Database management is the process for managing data that supports an organization’s business operations. It includes data storage, distributing it to users and application programs and then modifying it if necessary as well as monitoring changes to the data and preventing it from being damaged due to unexpected failures. It is an element of an organization’s overall informational infrastructure that aids in decision-making and corporate growth, as well as compliance with laws such as the GDPR and the California Consumer Privacy Act.
The first database systems were created in the 1960s by Charles Bachman, IBM and others. They developed into information management systems (IMS) which made it possible to store and retrieve large amounts information for a range of purposes, ranging from calculating inventory to supporting complicated human resources and financial accounting functions.
A database is a set of tables that organize data in accordance with a specific arrangement, like one-to-many relationships. It utilizes primary key to identify records and allows cross-references among tables. Each table contains a set of attributes or fields that provide information about data entities. The most popular type of database that is currently in use is a relational model created by E. F. “Ted” Codd at IBM in the 1970s. The design is based on normalizing the data, making it easier to use. It is also simpler to update data because it does not require changing several databases.
The majority of DBMSs support a variety of databases and offer different internal and external levels of organization. The internal level deals with the cost, scalability, and other operational issues, like the physical layout of the database. The external level is how the database appears in user interfaces and other applications. It can include a mixture of different external views that are based on different data models. It could include virtual tables that are computed using generic data in order to improve the performance.