5.

Integrity Constraints
5.1 Introduction:
Integrity constraints guard against accidental damage to the database, by ensuring that
authorized changes to the database do not result in a loss of data consistency

Constraints on a Single Relation

• not null
• primary key
• unique
• check (P ), where P is a predicate
Not Null Constraint:
Declare branch_name for branch is not null
branch_name char(15) not null
Declare the domain Dollars to be not null
create domain Dollars numeric(12,2) not null
The Unique Constraint:
unique ( A1, A2, …, Am)
The unique specification states that the attributes A1, A2, … Am form a
candidate key.
Candidate keys are permitted to be null (in contrast to primary keys).

The check clause

create domain hourly_wage numeric(5,2)
constraint value_test check(value > = 4.00)

5.2 Domain Constraints:

Domain constraints are the most elementary form of integrity constraint. They test
values inserted in the database, and test queries to ensure that the comparisons make
sense.
New domains can be created from existing data types
Example: create domain Dollars numeric(12, 2)
create domain Pounds numeric(12,2)
The check clause in SQLpermits domains to be restricted:
 Use check clause to ensure that an hourly-wage domain allows only values greater
than a specified value.
create domain hourly-wage numeric(5,2)
constraint value-test check(value > = 4.00)
The domain has a constraint that ensures that the hourly-wage is greater than 4.00
 The clause constraint value-test is optional; useful to indicate which constraint an
update violated.
Can have complex conditions in domain check
– create domain AccountType char(10)
constraint account-type-test
check (value in (‘Checking’, ‘Saving’))
– check (branch-name in (select branch-name from branch))

5.3 Referential Integrity:

 It ensures that a value that appears in one relation for a given set of attributes also
appears for a certain set of attributes in another relation.
Example: If “Perryridge” is a branch name appearing in one of the tuples in the
account relation, then there exists a tuple in the branch relation for branch
“Perryridge”.
Formal Definition

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  Let r1(R1) and r2(R2) be relations with primary keys K1 and K2 respectively.
 The subset α of R2 is a foreign key referencing K1 in relation r1, if for every t2 in r2
there must be a tuple t1 in r1 such that t1[K1] = t2[α ].
 Referential integrity constraint also called subset dependency since its can be
written as
∏ α (r2) ⊆ ∏ K1 (r1)

5.4 Referential Integrity in the E-R Model

• Consider relationship set R between entity sets E1 and E2. The relational schema for
R includes the primary keys K1 of E1 and K2 of E2.
Then K1 and K2 form foreign keys on the relational schemas for E1 and E2
respectively that leads referential integrity constraints.

• Weak entity sets are also a source of referential integrity constraints.

– For the relation schema for a weak entity set must include the primary key
attributes of the entity set on which it depends

5.5 Checking Referential Integrity on Database Modification:

• The following tests must be made in order to preserve the following referential
integrity constraint:
∏ α (r2) ⊆ ∏ K (r1)
• Insert. If a tuple t2 is inserted into r2, the system must ensure that there is a tuple t1
in r1 such that t1[K] = t2[α ]. That is
t2 [α ] ∈ ∏ K (r1)
• Delete. If a tuple, t1 is deleted from r1, the system must compute the set of tuples
in r2 that reference t1:
σ α = t1[K] (r2)
If this set is not empty
– either the delete command is rejected as an error, or
– the tuples that reference t1 must themselves be deleted
(cascading deletions are possible).
• Update. There are two cases:
– If a tuple t2 is updated in relation r2 and the update modifies values for foreign
key α , then a test similar to the insert case is made:
• Let t2’ denote the new value of tuple t2. The system must ensure that t2’[α ] ∈
∏ K(r1)
– If a tuple t1 is updated in r1, and the update modifies values for the primary key
(K), then a test similar to the delete case is made:
1. The system must compute
σ α = t1[K] (r2)
using the old value of t1 (the value before the update is applied).
2. If this set is not empty
1. the update may be rejected as an error, or
2. the update may be cascaded to the tuples in the set, or
3. the tuples in the set may be deleted.

5.6 Referential Integrity in SQL

 Primary and candidate keys and foreign keys can be specified as part of the SQL
create table statement:

Lecture notes on Integrity Constraints Page 2

  The primary key clause lists attributes that comprise the primary key.
 The unique key clause lists attributes that comprise a candidate key.
 The foreign key clause lists the attributes that comprise the foreign key and the
name of the relation referenced by the foreign key. By default, foreign key
references the primary key attributes of the referenced table.
• By default, a foreign key references the primary key attributes of the referenced
table
foreign key (account-number) references account
• Short form for specifying a single column as foreign key
account-number char (10) references account
• Reference columns in the referenced table can be explicitly specified
– but must be declared as primary/candidate keys
foreign key (account-number) references account(account-number)

Example:
create table customer
(customer_name char(20),
customer_street char(30),
customer_city char(30),
primary key (customer_name ));

create table branch

(branch_name char(15),
branch_city char(30),
assetsnumeric(12,2),
primary key (branch_name )) ;

create table account

(account_number char(10),
branch_name char(15),
balance integer,
primary key (account_number),
foreign key (branch_name) references branch );

create table depositor

(customer_name char(20),
account_number char(10),
primary key (customer_name, account_number),
foreign key (account_number ) references account,
foreign key (customer_name ) references customer);

Cascading Actions in SQL:

create table account
...
foreign key(branch-name) references branch
on delete cascade
on update cascade
...)
• Due to the on delete cascade clauses, if a delete of a tuple in branch results in
referential-integrity constraint violation, the delete “cascades” to the account
relation, deleting the tuple that refers to the branch that was deleted.
• Cascading updates are similar.

5.7 Assertions:

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  An assertion is a predicate expressing a condition that we wish the database
always to satisfy.
 An assertion in SQL takes the form
create assertion <assertion-name> check <predicate>
 When an assertion is made, the system tests it for validity, and tests it again on
every update that may violate the assertion
• This testing may introduce a significant amount of overhead; hence
assertions should be used with great care.

E.g. Every loan has at least one borrower who maintains an account with a minimum
balance or $1000.00
create assertion balance_constraint check
(not exists (
select *
from loan
where not exists (
select *
from borrower, depositor, account
where loan.loan_number = borrower.loan_number
and borrower.customer_name = depositor.customer_name
and depositor.account_number = account.account_number
and account.balance >= 1000)))

 The sum of all loan amounts for each branch must be less than the sum of all account
balances at the branch.
create assertion sum_constraint check
(not exists (select *
from branch
where (select sum(amount )
from loan
where loan.branch_name =
branch.branch_name )
>= (select sum (amount )
from account
where loan.branch_name =
branch.branch_name )))

5.8 Triggers:
• In a DBMS, a trigger is a SQL procedure that initiates (fires) an action when an
event (INSERT, DELETE, or UPDATE) occurs. Since triggers are event-driven
specialized procedures, the DBMS stores and manages them. A trigger cannot be
called or executed; the DBMS automatically fires the trigger as a result of a data
modification to the associated table. Triggers maintain the referential integrity
• A trigger is a statement that is executed automatically by the system as a side
effect of a modification to the database.
• To design a trigger mechanism, we must:
– Specify the conditions under which the trigger is to be executed.
– Specify the actions to be taken when the trigger executes.
Triggers introduced to SQL standard in SQL:1999, but supported even earlier using non-
standard syntax by most databases.
• E.g Suppose that instead of allowing negative account balances, the bank deals with
overdrafts by
– setting the account balance to zero
– creating a loan in the amount of the overdraft

Lecture notes on Integrity Constraints Page 4

 – giving this loan a loan number identical to the account number of the
overdrawn account
• The condition for executing the trigger is an update to the account relation that
results in a negative balance value.
• create trigger overdraft-trigger after update on account
referencing new row as nrow
for each row
when nrow.balance < 0
begin atomic
insert into borrower
(select customer-name, account-number
from depositor
where nrow.account-number =
depositor.account-number);
insert into loan values
(n.row.account-number, nrow.branch-name,
– nrow.balance);
update account set balance = 0
where account.account-number = nrow.account-number
end

Triggering Events and Actions in SQL:

• Triggering event can be insert, delete or update

• Triggers on update can be restricted to specific attributes
– E.g. create trigger overdraft-trigger after update of balance on account
• Values of attributes before and after an update can be referenced
– referencing old row as : for deletes and updates
– referencing new row as : for inserts and updates
• Triggers can be activated before an event, which can serve as extra constraints.
E.g. convert blanks to null.
create trigger setnull-trigger before update on r
referencing new row as nrow Write an SQL trigger to carry out the following
for each row action: On delete of an account, for each owner
when nrow.phone-number = ‘ ‘ of the account, check if the owner has any
set nrow.phone-number = null remaining accounts,and if she does not, delete
her from the depositor relation.
Triggers in MS-SQLServer Syntax: Answer:
create trigger check-delete-trigger after
create trigger overdraft-trigger on account delete on account
referencing old row as orow
for update
for each row
as delete from depositor
if inserted.balance < 0 where depositor.customer-name not in
begin ( select customer-name from depositor
insert into borrower where account-number <> orow.account-
(select customer-name,account-number number )
from depositor, inserted
where inserted.account-number =
depositor.account-number)
insert into loan values
(inserted.account-number, inserted.branch-name,
– inserted.balance)
update account set balance = 0
from account, inserted

Lecture notes on Integrity Constraints Page 5

 where account.account-number = inserted.account-number
end

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