Optimizing Query Performance with Sort Keys and Distribution Styles in Amazon Redshift

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Optimizing Query Performance with Sort Keys and Distribution Styles in Amazon Redshift

In this lab, you'll learn how to optimize Amazon Redshift performance by adding sort keys and selecting appropriate distribution styles for tables.

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Lab Info

Level

Intermediate

Last updated

Sep 24, 2025

Duration

30m

Challenge

Upload the Data to Amazon S3

Upload events.csv (7.04 KB) and event-details.csv (865 Bytes) to the AWS CloudShell then copy the files to the precreated bucket in Amazon S3.
Challenge

Compare Query Performance: With vs. Without Sort Keys in Amazon Redshift

Create two events Amazon Redshift events tables—one with a sort key and one without. Then, use EXPLAIN to analyze and compare the performance and query cost of each table.
Challenge

Compare Distribution Styles: EVEN vs. DISTKEY vs. ALL in Amazon Redshift

Create two Amazon Redshift tables: a small event details lookup table using the ALL distribution style and a larger events table using a different distribution style. Then, verify that the assigned distribution styles are correctly applied.

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