Database Systems:

Design, Implementation, and

Management
Tenth Edition

Chapter 3
The Relational Database Model
 Objectives

In this chapter, students will learn:

• That the relational database model offers a
logical view of data
• About the relational model’s basic component:
relations
• That relations are logical constructs composed
of rows (tuples) and columns (attributes)
• That relations are implemented as tables in a
relational DBMS
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 Objectives (cont’d.)

• About relational database operators, the data

dictionary, and the system catalog
• How data redundancy is handled in the
relational database model
• Why indexing is important

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 A Logical View of Data

• Relational model
– View data logically rather than physically
• Table
– Structural and data independence
– Resembles a file conceptually
• Relational database model is easier to
understand than hierarchical and network
models

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 Tables and Their Characteristics

• Logical view of relational database is based on

relation
– Relation thought of as a table
• Table: two-dimensional structure composed of
rows and columns
– Persistent representation of logical relation
• Contains group of related entities (entity set)

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 Keys
• Each row in a table must be uniquely identifiable
• Key: one or more attributes that determine other
attributes
– Key’s role is based on determination
• If you know the value of attribute A, you can
determine the value of attribute B
– Functional dependence
• Attribute B is functionally dependent on A if all rows
in table that agree in value for A also agree in value
for B

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 Types of Keys

• Composite key
– Composed of more than one attribute
• Key attribute
– Any attribute that is part of a key
• Superkey
– Any key that uniquely identifies each row
• Candidate key
– A superkey without unnecessary attributes

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 Types of Keys (cont’d.)

• Entity integrity
– Each row (entity instance) in the table has its
own unique identity
• Nulls
– No data entry
– Not permitted in primary key
– Should be avoided in other attributes

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 Types of Keys (cont’d.)
– Can represent:
• An unknown attribute value
• A known, but missing, attribute value
• A “not applicable” condition
– Can create problems when functions such as
COUNT, AVERAGE, and SUM are used
– Can create logical problems when relational
tables are linked

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 Types of Keys (cont’d.)

• Controlled redundancy
– Makes the relational database work
– Tables within the database share common
attributes
• Enables tables to be linked together
– Multiple occurrences of values not redundant
when required to make the relationship work
– Redundancy exists only when there is
unnecessary duplication of attribute values

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 Types of Keys (cont’d.)

• Foreign key (FK)

– An attribute whose values match primary key
values in the related table
• Referential integrity
– FK contains a value that refers to an existing
valid tuple (row) in another relation
• Secondary key
– Key used strictly for data retrieval purposes

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 Integrity Rules

• Many RDBMs enforce integrity rules

automatically
• Safer to ensure that application design
conforms to entity and referential integrity rules
• Designers use flags to avoid nulls
– Flags indicate absence of some value

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 Relational Set Operators

• Relational algebra
– Defines theoretical way of manipulating table
contents using relational operators
– Use of relational algebra operators on existing
relations produces new relations:
• SELECT • UNION
• PROJECT • DIFFERENCE
• JOIN • PRODUCT
• INTERSECT • DIVIDE

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 Relational Set Operators (cont’d.)

• Natural join
– Links tables by selecting rows with common
values in common attributes (join columns)
• Equijoin
– Links tables on the basis of an equality condition
that compares specified columns
• Theta join
– Any other comparison operator is used

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 Relational Set Operators (cont’d.)

• Inner join
– Only returns matched records from the tables
that are being joined
• Outer join
– Matched pairs are retained, and any unmatched
values in other table are left null

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 Relational Set Operators (cont’d.)

• Left outer join

– Yields all of the rows in the CUSTOMER table
– Including those that do not have a matching
value in the AGENT table
• Right outer join
– Yields all of the rows in the AGENT table
– Including those that do not have matching
values in the CUSTOMER table

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 The Data Dictionary
and System Catalog
• Data dictionary
– Provides detailed accounting of all tables found
within the user/designer-created database
– Contains (at least) all the attribute names and
characteristics for each table in the system
– Contains metadata: data about data
• System catalog
– Contains metadata
– Detailed system data dictionary that describes
all objects within the database
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 The Data Dictionary
and System Catalog (cont’d.)
• Homonym
– Indicates the use of the same name to label
different attributes
• Synonym
– Opposite of a homonym
– Indicates the use of different names to describe
the same attribute

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 Relationships within the Relational
Database
• 1:M relationship
– Relational modeling ideal
– Should be the norm in any relational database
design
• 1:1 relationship
– Should be rare in any relational database design

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 Relationships within the Relational
Database (cont’d.)
• M:N relationships
– Cannot be implemented as such in the relational
model
– M:N relationships can be changed into 1:M
relationships

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 The 1:M Relationship

• Relational database norm

• Found in any database environment

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 The 1:1 Relationship
• One entity related to only one other entity, and
vice versa
• Sometimes means that entity components were
not defined properly
• Could indicate that two entities actually belong
in the same table
• Certain conditions absolutely require their use

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 The M:N Relationship

• Implemented by breaking it up to produce a set

of 1:M relationships
• Avoid problems inherent to M:N relationship by
creating a composite entity
– Includes as foreign keys the primary keys of
tables to be linked

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 Data Redundancy Revisited

• Data redundancy leads to data anomalies

– Can destroy the effectiveness of the database
• Foreign keys
– Control data redundancies by using common
attributes shared by tables
– Crucial to exercising data redundancy control
• Sometimes, data redundancy is necessary

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 Indexes

• Orderly arrangement to logically access rows in

a table
• Index key
– Index’s reference point
– Points to data location identified by the key
• Unique index
– Index in which the index key can have only one
pointer value (row) associated with it
• Each index is associated with only one table
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 Codd’s Relational Database Rules
• In 1985, Codd published a list of 12 rules to
define a relational database system
– Products marketed as “relational” that did not
meet minimum relational standards
• Even dominant database vendors do not fully
support all 12 rules

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 Summary
• Tables are basic building blocks of a
relational database
• Keys are central to the use of relational tables
• Keys define functional dependencies
– Superkey
– Candidate key
– Primary key
– Secondary key
– Foreign key

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 Summary (cont’d.)
• Each table row must have a primary key that
uniquely identifies all attributes
• Tables are linked by common attributes
• The relational model supports relational algebra
functions
– SELECT, PROJECT, JOIN, INTERSECT
UNION, DIFFERENCE, PRODUCT, DIVIDE
• Good design begins by identifying entities,
attributes, and relationships
– 1:1, 1:M, M:N
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