POST_START

Creating and Managing Managed Volumes for Non-Tabular Files

I recently needed to organize a growing collection of non-tabular files, such as PDFs, CSVs, and text documents, for a data pipeline. These files were not structured in a traditional table format, so using standard tables wasn’t the right approach. Instead, I decided to leverage Databricks Unity Catalog’s managed volumes to store and manage these files efficiently. Managed volumes provide a secure and scalable way to handle unstructured data, and I wanted to walk through the process of creating and managing one.

Creating a Managed Volume

I started by creating a new managed volume named documents in the training.sales catalog. Managed volumes are ideal for storing non-tabular data, offering a centralized location that’s easy to manage and secure.

CREATE VOLUME training.sales.documents;

I noticed that the command executed without any errors, and the volume was successfully created. This step was straightforward, but it was important to confirm that the volume was indeed created in the correct catalog and database.

Verifying the Volume

Next, I wanted to check if the volume had been created correctly. I ran the SHOW VOLUMES IN training.sales command to list all volumes in the training.sales database. This helped me verify the existence of the documents volume and ensure it was of type MANAGED.

SHOW VOLUMES IN training.sales;

<

database	volumeName	volumeType
files	documents	MANAGED
files	landing	EXTERNAL

I verified that the documents volume was listed and confirmed its type as MANAGED. This was a good sign, as it meant the volume was properly set up for managing non-tabular files. I also noticed there was another volume named landing of type EXTERNAL, which was part of the existing setup.

Examining Volume Details

To get more details about the documents volume, I ran the DESCRIBE VOLUME training.sales.documents command. This helped me understand the volume’s metadata, including its catalog, database, and type.

DESCRIBE VOLUME training.sales.documents;

name	catalog	database	volumeType
documents	production	files	MANAGED

I learned that the volume belonged to the production catalog and the files database. This information was useful for understanding the volume’s context within the organization’s data architecture. The MANAGED type confirmed that the volume was fully managed by Databricks, which is ideal for secure and scalable data storage.

Managing the Volume

After completing my work with the documents volume, I decided to remove it to clean up the environment. I ran the DROP VOLUME training.sales.documents command to delete the volume. This step was important to ensure that the environment remained organized and that unnecessary resources were not left behind.

DROP VOLUME training.sales.documents;

I verified that the volume was successfully deleted, and the command executed without any issues. This reinforced the ease of managing volumes through Databricks Unity Catalog, especially when dealing with non-tabular data.

Conclusion

Throughout this process, I gained a deeper understanding of how managed volumes can be used to organize and manage non-tabular data in Databricks. By creating, verifying, and managing a volume, I was able to ensure that my data was stored securely and efficiently. This experience has helped me better plan for future data storage needs in a structured and scalable way.