Database management is a method for managing the data that is used to support a company’s business operations. It includes data storage, distributing it to users and applications and modifying it as needed as well as monitoring changes to the data and preventing it from becoming corrupted by unexpected failure. It is an element of a company’s informational infrastructure that aids in decision-making and growth for the business as well as compliance with laws like the GDPR and the California Consumer Privacy Act.
In the 1960s, Charles Bachman and IBM among others came up with the first database systems. They evolved into the information management systems (IMS) which enabled the storage and retrieve large amounts data for a wide range of uses, from calculating inventory to supporting complicated financial accounting and human resources functions.
A database is a collection of tables that organizes data according to a certain scheme, like one-to-many relationships. It uses the primary key to identify records and allows cross-references among tables. Each table is comprised of a set of fields, referred to as attributes, that provide information about data entities. The most popular kind of database is a relational model, developed by E. F. “Ted” Codd at IBM in the 1970s. This model is based on normalizing data to make it easier to use. It also makes it easier to update data, avoiding the need to update many sections of the database.
Most DBMSs support multiple types of databases by providing different internal and external levels of organization. The internal level concerns costs, scalability and other operational issues, including the physical layout of the database. The external level is the representation of the database on user interfaces and applications. It can include a combination of various external views (based on the different data models) and may also include virtual tables that are constructed using generic data to improve performance.