Scribd
Upload
49 views

Database Views: CHAPTER 5 (6/E) CHAPTER 8 (5/E)

Database views provide a virtual representation of data from one or more tables and allow users to query the view as if it were a single table. Materialized views store the result of a query physically to allow for more efficient reuse when the base tables have not changed, but require strategies to update the view when the base tables are modified. Views can customize data access for different user groups while sharing an underlying data source.

Uploaded by

Renata Elena Lechado Vanegas
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
49 views

Database Views: CHAPTER 5 (6/E) CHAPTER 8 (5/E)

Database views provide a virtual representation of data from one or more tables and allow users to query the view as if it were a single table. Materialized views store the result of a query physically to allow for more efficient reuse when the base tables have not changed, but require strategies to update the view when the base tables are modified. Views can customize data access for different user groups while sharing an underlying data source.

Uploaded by

Renata Elena Lechado Vanegas
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 8

DATABASE VIEWS

CHAPTER 5 (6/E)
CHAPTER 8 (5/E)

1
LECTURE OUTLINE
 Database views provide convenient usage
• Virtual view realized when query uses that view
 Materialized views allow efficient re-use
• Must be recalculated or updated when base tables change

2
VIEWS FOR CUSTOMIZATION
 Consider database(s) describing university’s activities
• Academic institution
• Students, professors, classes
• Grades, transcripts
• Admissions, convocations
• Alumni
• Corporate institution
• Finances, human resources
• Board of Governors
• Capital assets
• Charitable institution
• Donors, fundraising activities
• Research institution
• Granting agencies, industrial/non-profits/academic partners
• Grants and contracts, intellectual property, licensing
 Each user group provided appropriate “subset” of the data
• e.g., some financial/scheduling info relevant to most groups;
other info confidential
• Underlying data shared, not silo’d.
 Updates must be seen by all affected users.

3
VIEWS (VIRTUAL TABLES)
 Consider again the query
SELECT title, year, genre
FROM Film
WHERE director = 'Steven Spielberg' AND year > 1990;
• Returns all matching films currently in the database
• If re-run after updates, will give revised table of matches
 A view is an unexecuted query that can be run on demand.
• Single table derived from other table(s)
• A virtual table

4
USING VIEWS IN SQL
 CREATE VIEW command
• View name and a query to specify the contents of the view
CREATE VIEW Big_Earners AS
SELECT E.Ssn AS Ssn, E.Lname AS Name,
E.Salary AS Salary, M.Lname AS Manager
FROM EMPLOYEE E, EMPLOYEE M
WHERE E.Super_ssn = M.Ssn and E.Salary > M.Salary;

 Queries can use view as if it were a base table.


SELECT *
FROM Big_Earners
WHERE Salary < 100000;

 View always up-to-date


• (Re-)evaluated whenever a query uses the view
• Keeping it up-to-date is responsibility of the DBMS and not the user
 DROP VIEW command
• Dispose of a view

5
UPDATING A VIEW
 What if an update is applied to a view as if it were a base table?
CREATE VIEW Big_Earners AS
SELECT E.Ssn AS Ssn, E.Lname AS Name,
E.Salary AS Salary, M.Lname AS Manager
FROM EMPLOYEE E, EMPLOYEE M
WHERE E.Super_ssn = M.Ssn and E.Salary > M.Salary;

UPDATE Big_Earners
SET Salary = 100000
WHERE Name = 'Smith';
• Change corresponding tuple(s) in base table(s)
• Tuple might disappear from view!
• WITH CHECK OPTION clause at end of view definition ensures new
and updated tuples match view definition (else error)
• Deleting tuple from view might require update to base table instead of
deletion from base table
• e.g., deletion from CS338 view ≟ deletion from UW database?
• Not all views are updateable.
• What if Salary defined as sum of two base attributes or as aggregate
such as SUM or AVG?
• What if Big_Earners defined as a UNION of two tables?

7
MATERIALIZED VIEWS
 If the base tables don’t change, neither does the view instance.
• Re-executing view definition each time view is used is wasteful if
base data has not been updated.
 Solution: view materialization
• Create a temporary view table when the view is first queried
• Keep view table on the assumption that more queries using the
view will follow
• Use materialized view (if it exists) to answer future query
• Requires efficient strategy for automatically updating view table
when the base tables are updated
Options when any base table is updated:
1. Delete the materialized view
2. Rematerialize the view
3. Incrementally update the view
• DBMS determines what new tuples must be inserted, deleted,
or modified in materialized view

8
LECTURE SUMMARY
 Views are virtual or derived tables.
 Can be used for any query wherever base table can appear
 May or may not be updatable
• Unions, joins, and (aggregate) functions are problematic
 Materialized views used to save query time
• Must be kept up-to-date if base table(s) updated

You might also like