file based-approach
the data is stored in one or more separate computer files
relational database
a way of structuring info in table rows and columns
file-based limitations
relational database pros
entity
the concept or object in the system that we want to model and store info about
attributes
a column or field in a table
primary key
unique identifier for each tuple
foreign key
a field in one table that links to a primary key in another table
candidate keys
a set of keys that can be used to uniquely identify a record
tuple/record
data in one row of a table
referential integrity
how can relational database reduce data redundancy
developer interface
query processor
data dictionary
stores all the info about the database e.g: fields, datatypes, keys
tasks performed by DBMS developer interface
DBMS software to ensure the security of data
normalization
a method to remove or reduce data redundancy
1NF
2NF
should be in 1NF + no partial dependencies
3NF
external schema
the individual’s view of the database
logical schema
describes how the relationships will be implemented in the logic structure of the database
conceptual schema
describes the views which user of the database might have