Introduction to DBMS

Database:

Definition -

“A database is a collection of information that is organized so that it can easily be accessed, managed, and updated.”

Database is actually a place where related piece of information is stored and various operations can be performed on it. Database is a collection of related data and data is a collection of facts and figures that can be processed to produce information. Mostly data represents recordable facts. Data helps in producing information, which is based on facts. For example, if we have data about marks obtained by all students, we can then conclude about toppers and average marks. Data is organized into rows, columns and tables, and it is indexed to make it easier to find relevant information. Data gets updated, expanded and deleted as new information is added. In computing, databases are sometimes classified according to their organizational approach. Computer databases typically contain aggregations of data records or files, such as sales transactions, product catalogs and inventories, and customer profiles.

The main feature of data in a database is:

1. It must be well organized

2. It is related

3. It is accessible in a logical order without any difficulty

4. It is stored only once.

Database Management System:

            A DBMS is software that allows creation, definition and manipulation of database. DBMS is actually a tool used to perform any kind of operation on data in database. DBMS also provides protection and security to database. It maintains data consistency in case of multiple users. Here are some examples of popular dbms, MySql, Oracle, Sybase, Microsoft Access and IBM DB2 etc.

Definition:

“A database management system (DBMS) refers to the technology for creating and managing databases. Basically DBMS is a software tool to organize (create, retrieve, update and manage) data in a database.”

“A database management system consists of collection of related data and refers to a set of programs for defining, creation, maintenance and manipulation of a database.”

The main aim of a DBMS is to supply a way to store up and retrieve database information that is both convenient and efficient. By data, we mean known facts that can be recorded and that have embedded meaning.

Needs of DBMS:

1. To share data of all kinds between users, between tools working on them, and usually between different computers. All should be able to work with the same data.

2. For persistent storage and storage must be reliable.

3. Provide more efficient access to large amounts of data, through indexing and other optimization.

4. A DBMS can be used for communication between different users and applications. Accurate, up-to-date information is fetched as per requirement of the user at any time.

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