Module 6:

Database Design

1
 Chapter Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you should be able to:

1. Describe the role of database design as the foundation of a successful information

system

2. Describe the five phases in the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC)

3. Design databases using the six phases in the Database Life Cycle (DBLC) framework

4. Conduct evaluation and revision within the SDLC and DBLC frameworks

5. Distinguish between top-down and bottom-up approaches in database design

6. Distinguish between centralized and decentralized conceptual database design

2
 The Information System (1 of 2)

• The database is part of a larger whole known as an information system (IS), which
provides for data collection, storage, and retrieval
− A complete information system is composed of people, hardware, and software,
the database(s), application programs, and procedures

• Systems analysis is the process that establishes the need for an information system
and its extent

• The process of creating an information system is known as systems development

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 The Information System (2 of 2)

• The performance of an information system depends on the following factors:

− Database design and implementation
− Application design and implementation
− Administrative procedures

• The term database development describes the process of database design and its
implementation

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 The Systems Development Life Cycle
• The Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) traces the history of an information
system
− The SDLC provides the big picture within which database design and application
development can be mapped out and evaluated

• The traditional SDLC is divided into the following five phases:

− Planning
− Analysis
− Detailed systems design
− Implementation
− Maintenance

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The Systems Development Life Cycle

Figure 9.2 The Systems

Development Life Cycle (SDLC)

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 The Systems Development Life Cycle

• The SDLC planning phase yields a general overview of the company and its objectives

• During the SDLC analysis phase problems that were defined during the planning
phase are examined in greater detail

• In the detailed systems design phase, the designer completes the design of the
system’s processes

• During the implementation phase, the hardware, DBMS software, and application
programs are installed, and the database design is implemented

• Maintenance can be grouped into three types: corrective, adaptive, and perfective

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 The Database Life Cycle

• The database life cycle (DBLC) is a cycle that races the history of a database within
an information system

• The DBLC is divided into the following six phases:

− Database initial study
− Database design
− Implementation and loading
− Testing and evaluation
− Operation
− Maintenance and evolution

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The Database Life Cycle

Figure 9.3 The Database Life Cycle

(DBLC)

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 The Database Initial Study (1 of 2)

• The overall purpose of the database initial study is to:

− Analyze the company situation
− Define problems and constraints
− Define objectives
− Define scope and boundaries

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The Database Initial Study (2 of 2)

Figure 9.4 A Summary of Activities

in the Database Initial Study

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The Database Design Process

Figure 9.6 Database Design

Process

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 Implementation and Loading

• The output of the database design phase is a series of instruction detailing the
creation of tables, attributes, domains, views, indexes, security constraints, and
storage and performance guidelines

• Virtualization is a technique that creates logical representations of computing

resources that are independent of the underlying physical computing resources

13
 Testing and Evaluation (1 of 2)

• You should test for at least the following:

− Physical security
− Password security
− Access rights
− Audit trails
− Application code and database security
− Data encryption
− Diskless workstations

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 Testing and Evaluation (2 of 2)

• Database backups can be performed at different levels:

− Full backup/dump – all database objects are backed up in their entirety
− Differential backup – only modified/updated objects since last full backup are
backed up
− Transaction log backup – only the transaction log operations that are not
reflected in a previous backup are backed up

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 Operation

• Once the database has passed the evaluation and testing stage, it is considered
operational

• The beginning of the operational phase starts the process of system evolution

• Problems that could not have been foreseen during the testing phase being to surface
during the operational phase

• A critical aspect of an operational database system is compliance

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 Maintenance

• Some required periodic maintenance activities include the following:

− Preventative maintenance (backup)
− Corrective maintenance (recovery)
− Adaptive maintenance
− Assignment of access permissions and their maintenance for new and old users
− Generation of database access statistics
− Periodic security audits based on the system-generated statistics
− Monthly, quarterly, or yearly system usage summaries for internal billing or
budgeting purposes

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 Knowledge Check Activity 9-1

• What does the acronym DBLC mean, and what does a DBLC portray?

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 Knowledge Check Activity 9-1: Answer

• What does the acronym DBLC mean, and what does a DBLC portray?
Answer: DBLC is the acronym that is used to label the Database Life
Cycle. The DBLC traces the history of a database system from its
inception to its obsolescence. The DBLC is composed of six phases:
initial study, design, implementation and loading, testing and evaluation,
operation, and maintenance and evolution.

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 Conceptual Design

• Conceptual design is the first stage in the database design process

− It is a process that uses data-modeling techniques to create a model of a
database structure that represents real-world objects as realistically as possible

• The goal at this stage is to design a database independent of database software and
physical details

• The output of this process is a conceptual data model that describes main data
entities, attributes, relationships, and constrains

• Keep in mind the following minimal data rule:

− All that is needed is there, and all that is there is needed

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 Data Analysis and Requirements
• The first step in conceptual design is to discover the characteristics of the data
elements

• Designers efforts are focused on the following:

− Information needs, information users, information sources and information
constitution

• The designer obtains information from a variety of sources including the following:
− Developing and gathering end-user data views
− Directly observing current system – existing and desired output
− Interfacing with the systems design group

• Description of operations is a document that provides a precise, detailed, up-to-date,

and thoroughly reviewed description of the activities that define an organization’s
operation

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Entity Relationship Modeling and
Normalization (1 of 3)
• All objects (entities, attributes,
relations, views, and so on) are
defined in a data dictionary,
which is used in tandem with the
normalization process

• Figure 9.10 ER Modeling Is an

Iterative Process Based on
Activities

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 Entity Relationship Modeling and
Normalization (2 of 3)
• During the ER modeling process, the designer much do the following:
− Define entities, attributes, primary keys, and foreign keys
− Make decisions about adding new primary key attributes
− Make decisions about the treatment of composite and multivalued
− Make decisions about adding derived attributes to satisfy processing requirements
− Make decisions about the placement of foreign keys in 1:1 relationships
− Avoid unnecessary ternary or higher degree relationships
− Draw the corresponding ER diagram

23
 Entity Relationship Modeling and
Normalization (3 of 3)
• During the ER modeling process, the designer much do the following (continued):
− Normalize the entities
− Include all data element definitions in the data dictionary
− Make decisions about standard naming conventions

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 Data Model Verification

• A module is an information system component that handles a specific business

function, such as inventory, orders, or payroll
− It is a design segment that can be implemented as an autonomous unit and is
sometimes linked to produce a system

• Within the central entity/module framework, you must do the following:

− Ensure the module’s cohesivity, which is the strength of the relationships
between a module’s components
− Analyze each module’s relationships with other modules to address module
coupling
§ Module coupling is the extent to which modules are independent of one
another

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 Distributed Database Design

• If the database data and processes will be distributed across the system, portions of
a database, known as database fragments, may reside in several physical locations

• A database fragment is a subset of a database that is stored at a given location

• Distributed database design defines the optimum allocation strategy for database
fragments to ensure database integrity, security, and performance

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 Knowledge Check Activity 9-2

• What is the minimal data rule in conceptual design? Why is it

important?

27
 Knowledge Check Activity 9-2: Answer

• What is the minimal data rule in conceptual design? Why is it

important?
• Answer: The minimal data rule specifies that all the data defined in the
data model are actually required to fit present and expected future
data requirements. This rule may be phrased as All that is needed is
there, and all that is there is needed.

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 DBMS Software Selection

• The selection of DBMS software is critical to the information system’s smooth

operation

• The following are common factors that affect the purchasing decision:
− Cost
− DBMS features and tools
− Underlying model
− Portability
− DBMS hardware requirements

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 Logical Design

• Logical design is the second stage in the database design process

− This stage matches the conceptual design to the specific constructs of the
selected DMBS

• The logical design is generally performed in the following steps:

− Step 1 – Map the conceptual model to logical model components
− Step 2 – Validate the logical model using normalization
− Step 3 – Validate the logical model integrity constraints
− Step 4 – Validate the logical model against user requirements

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 Map the Conceptual Model to the Logical
Model Components
• The process of translating the conceptual model into a set of relations is performed
in the following steps:
− Step 1 – Map strong entities
− Step 2 – Map supertype/subtype relationships
− Step 3 – Map weak entities
− Step 4 – Map binary relationships
− Step 5 – Map higher-degree relationships

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 Validate the Logical Model Using
Normalization
• The logical design should contain only properly normalized tables

• Activities such as normalization take place at different stages in the design process

• Each time you reiterate a step, the model is further refined and better documented

• Functional dependencies among determinant and dependent attributes are evaluated

and data anomalies are prevented via normalization

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 Validate the Logical Model Integrity
Constraints
• All defined constraints must be supported by the logical data model

• You must map constraints to the proper relational model constraints

• Special attention is needed at this stage to ensure that all views can be resolved and
that security is enforced to ensure the privacy of data

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 Validate the Logical Model Against User
Requirements
• The final step in the logical design process is to validate all logical model definitions
against all end-user data, transaction, and security requirements

• Once the steps of the logical design are complete, attention can now be placed on
defining the physical requirements that allow the system to function within the
selected DBMS/hardware environment

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 Physical Design

• Physical design is the process of determining the data storage organization and data
access characteristics of the database to ensure its integrity, security, and
performance
− This is the last stage of the database design process

• The physical design stage consists of the following steps:

− Step 1: Define data storage organization
− Step 2: Define integrity and security measures
− Step 3: Determine performance measurements

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 Define Data Storage Organization

• Designers must determine the volume of data to be managed and the data usage
patterns

• Once that knowledge is obtained, the designer must do the following:

− Determine the location and physical storage organization for each table
− Identify indexes and the type of indexes to be used for each table
− Identify the views and the types of views to be used on each table

36
 Define Integrity and Security Measures

• In this step of physical design, the following two tasks must be addressed:
− Define user and security groups and roles
− Assign security controls

37
 Determine Performance Measurements

• Physical design becomes more complex when data is distributed at different

locations because the performance is affected by the communication media’s
throughput

• Physical design performance measurement deals with fine-tuning the DBMS and
queries to ensure that they will meet end-user performance requirements as
identified in the previous stages

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 Database Design Strategies (1 of 2)

• The following are two classical approaches to database design:

− Top-down design starts by identifying the data sets and then defines the data
elements for each of those sets
− Bottom-up design first identifies the data elements (items) and then groups them
together in data sets

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Database Design Strategies (2 of 2)

Figure 9.14 Top-Down vs. Bottom-

Up Design Sequencing

40
 Centralized versus Decentralized Design (1
of 5)
• Centralized design is a process by which all database design decisions are carried out
centrally by a small group of people
− This process is typical of relatively simple, small databases and can be
successfully done by a single database administrator

• Centralized design is suitable in a top-down design approach when the problem

domain is relatively small, as in a single unit or department

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Centralized versus Decentralized Design (2
of 5)

Figure 9.15 Centralized Design

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 Centralized versus Decentralized Design (3
of 5)
• Decentralized design might be used when the system’s data component has a
considerable number of entities and complex relations on which very complex
operations are performed
− It is also often used when the problem itself is spread across several operational
sites and each element is a subset of the entire data set

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Centralized versus Decentralized Design (4
of 5)

Figure 9.16 Decentralized Design

44
Centralized versus Decentralized Design (5
of 5)

Figure 9.17 Summary of

Aggregation Problems

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 Knowledge Check Activity 9-3

• Discuss the distinction between top-down and bottom-up approaches

to database design.

46
 Knowledge Check Activity 9-3: Answer

• Discuss the distinction between top-down and bottom-up approaches

to database design.
• Answer: Top-down design begins by identifying the different entity
types and the definition of each entity's attributes.
Bottom-up design first defines the required attributes and then
groups the attributes to form entities.

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 Summary

Now that the lesson has ended, you should be able to:

1. Describe the role of database design as the foundation of a successful information

system

2. Describe the five phases in the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC)

3. Design databases using the six phases in the Database Life Cycle (DBLC) framework

4. Conduct evaluation and revision within the SDLC and DBLC frameworks

5. Distinguish between top-down and bottom-up approaches in database design

6. Distinguish between centralized and decentralized conceptual database design

48