Database management is a system of managing information that a company needs to run its business operations. It involves storing data and distribution to application programs and users and then modifying it if necessary, monitoring changes in the data and preventing it from being damaged by unexpected failures. It’s a component of an organization’s overall informational infrastructure which aids in decision making and growth of the company as well as compliance with laws like the GDPR and the California Consumer Privacy Act.
In the 1960s, Charles Bachman and IBM along with others created the first database systems. They developed into information management systems (IMS), which allowed large amounts data to be stored and retrieved for a variety of reasons. From calculating inventory, to supporting complicated financial accounting functions, and human resource functions.
A database is a collection of tables which organize data in accordance with an established pattern, such as one-to many relationships. It uses primary keys to identify records, and allow cross-references between tables. Each table has a set of fields called attributes that represent facts about data entities. The most well-known type of database today is a relational model, designed by E. F. “Ted” Codd at IBM in the 1970s. The concept is based on normalizing data to make it easier to use. It also makes it simpler to update data by avoiding the necessity of changing many sections of the database.
Most DBMSs can support multiple types of databases and offer different internal and external levels of organization. The internal level concerns cost, scalability, and other operational issues, like the physical layout of the database. The external level determines how the database is presented in user interfaces and other applications. It may include a mix of different external views (based on different data models) and can also include virtual tables that are created from generic data in order to improve performance.
