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The AWS Glue Data Catalog acts as a centralized repository for metadata management in AWS, specifically designed for ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) jobs. It provides references for various data sources and targets involved in these operations, making it easier for data engineers and analysts to discover and understand their data assets across different storage solutions like Amazon S3, Amazon RDS, and more.

By maintaining comprehensive metadata about databases, tables, and data formats, the Data Catalog helps users effectively manage their data pipelines. This includes schema definitions, data classification, and relationships between data entities, which are crucial for performing ETL tasks efficiently.

In contrast, other options such as file storage management, high-performance file systems for EC2, and metrics collection do not capture the primary purpose of the AWS Glue Data Catalog, which is specifically tailored around the management of metadata associated with data sources and targets for ETL processes.