Database management is the system to manage information that is essential to the business operations of an organization. It includes data storage and distribution to application programs and users making changes as needed, monitoring changes in the data and preventing it from getting damaged due to unexpected failure. It is a part of an organization’s overall informational infrastructure that aids in decision-making, corporate growth and compliance with laws such as the GDPR and the California Consumer Privacy Act.
The first database systems were invented in the 1960s by Charles Bachman, IBM and others. They evolved into information management systems (IMS) which allowed massive amounts of data to be stored and retrieved for a range of purposes. From calculating inventory to aiding complicated financial accounting functions, and human resource functions.
A database is a collection of tables which organize data in accordance with the specific scheme, for example one-to-many relationships. It uses primary key to identify records and allows cross-references among tables. Each table is comprised of a set of fields called attributes that contain information about data entities. Relational models, developed by E. F. “Ted” Codd in the 1970s at IBM as a database, are the most widely used type of database today. The concept is based on normalizing data to make it easier to use. It also makes it simpler to update data without the necessity of changing several databases.
Most DBMSs are able to support different types of databases, offering internal and external levels of organization. The internal level deals with costs, scalability, and other operational concerns such as the layout of the physical storage. The external level is how the database is displayed in user interfaces and other applications. It could comprise a combination of different external views (based on the various data models) and may include virtual tables that are constructed from generic data to improve performance.
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