Database management is a method for managing the data that supports a company’s business operations. It includes data storage, distributing it to users and application programs and modifying it as needed and monitoring changes to the data and preventing it from being corrupted due to unexpected failure. It is a part of a company’s overall informational infrastructure, which supports decision-making and corporate growth, as well as compliance with laws such as 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 of data to be stored and retrieved for a variety of reasons. From calculating inventory, to supporting complex financial accounting functions and human resource functions.
A database is a collection of tables that store data according to the specific scheme, for example one-to many relationships. It uses primary keys to identify records and permit cross-references between tables. Each table is comprised of a set of attributes or fields that provide information about data entities. The most widely used type of database currently is a relational model, developed by E. F. „Ted” Codd at IBM in the 1970s. The concept is based on normalizing data to make it easier to use. It is also simpler to update data since it does not require the changing of many sections of the databases.
Most DBMSs support multiple types of databases through different levels of external and internal organization. The internal level addresses costs, scalability, and other operational issues including the design of the database’s physical storage. The external level focuses on how the database appears in user interfaces and other applications. It could include a mix of different external views (based on the different data models) and can also include virtual tables that are constructed from generic data in order to improve performance.