Database management is a method for managing the data that is used to support a company’s business operations. It involves storing data, distributing it to users and applications and editing it as required, monitoring data changes, and making sure that data integrity is not compromised due to unexpected failure. It is a part of the entire informational infrastructure of a business which supports decision-making in corporate growth, as well as compliance with laws such as the GDPR and California Consumer Privacy Act.
The first database systems were invented in the 1960s by Charles Bachman, IBM and others. They evolved into the information management systems (IMS) which made it possible to store and retrieve huge amounts of information for a range of purposes, from calculating inventory to supporting complicated human resources and financial accounting functions.
A database is a set of tables that organize data according to a particular scheme, such as one-to-many relationships. It uses the primary key to identify records and allows cross-references between tables. Each table has a collection of fields, referred to as attributes, which provide information about data entities. Relational models, which were developed by E. F. “Ted” Codd in the 1970s at IBM and IBM, are the most well-known database type today. The design is based on normalizing the data, making it simpler to use. It is also easier to update data because it does not require the changing of certain sections of the database.
Most DBMSs can support multiple types of databases by offering different internal and external levels of organization. The internal level addresses costs, scalability, and other operational issues such as the layout of the physical storage. The external level is the way the database is displayed in user interfaces and other applications. It could include a mix of external views based on different models of data and may include virtual table that are computed with generic data to enhance the performance.