Understanding SparkContext
A SparkContext represents the entry point to Spark functionality. It's like a key to your car. When we run any Spark application, a driver program starts, which has the main function and your SparkContext gets initiated here. PySpark automatically creates a SparkContext
for you in the PySpark shell (so you don't have to create it by yourself) and is exposed via a variable sc
.
In this simple exercise, you'll find out the attributes of the SparkContext
in your PySpark shell which you'll be using for the rest of the course.
This exercise is part of the course
Big Data Fundamentals with PySpark
Exercise instructions
- Print the version of SparkContext in the PySpark shell.
- Print the Python version of SparkContext in the PySpark shell.
- What is the master of SparkContext in the PySpark shell?
Hands-on interactive exercise
Have a go at this exercise by completing this sample code.
# Print the version of SparkContext
print("The version of Spark Context in the PySpark shell is", sc.____)
# Print the Python version of SparkContext
print("The Python version of Spark Context in the PySpark shell is", ____.pythonVer)
# Print the master of SparkContext
print("The master of Spark Context in the PySpark shell is", ____.____)