For a Snowflake external function, which type of endpoint must the remote service expose?

• A. HTTPS endpoint
• B. FTP endpoint
• C. SSH endpoint
• D. SMTP endpoint

Answer: (A)

Snowflake external functions are invoked by calling a web service over HTTPs. The remote service must expose an HTTPS endpoint so Snowflake can send a secure POST request with input data and receive a JSON response. HTTPS provides encryption and authentication for the data in transit, which is essential for any external function integration. Other protocols like FTP, SSH, or SMTP are not used for this kind of API-driven invocation and do not support the required request/response pattern. So, the endpoint type needed is an HTTPS endpoint.