Which object cannot be cloned?

• A. Internal named stages
• B. External named stages
• C. Tables
• D. Pipes

Answer: (A)

Cloning copies the data and metadata of an object without moving the underlying files. This works for objects that hold or reference data in a way Snowflake can duplicate without duplicating the actual stored content.

Internal named stages live entirely in Snowflake’s own storage. Cloning something that is stored entirely inside Snowflake would effectively require duplicating Snowflake’s internal staging data, which Snowflake does not support. That’s why an internal named stage cannot be cloned.

External named stages, on the other hand, point to data in cloud storage outside Snowflake. Cloning them simply creates another stage that points to the same external location—no data is copied, just the reference.

Tables are classic clone targets because their data is stored within Snowflake and can be shared via zero-copy cloning. Pipes are also cloneable as they represent a metadata construct for loading data, which can be replicated without moving the actual data.

So, the object that cannot be cloned is the internal named stage.