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Chapter 9

Database Design

Database Systems:
Design, Implementation, and Management,
Seventh Edition, Rob and Coronel
1
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In this chapter, you will learn:

• That successful database design must reflect
the information system of which the database is
a part
• That successful information systems are
developed within a framework known as the
Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC)

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In this chapter, you will learn (continued):

• That within the information system, the most

successful databases are subject to frequent
evaluation and revision within a framework
known as the Database Life Cycle (DBLC)

• How to conduct evaluation and revision within

the SDLC and DBLC frameworks
• About database design strategies: top-down
vs. bottom-up design and centralized vs.
decentralized design
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The Information System
• Provides for data collection, storage, and retrieval
• Composed of people, hardware, software,
database(s), application programs, and
procedures
• Systems analysis
– Process that establishes need for and extent of
information system
• Systems development
– Process of creating information system

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The Information System (continued)

• Applications
– Transform data into information that forms basis
for decision making
– Usually produce the following:
• Formal report
• Tabulations
• Graphic displays
– Composed of following two parts:
• Data
• Code by which data are transformed into information

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The Information System (continued)

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The Information System (continued)

• Information system performance depends on triad of

factors:
– Database design and implementation
– Application design and implementation
– Administrative procedures
• Database development
– Process of database design and implementation
– Primary objective is to create complete, normalized,
nonredundant (to the extent possible), and fully integrated
conceptual, logical, and physical database models

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The Systems Development Life Cycle

(SDLC)
• Traces history (life cycle) of information
system
• Provides “big picture” within which database
design and application development can be
mapped out and evaluated

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The Systems Development Life Cycle

(SDLC) (continued)
• Divided into following five phases:
– Planning
– Analysis
– Detailed systems design
– Implementation
– Maintenance
• Iterative rather than sequential process

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The Systems Development Life Cycle

(SDLC) (continued)

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Planning

• Yields general overview of company and its

objectives
• Initial assessment made of information-flow-
and-extent requirements
• Must begin to study and evaluate alternate
solutions
– Technical aspects of hardware and software
requirements
– System cost
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Analysis

• Problems defined during planning phase are

examined in greater detail during analysis
• Thorough audit of user requirements
• Existing hardware and software systems are
studied
• Goal is better understanding of system’s
functional areas, actual and potential
problems, and opportunities

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Analysis (continued)

• Includes creation of logical system design

– Must specify appropriate conceptual data model,
inputs, processes, and expected output
requirements
– Might use tools such as data flow diagrams
(DFDs), hierarchical input process output (HIPO)
diagrams, and entity relationship (ER) diagrams
– Yields functional descriptions of system’s
components (modules) for each process within
database environment

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Detailed Systems Design

• Designer completes design of system’s

processes
• Includes all necessary technical specifications
• Steps are laid out for conversion from old to
new system
• Training principles and methodologies are
also planned

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Implementation

• Hardware, DBMS software, and application

programs are installed, and database design
is implemented
• Cycle of coding, testing, and debugging
continues until database is ready to be
delivered
• Database is created and system is
customized by creation of tables and views,
and user authorizations
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Maintenance

• Maintenance activities group into three types:

– Corrective maintenance in response to systems
errors
– Adaptive maintenance due to changes in business
environment
– Perfective maintenance to enhance system
• Computer-assisted systems engineering
– Make it possible to produce better systems within
reasonable amount of time and at reasonable cost

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The Database Life Cycle (DBLC)

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The Database Initial Study

• Overall purpose:
– Analyze company situation
– Define problems and constraints
– Define objectives
– Define scope and boundaries
• Interactive and iterative processes required to
complete first phase of DBLC successfully

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The Database Initial Study (continued)

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Analyze the Company Situation

• Analysis–To break up any whole into its parts so

as to find out their nature, function, and so on
• Company situation
– General conditions in which company operates, its
organizational structure, and its mission
• Analyze company situation
– Discover what company’s operational components
are, how they function, and how they interact

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Define Problems and Constraints

• Managerial view of company’s operation is often

different from that of end users
• Designer must continue to carefully probe to
generate additional information that will help define
problems within larger framework of company
operations
• Finding precise answers is important
• Defining problems does not always lead to perfect
solution
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Define Objectives

• Designer must ensure that database system

objectives correspond to those envisioned by end
user(s)
• Designer must begin to address following
questions:
– What is proposed system’s initial objective?
– Will system interface with other existing or future
systems in the company?
– Will system share data with other systems or users?

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Define Scope and Boundaries

• Scope
– Defines extent of design according to operational
requirements
– Helps define required data structures, type and
number of entities, and physical size of database
• Boundaries
– Limits external to system
– Often imposed by existing hardware and software

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Database Design

• Necessary to concentrate on data

• Characteristics required to build database
model
• Two views of data within system:
– Business view of data as information source
– Designer’s view of data structure, its access,
and activities required to transform data into
information

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Database Design (continued)

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Database Design (continued)

• Loosely related to analysis and design of larger

system
• Systems analysts or systems programmers are in
charge of designing other system components
– Their activities create procedures that will help
transform data within database into useful information
• Does not constitute sequential process
– Iterative process that provides continuous feedback
designed to trace previous steps

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Database Design (continued)

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I. Conceptual Design

• Data modeling used to create an abstract

database structure that represents real-world
objects in most realistic way possible
• Must embody clear understanding of
business and its functional areas
• Ensure that all data needed are in model, and
that all data in model are needed
• Requires four steps

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

• Data Analysis and Requirements

– First step is to discover data element
characteristics
• Obtains characteristics from different sources
– Must take into account business rules
• Derived from description of operations
– Document that provides precise, detailed, up-to-
date, and thoroughly reviewed description of
activities that define organization’s operating
environment

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

• Entity Relationship (ER) Modeling

and Normalization
– Designer must communicate and enforce
appropriate standards to be used in
documentation of design
• Use of diagrams and symbols
• Documentation writing style
• Layout
• Other conventions to be followed during
documentation
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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

• Entity Relationship (ER) Modeling

and Normalization (continued)
– Data dictionary
• Defines all objects (entities, attributes,
relations, views, and so on)
• Used in tandem with the normalization process
to help eliminate data anomalies and
redundancy problems

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

• Data Model Verification

– Model must be verified against proposed system
processes to corroborate that intended processes
can be supported by database model
– Revision of original design starts with careful
reevaluation of entities, followed by detailed
examination of attributes that describe these entities
– Define design’s major components as modules:
• An information system component that handles
specific function

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

• Data Model Verification (continued)
– Verification process
• Select central (most important) entity
– Defined in terms of its participation in most of
model’s relationships
• Identify module or subsystem to which central
entity belongs and define boundaries and
scope
• Place central entity within module’s framework

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I. Conceptual Design (continued)

• Distributed Database Design
– Portions of database may reside in different
physical locations
• Designer must also develop data distribution
and allocation strategies

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