Explanation:

This question examines knowledge of how to manage Tableau Server’s repository process (pgsql), which stores workbook metadata, user data, and server configurations. In a distributed Tableau Server environment, multiple repository instances may exist, but only one is active at a time. Administrators can designate a preferred active repository to control which node hosts this process for stability and performance.

✅ Correct Option: A. A tsm configuration set command ⚙️
To specify a preferred active repository, administrators use the tsm configuration set command. This command allows direct configuration of Tableau Server settings, including repository preference, through the Tableau Services Manager (TSM) CLI. After setting this preference, a pending changes apply and server restart ensures that the selected repository acts as the active one when possible.

💡 Example:
tsm configuration set -k service.repository.preferred_host -v

❌ Incorrect Option: B. A tabcmd set command 🚫
tabcmd is used for content management (like publishing workbooks or managing users), not for server configuration or topology settings. It cannot control repository preferences or other internal Tableau Server processes.

❌ Incorrect Option: C. The TSM browser client's Maintenance page 🚫
The Maintenance page focuses on backup, cleanup, and repository restore tasks, not on configuring repository topology or preferences. It allows operational maintenance, not preference designation for active repositories.

❌ Incorrect Option: D. The TSM browser client's Configuration Topology page 🚫
While the Configuration → Topology page displays process distribution and allows adding/removing processes, it does not include a control for setting the preferred active repository. That function remains accessible only through the TSM CLI using configuration commands.

📚 Reference:
Tableau Help – Configure Repository Settings (TSM CLI)

Explanation:

The most significant and common cause of problems for a Tableau Server installation is resource contention. Tableau Server is designed to consume substantial CPU, memory, and disk I/O, as it runs many concurrent processes (VizQL Server, Backgrounder, Data Engine, etc.) to handle user requests, data queries, and extract refreshes. Running any additional software on the same machine introduces competition for these critical resources, leading directly to severe performance degradation, instability, slow dashboard load times, and potential service failures.

Correct Option:

A. Running additional software on the server ✅
Tableau Server requires its dedicated system resources to operate reliably and performantly. When you install other major applications, such as large database systems, corporate backup tools, or enterprise antivirus software without proper exclusions, they often compete directly with core Tableau processes for CPU cycles, RAM, and disk I/O. This competition is a top cause of slow performance and unpredictable service crashes, which is why Tableau documentation strongly recommends dedicating the machine solely to Tableau Server.

Incorrect Option:

B. Separating the Backgrounder and VizQL processes to different machines 💣
This is actually a recommended best practice in a distributed (multi-node) high-availability (HA) environment. VizQL Server handles live user visualization requests (foreground tasks), while Backgrounder runs extract refreshes and subscriptions (background tasks). Separating them prevents resource-intensive background jobs from degrading the interactive user experience, thereby improving the server's overall stability and performance.

C. Configuring the server to use a static IP address 🌐
Using a static IP address is a fundamental requirement and best practice for any professional server installation, including Tableau Server. A static IP ensures that the server's network location remains constant, preventing connectivity issues that can occur if the IP address were to change (a dynamic IP), which could break internal communication between cluster nodes and external access.

D. Using a non-default installation path ⚙️
While the default path is convenient, changing the installation path is a supported configuration feature of Tableau Server, especially if you need to install it on a drive other than the system's primary disk (e.g., to allocate more space). As long as the path follows standard operating system rules and permissions are set correctly, it will not inherently cause problems for the server's operation.

Reference:
General Performance Guidelines - Tableau Help

Explanation:

Single Sign-On (SSO) allows users to access Tableau Server without re-entering credentials after logging into a central identity provider. Tableau Server supports several industry-standard protocols to integrate with enterprise authentication systems, enabling a seamless and secure login experience. Local authentication is explicitly not an SSO method.

✅ Correct Options:

A. OpenID Connect
OpenID Connect (OIDC) is a modern, standards-based authentication layer built on OAuth 2.0. It allows Tableau Server to delegate authentication to external identity providers like Azure AD, Okta, or Ping Identity. Upon successful login with the provider, a token is passed to Tableau, granting access without a separate password, making it a primary method for cloud and modern SSO.

C. Kerberos with Active Directory
Kerberos is a ticket-based network authentication protocol integrated with Active Directory. When configured for Tableau Server, it enables "true" silent SSO for domain-joined machines. The user's Windows login ticket is automatically passed to Tableau, granting access without any prompt for a username or password, providing a seamless desktop-like experience.

D. Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML)
SAML is an open standard and one of the most widely used protocols for enterprise SSO. It allows an identity provider (like Okta or ADFS) to pass authentication credentials and user data to Tableau Server (the service provider). Users logging into their company portal can click a Tableau tile and be automatically signed in, making SAML a cornerstone of web-based SSO.

❌ Incorrect Option:

B. Local Authentication
Local authentication is the default method where Tableau Server itself stores and manages usernames and passwords in its internal repository. This is the direct opposite of SSO, as it requires users to maintain a separate, Tableau-specific password and enter it manually upon each login. It does not integrate with or delegate to an external identity provider.

📚 Reference:
Tableau Help Documentation: "Ways to Sign In" - This official page lists the supported authentication methods, explicitly naming SAML, OpenID Connect, and Trusted Authentication (which often uses Kerberos) as methods that enable single sign-on, while clearly differentiating them from local authentication.

Explanation:

High Availability (HA) in Tableau Server ensures continuity by deploying redundant, critical processes like the Repository (PostgreSQL database), which holds all metadata, permissions, and user data. To manage this redundancy, a dedicated process must continually monitor the health of the currently Active Repository instance. If that active instance fails to respond for a set duration, this monitoring process is the one that executes the decision to trigger an automatic failover to the passive replica, minimizing server downtime.

Correct Option:

A. Cluster Controller 🚦
The Cluster Controller serves as the eyes and ears for the health of the entire Tableau Server cluster. This process is actively responsible for detecting failures in other key services, including the vital Active Repository. Once it detects that the Active Repository is unresponsive for longer than the configured time limit (typically a few minutes), the Cluster Controller instantly makes the decision and instructs the system to promote the Passive Repository to Active status, executing the seamless failover.

Incorrect Option:

B. Coordination Service 🧭
Think of the Coordination Service (which uses Apache ZooKeeper) as the cluster's master blueprint holder and consensus manager. It is responsible for knowing where all processes are and which instance is currently designated as the leader (active). While it is absolutely critical for High Availability, it does not perform the continuous health checks or make the immediate failover decision for the Repository—that job belongs entirely to the Cluster Controller.

C. Gateway 🚪
The Gateway is the process that functions as the cluster’s traffic cop, handling all incoming requests from users’ web browsers and directing them to the correct worker processes. It is a communication front-end. Since its role is managing external connections, it has no inherent logic for monitoring the internal, deep health status of a backend database like the Repository or for initiating a database failover.

D. Backgrounder ⏳
The Backgrounder is a worker engine dedicated to performing asynchronous tasks that require a lot of system resources, such as refreshing data extracts, running subscriptions, and managing flows. Although its work depends entirely on a functional Repository, the Backgrounder is a consumer of the repository service, not its operational overseer or failover decision-maker.

Reference:
Repository Failover - Tableau Help

Explanation:

The Tableau Services Manager (TSM) CLI uses specific commands for server maintenance. A command is "valid and complete" if it can be executed as written without requiring additional, mandatory arguments. Some commands, like backup and restore, need a file path specified to function, while others, like cleanup and ziplogs, can run with just their base command.

✅ Correct Options:

C. tsm maintenance cleanup
This is a valid and complete command. It initiates the built-in process to remove old log files and temporary data from the Tableau Server. While you can add optional filters (like --all or date ranges), the command runs successfully and performs its core function without any mandatory additional arguments.

D. tsm maintenance ziplogs
This is a valid and complete command. Its purpose is to gather and compress server log files into a single .zip file for easy download and troubleshooting. The command executes fully on its own, creating the log archive in a default location without requiring any extra parameters.

❌ Incorrect Options:

A. tsm maintenance backup
This is an incomplete command. The backup command requires a mandatory -f or --file argument to specify the path and filename for the backup file (e.g., tsm maintenance backup -f backup.tsbak). Running it without this argument will result in an error.

B. tsm maintenance restore
This is an incomplete command. Similar to backup, the restore command requires a mandatory -f argument to point to the backup file you wish to restore from (e.g., tsm maintenance restore -f backup.tsbak). Executing it without this argument will fail.

📚 Reference:
Tableau Help Documentation: "TSM CLI Commands"
🔹 The documentation for tsm maintenance backup explicitly states: "Required Arguments: -f | --file "
🔹 The documentation for tsm maintenance restore similarly states: "Required Arguments: -f | --file "
🔹 In contrast, the cleanup and ziplogs commands are listed without such mandatory flags for their basic operation.