Database CH 1

Chapter 1: Introduction to Database
Systems
Fundamentals of Database Systems
Software Engineering Department

Outline
• Data
• Database
• Database Management System
• Database system
• Database-System Applications
• Purpose of Database Systems
• Database system and file based approach
• Characteristics of the database approach
• Database users and Administrators
6-2
© 2024, Gebriye E. Dept. Computer Science HCIA Security, HCIA R&S and HCIP R&S Certified
What is Data?
• The term data refers to known raw facts about things like
people, places, events and concepts.
• The word raw indicates that the facts have not yet been
processed to reveal their meaning.
• Data is any fact that can be recorded (or) stored into a
computer hard disk.
• there are various forms of data, like video, audio image,
graphics, text document,
• Data is the foundation of information, which is the bedrock of knowledge—
that is, the body of information and facts about a specific subject.
© 2024, Gebriye E. Dept. Computer Science HCIA Security, HCIA R&S and HCIP R&S Certified 6-3
Information and Knowledge
• Information is the processed data presented in a form suitable for human
interpretation.
• Information is the result of processing raw data to reveal its meaning.
• Knowledge:
– The body of information and facts about a specific subject.
– Knowledge implies familiarity, awareness, and understanding of

information as it applies to an environment.
– A key characteristic is that new knowledge can be derived from old
knowledge.
Database
• A database is an organized collection of interrelated data, generally
stored and accessed electronically from a computer system.
• It contains information relevant to an enterprise.
• Management of data involves both defining structures for storage of
information and providing mechanisms for the manipulation of
information.
• The database is an important assets for many organizations.
• Database touch all aspects of our lives.
Database (Cont.)
• The database is an integrated collection of facts about an organization.
• Organization can be a University or a department in a University , Insurance companies,
Manufacturing companies, Banks, Airlines, Telecommunications, Governmental and Non-
governmental Organizations, Research institutions ,etc.
• The database is used as a central data source for other applications
Database (Cont.)
• A database can be defined accurately using its basic implicit properties:
– It represents some aspects of the Mini-world
– Any assortment of data is not a data base.
– It is a collection logically coherent data
– It has intended users and applications
Database Management System
• Database Management System is a program or software which is used to
construct, manipulate and retrieve the data in the database.
• A database management system (DBMS) is a collection of usually complex
pieces of software that allows a user to define, create, manipulate and protect
and manage access to a database.
• The primary goal of a DBMS is to provide a way to store and retrieve database
information that is both convenient and efficient.
Database Systems
• A database system is a collection of interrelated data and a
set of programs that allow users to access and modify these
data.
• Database systems are used to manage collections of data
that are:
– Highly valuable,
– Relatively large, and
– Accessed by multiple users and applications, often at the same time.
Database Systems (Cont’d…)
• A modern database system is a complex software system whose
task is to manage a large, complex collection of data.
• The database system must ensure the safety of the information
stored, despite system crashes or attempts at unauthorized
access.
• Database systems are ubiquitous today, and most people interact,
either directly or indirectly, with databases many times every day.
Database Applications Examples
Here are some of the applications of database system
• Enterprise Information
– Sales: customers, products, purchases
– Accounting: payments, receipts, assets
– Human Resources: Information about employees, salaries,
payroll taxes.
• Manufacturing: management of production, inventory, orders, supply
chain.
• Banking and finance
– customer information, accounts, loans, and banking transactions.
– Credit card transactions
– Finance: sales and purchases of financial instruments (e.g.,
stocks and bonds; storing real-time market data
• Universities: registration, grades
Database Applications Examples (Cont.)
• Airlines: reservations, schedules

• Telecommunication: records of calls, texts, and data usage,
generating monthly bills, maintaining balances on prepaid calling
cards
• Web-based services
– Online retailers: order tracking, customized recommendations
– Online advertisements
• Document databases
• Navigation systems: For maintaining the locations of varies places
of interest along with the exact routes of roads, train systems,
buses, etc.
Purpose of Database Systems
In the early days, database applications were built directly on top of file systems, which
leads to:
• Data redundancy and inconsistency
– data is stored in multiple file formats resulting induplication of
information in different files
• Difficulty in accessing data
– Need to write a new program to carry out each new task
• Data isolation
– Multiple files and formats
• Integrity problems
– Integrity constraints (e.g., account balance > 0) become “buried” in
program code rather than being stated explicitly
– Hard to add new constraints or change existing ones
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Purpose of Database Systems (Cont.)
• Atomicity of updates
– Failures may leave database in an inconsistent state with partial updates
carried out
– Example: Transfer of funds from one account to another should either complete
or not happen at all
• Concurrent access by multiple users
– Concurrent access needed for performance
– Uncontrolled concurrent accesses can lead to inconsistencies
• Ex: Two people reading a balance (say 100) and updating it by withdrawing
money (say 50 each) at the same time
• Security problems
– Hard to provide user access to some, but not all, data
Database systems offer solutions to all the above problems
Example University Database
• Mini-world for a University Database example: Part of a
UNIVERSITY environment.
• Some mini-world entities:
– STUDENTs
– PRE-REQUISITE COURSEs
– COURSEs
– DEPARTMENTs
– INSTRUCTORs
Note: The above could be expressed in the ENTITY-

RELATIONSHIP data model.
© 2024, Gebriye E. Dept. Computer Science HCIA Security, HCIA R&S and HCIP R&S Certified 15
University Database Example
• Data consists of information about:

– Students
– Instructors
– Classes
• Application program examples:
– Add new students, instructors, and courses
– Register students for courses, and generate class
rosters
– Assign grades to students, compute grade point
averages (GPA) and generate transcripts
Example University Database(Continued…)
• Some mini-world relationships:
– STUDENTs take COURSEs
– COURSEs have PRE-REQUISITE COURSEs
– INSTRUCTORs teach COURSEs
– COURSEs are offered by DEPARTMENTs
– STUDENTs major in DEPARTMENTs
Example Relational Database Snapshot
Evolution of Database Systems
• Two approaches to convert data to information:
– File-based
• Developed starting from 1960’s
• Stores, manipulates, retrieves data from large flat files
– Database (relational systems)
• Developed by E. F. Codd of IBM the early 1980's
• Widely used today
Evolution of
Database
Systems
File-Based Approach
• A file is a collection of related information
• A system of files and collection of application programs
manipulating them is a file-based system
University
File-Based System
Limitations of File-Based Approach
• Much efforts for ad hoc query answering:
– What is the average grade for Mr.Negacy’s students?
– List the activities for all students enrolled in CoSc2041.
– Which personnel are students as well as staff?
• Other limitations:
– Duplication of data
– Data dependency
– Slow development, high maintenance and fixed queries
Database Users and Administrators
• A primary goal of a database system is to retrieve
information from and store new information in the
database.
• People who work with a database can be categorized
as
– database users or
• Naïve users
• Application programmers
• Sophisticated users
– database administrators.
database users
• Naive users are unsophisticated users who
interact with the system by using predefined user
interfaces, such as web or mobile applications.
• The typical user interface for naive users is a forms
interface, where the user can fill in appropriate
fields of the form.
• Naive users may also view read reports generated
from the database.
database users
• Application programmers are computer professionals who
write application programs. Application programmers can
choose from many tools to develop user interfaces.
• Sophisticated users interact with the system without
writing programs. Instead, they form their requests either
using a database query language or by using tools such as
data analysis software.
• Analysts who submit queries to explore data in the

database fall in this category.
Database Administrator
A person who has central control over the system is called a database administrator
 Schema
(DBA). definition of a DBA include:
Responsibilities
 Storage structure and access-method definition
 Schema and physical-organization modification
 Granting of authorization for data access
 Routine maintenance
 Periodically backing up the database
 Ensuring that enough free disk space is available for normal
operations, and upgrading disk space as required
 Monitoring jobs running on the database
Responsibilities of DBA
• Schema definition.
The DBA creates the original database schema by executing
a set of data definition statements in the DDL.
•Storage structure and access-method definition.
The DBA may specify some parameters pertaining to the
physical organization of the data and the indices to be created.
• Schema and physical-organization modification.
The DBA carries out changes to the schema and physical
organization to reflect the changing needs of the organization,
or to alter the physical organization to improve performance.
Responsibilities of DBA (Cont’d.)
• Granting of authorization for data access.
By granting different types of authorization, the database

administrator can regulate which parts of the database various users
can access.
The authorization information is kept in a special system structure
that the database system consults whenever a user tries to access
the data in the system.
Responsibilities of DBA (Cont’d.)
• Routine maintenance.
Examples of the database administrator’s routine maintenance activities are:

Periodically backing up the database onto remote servers, to prevent loss of data in case of disasters such as
flooding.
Ensuring that enough free disk space is available for normal operations, and upgrading disk space as required.
Monitoring jobs running on the database and ensuring that performance is not degraded by very expensive
tasks submitted by some users.
Fundamentals of Database Systems
End of Chapter one !!!
Have a nice day!!
Never Stop Learning!

Database CH 1

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Chapter 1: Introduction to Database

Fundamentals of Database Systems

Software Engineering Department

– The body of information and facts about a specific subject.

– Knowledge implies familiarity, awareness, and understanding of

– A key characteristic is that new knowledge can be derived from old

• The database is used as a central data source for other applications

– It has intended users and applications

– Relatively large, and

– Accessed by multiple users and applications, often at the same time.

• Airlines: reservations, schedules

Database systems offer solutions to all the above problems

Note: The above could be expressed in the ENTITY-

• Data consists of information about:

• Analysts who submit queries to explore data in the

 Schema and physical-organization modification

 Granting of authorization for data access

By granting different types of authorization, the database

Examples of the database administrator’s routine maintenance activities are:

End of Chapter one !!!

Have a nice day!!

Never Stop Learning!

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