap?

Heap seizes user behavior like taps, clicks, gestures, applications, and websites automatically. It enables data enrichment through customized APIs. This allows analyzing the user actions and exhibiting them visually.

36. Can we utilize the templated filters in the PDTs?

Generally, the usage of templated filters is not recommended. The table will be redeveloped whenever the filter changes, and it drives a lot of strain on the database.

37. What are the needs for utilizing custom visualization?

Activate the Sandboxed custom visualization labs characteristic in the admin panel. Install user-friendly javascript visualizations of the visualization page. Also, it assures that we have the modern version of the chromium renderer.

38. Can we filter the data through table calculations?

Yes, we can filter the data through yes or no logic in the table calculations.

39. Which data is included in the table calculations?

Table calculations execute after returning the query. They work on the data in the explore table.

40. Explain OLTP?

Online Transaction Processing(OLTP) endorses the data processing of transaction-oriented applications. It concentrates on the regular transactions of the enterprise. It includes inserting, updating, and deleting the tiny pieces of the data in the database.  

Conclusion

The above Looker interview questions cover all the basic and advanced concepts of Looker and help both beginners and experienced professionals. If you have any queries, let us know by commenting in the below section.

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