Dr Edgar F Codd’s Twelve
Commandments:
Here is brief note on E.F Codd’s twelve rules:
Rule 0: Foundation rule
Any relational database management system that is
propounded to be RDBMS or advocated to be a
RDBMS should be able to manage the stored data in
its entirety through its relational capabilities.
Rule 1: Rule of Information
Relational Databases should store the data in the
form of relations. Tables are relations in Relational
Database Management Systems. Be it any user
defined data or meta-data, it is important to store
the value as an entity in the table cells.
Rule 2: Rule of Guaranteed Access
The use of pointers to access data logically is strictly forbidden. Every data
entity which is atomic in nature should be accessed logically by using a right
combination of the name of table, primary key represented by a specific row
value and column name represented by attribute value.
Rule 3: Rule of Systematic Null Value Support
Null values are completely supported in relational databases. They should be
uniformly considered as ‘missing information’. Null values are independent of
any data type. They should not be mistaken for blanks or zeroes or empty
strings. Null values can also be interpreted as ‘inapplicable data’ or ‘unknown
information.’
Rule 4: Rule of Active and online relational Catalog
In the Database Management Systems lexicon, ‘metadata’ is the data about
the database or the data about the data. The active online catalog that stores
the metadata is called ‘Data dictionary’. The so called data dictionary is
accessible only by authored users who have the required privileges and the
query languages used for accessing the database should be used for
accessing the data of data dictionary.
Rule 5: Rule of Comprehensive Data Sub-language
A single robust language should be able to define integrity constraints, views,
data manipulations, transactions and authorizations. If the database allows
access to the aforementioned ones, it is violating this rule.
Rule 6: Rule of Updating Views
Views should reflect the updates of their respective base tables and vice
versa. A view is a logical table which shows restricted data. Views generally
make the data readable but not modifiable. Views help in data abstraction.
Rule 7: Rule of Set level insertion, update and deletion
A single operation should be sufficient to retrieve, insert, update and delete
the data.
Rule 8: Rule of Physical Data Independence
Batch and end user operations are logically separated from physical storage
and respective access methods.
Rule 9: Rule of Logical Data Independence
Batch and end users can change the database schema without having to
recreate it or recreate the applications built upon it.
Rule 10: Rule of Integrity Independence
Integrity constraints should be available and stored as metadata in data
dictionary and not in the application programs.
Rule 11: Rule of Distribution Independence
The Data Manipulation Language of the relational system should not be
concerned about the physical data storage and no alterations should be
required if the physical data is centralized or distributed.
Rule 12: Rule of Non Subversion
Any row should obey the security and integrity constraints imposed. No
special privileges are applicable.
