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The Database Approach

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The Database Approach

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The Database Approach

An information system that uses a database management system


(DBMS) to manage its information has a particular structure,
comprising three components: DBMS, data, and application
software. This structure as described below is referred to as the
database approach to information system development.

The central component of the database approach is the DBMS. This


software is also referred to as the database engine or the back end.
With regard to the data it manages, it has several responsibilities,
including the following:

 Data Definition: providing a way to define and build the database


 Data Manipulation: providing a way to insert and update data in
the database
 Query Execution: answering questions about the data in the
database
 Data Integrity: ensuring that data stored is well formed
 Data Security: enforcing restrictions about who is able to access
what data
 Data Portability: providing a means for backup and restore
 Data Recovery: protecting data from loss in the case of a
catastrophic failure in hardware of software
 Provenance: logging capabilities to provide an audit trail for data
changes
 Performance: providing a means to tune and optimize operation
 Multiuser Concurrency: supporting the activities of many users at
the same time
 Automatic Processing: providing a way to define rules to execute
business logic (e.g. stored procedures and triggers)
As can be seen from the above list, a DBMS is a complex software
application. While all database management systems may not
provide all of these features listed, these features are the general
characteristics of today’s DBMSs. Using a database requires
considerable expertise and knowledge about the specific DBMS being
used. Some of the more popular DBMS's today are MySQL,
Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, PostgreSQL, Microsoft Access, and
IBM's DB2.

The second component in the database approach is the data.


Although the physical location or manner in which the data are
stored may be important for performance reasons, the location of the
data does not determine whether or not a system is developed using
the database approach. As long as the DBMS has access and is able
to perform its responsibilities with respect to the data, the details of
the data storage are not relevant. The data could be stored on a single
local hard disk, an array of disks on a single computing device, the
disks of multiple devices, or in any other configuration.

The final component of the database approach is the application, also


called front end software. Application software interacts with the
DBMS to provide information to a user. It may also provide a way
for a user to invoke other functionalities of the DBMS. In fact, the
DBMS software itself is non-visual, meaning that the user does not
interact directly with the DBMS. Any software that provides an
interface for the user to invoke procedures in the DBMS is defined as
application software. Application software may provide complex
functionality to database administrators or display the results of a
fixed information request. Any program that sends a request to the
DBMS and receives a response is application software.

Once the application has determined what the user is trying to


accomplish, it sends a request to the DBMS. The request may be an
instruction to change data or a request for information such as
the list of employees who were hired on a particular date. All
relational databases use a standard language to receive and process
requests. The standard language is called Structured Query
Language.

The DBMS receives the request and determines if the operation


requested is allowed for the authenticated user. If the operation is
allowed, the DBMS completes the operation and sends a response to
the application. The application then communicates the information
to the user. If the operation is not authorized for the user or if there
is an error in fulfilling the operation, the DBMS responds with an
appropriate message. Again, it is up to the application to display that
to the user. It is a critical feature of the database approach that the
application never bypasses the DBMS to access stored data directly.

Figure 1.2 illustrates some of the primary components of a typical


DBMS and how they are used in an information system.

Figure 1.2: The Database Approach

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