Explanation
The reason why the data files still exist while the metadata files were deleted is because the table was external.
When a table is external in Spark SQL (or in other database systems), it means that the table metadata (such as schema information and table structure) is managed externally, and Spark SQL assumes that the data is managed and maintained outside of the system. Therefore, when you execute a DROP TABLE statement for an external table, it removes only the table metadata from the catalog, leaving the data files intact. On the other hand, for managed tables (option E), Spark SQL manages both the metadata and the data files. When you drop a managed table, it deletes both the metadata and the associated data files, resulting in a complete removal of the table.