Chapter 2

Database System
Concepts and
Architecture

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.

 Data Models
⚫ Data Model: A set of concepts to describe the
structure of a database, and certain constraints that
the database should obey.
⚫ Data Model Operations: Operations for
specifying database retrievals and updates by
referring to the concepts of the data model.
Operations on the data model may include basic
operations and user-defined operations.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Categories of data models
⚫ Conceptual (high-level, semantic) data models:
Provide concepts that are close to the way many
users perceive data. (Also called entity-based or
object-based data models.)
⚫ Physical (low-level, internal) data models:
Provide concepts that describe details of how data
is stored in the computer.
⚫ Implementation (representational) data models:
Provide concepts that fall between the above two,
balancing user views with some computer storage
details.
Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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The Entity Relationship Model
⚫ The ER model is the most commonly used conceptual
model
⚫ In this model, the real world consists of a collection of basic
objects called entities and the relationships among these
objects
⚫ An entity is an object that is distinguishable from other
objects by a specific set of attributes
⚫ An entity set is the set of all entities of the same type
⚫ A relationship is an association among entities
⚫ The set of all relationships of the same type is a relationship
set
⚫ One nice thing about this model is that you can represent the
logical structure of a DB graphically, using an ER diagram.
Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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Example ER Diagram

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Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 The Object Oriented Model
⚫ The OO model is a representational data model that is still at a
fairly high level
⚫ It’s similar to the ER model in that it’s based on a collection of
objects, but the objects are designed differently
⚫ The real world consists of a collection of objects called objects,
which store both data values and code for operating on these
values
⚫ The values themselves may be objects, and so we can get
nesting of objects
⚫ We can also have two or more objects containing all the same
values that are nevertheless distinct. Physical address identifiers
are used to distinguish them. In the ER model, entities must be
distinguished by some unique value.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 More Representational Models
⚫ Most representational models are record-based. In a record-based
model, data is structured in fixed-format records.
⚫ Each record has a fixed number of fields, and each field usually
has a fixed length.
⚫ Two older record-based models, the network model and
hierarchical model, are no longer used to build new systems. They
use pointers, or hard-coded links, to connect the records of a DB.
⚫ The representational model supported by Oracle is the relational
model.
⚫ In the relational model, you view data as being arranged in tables,
with rows and columns. Each column has a unique name. Each
row is a record. The examples given for the University mini-world
in Chapter 1 were shown in the relational model.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Definitions
• Database Schema: The description of a database.
Includes descriptions of the database structure and
the constraints that should hold on the database.
• Schema Diagram: A diagrammatic display of
(some aspects of) a database schema.
• Schema Construct: A component of the schema
or an object within the schema, e.g., STUDENT,
COURSE.
• Database Instance: The actual data stored in a
database at a particular moment in time. Also
called database state (or occurrence).
Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 FIGURE 2.1
Schema diagram for the database in Figure 1.2.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Database Schema Vs. Database
State
• Database State: Refers to the content of a database
at a moment in time.
• Initial Database State: Refers to the database when
it is loaded
• Valid State: A state that satisfies the structure and
constraints of the database.
• Distinction
• The database schema changes very infrequently. The
database state changes every time the database is updated.
• Schema is also called intension, whereas state is called
extension.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Three-Schema Architecture
• Proposed to support DBMS characteristics
of:
• Program-data independence.
• Support of multiple views of the data.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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FIGURE 2.2
The three-
schema
architecture.

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Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Three-Schema Architecture
• Defines DBMS schemas at three levels:
• Internal schema at the internal level to describe
physical storage structures and access paths. Typically
uses a physical data model.
• Conceptual schema at the conceptual level to describe
the structure and constraints for the whole database for
a community of users. Uses a conceptual or an
implementation data model.
• External schemas at the external level to describe the
various user views. Usually uses the same data model
as the conceptual level.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
Slide 2-13
 Three-Schema Architecture
Mappings among schema levels are needed
to transform requests and data. Programs
refer to an external schema, and are mapped
by the DBMS to the internal schema for
execution.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Data Independence
• Logical Data Independence: The capacity
to change the conceptual schema without
having to change the external schemas and
their application programs.
• Physical Data Independence: The capacity
to change the internal schema without
having to change the conceptual schema.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Data Independence
When a schema at a lower level is changed,
only the mappings between this schema
and higher-level schemas need to be
changed in a DBMS that fully supports data
independence. The higher-level schemas
themselves are unchanged. Hence, the
application programs need not be changed
since they refer to the external schemas.
Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 DBMS Languages
• Data Definition Language (DDL): Used by the
DBA and database designers to specify the
conceptual schema of a database. In many
DBMSs, the DDL is also used to define internal
and external schemas (views). In some DBMSs,
separate storage definition language (SDL) and
view definition language (VDL) are used to
define internal and external schemas.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 DBMS Languages
• Data Manipulation Language (DML):
Used to specify database retrievals and
updates.
• DML commands (data sublanguage) can be
embedded in a general-purpose programming
language (host language), such as COBOL, C
or an Assembly Language.
• Alternatively, stand-alone DML commands can
be applied directly (query language).

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 DBMS Languages
• High Level or Non-procedural
Languages: e.g., SQL, are set-oriented and
specify what data to retrieve than how to
retrieve. Also called declarative languages.
• Low Level or Procedural Languages:
record-at-a-time; they specify how to
retrieve data and include constructs such as
looping.
Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 DBMS Interfaces
• Stand-alone query language interfaces.
• Programmer interfaces for embedding DML in
programming languages:
• Pre-compiler Approach
• Procedure (Subroutine) Call Approach
• User-friendly interfaces:
• Menu-based, popular for browsing on the web
• Forms-based, designed for naïve users
• Graphics-based (Point and Click, Drag and Drop etc.)
• Natural language: requests in written English
• Combinations of the above
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Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Other DBMS Interfaces
• Speech as Input (?) and Output
• Web Browser as an interface
• Parametric interfaces (e.g., bank tellers) using
function keys.
• Interfaces for the DBA:
• Creating accounts, granting authorizations
• Setting system parameters
• Changing schemas or access path

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
Slide 2-21
 FIGURE 2.3
Component modules of a DBMS and
their interactions.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
Slide 2-22
 Database System Utilities
• To perform certain functions such as:
• Loading data stored in files into a database. Includes
data conversion tools.
• Backing up the database periodically on tape.
• Reorganizing database file structures.
• Report generation utilities.
• Performance monitoring utilities.
• Other functions, such as sorting, user monitoring, data
compression, etc.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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Centralized and Client-Server
Architectures
• Centralized DBMS: combines everything
into single system including- DBMS
software, hardware, application programs
and user interface processing software.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 FIGURE 2.4
A physical centralized architecture.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Specialized Servers with
Specialized functions:
• File Servers
• Printer Servers
• Web Servers
• E-mail Servers

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Clients:
• Provide appropriate interfaces and a client-version
of the system to access and utilize the server
resources.
• Clients maybe diskless machines or PCs or
Workstations with disks with only the client
software installed.
• Connected to the servers via some form of a
network.
(LAN: local area network, wireless network,
etc.)
Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Two Tier Client-Server
Architecture
• User Interface Programs and Application
Programs run on the client side
• Interface called ODBC (Open Database
Connectivity – see Ch 9) provides an
Application program interface (API) allow
client side programs to call the DBMS. Most
DBMS vendors provide ODBC drivers.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Two Tier Client-Server
Architecture
• A client program may connect to several DBMSs.
• Other variations of clients are possible: e.g., in
some DBMSs, more functionality is transferred to
clients including data dictionary functions,
optimization and recovery across multiple servers,
etc. In such situations the server may be called the
Data Server.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 FIGURE 2.5
Logical two-tier client/server architecture.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 FIGURE 2.6
Physical two-tier client-server architecture.

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 Three Tier Client-Server
Architecture
• Common for Web applications
• Intermediate Layer called Application Server or
Web Server:
• stores the web connectivity software and the rules and
business logic (constraints) part of the application used to
access the right amount of data from the database server
• acts like a conduit for sending partially processed data
between the database server and the client.
• Additional Features- Security:
• encrypt the data at the server before transmission
• decrypt data at the client
Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 FIGURE 2.7
Logical three-tier client/server architecture.

Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition

Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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 Classification of DBMSs
• Based on the data model used:
• Traditional: Relational, Network, Hierarchical.
• Emerging: Object-oriented, Object-relational.
• Other classifications:
• Single-user (typically used with micro-
computers) vs. multi-user (most DBMSs).
• Centralized (uses a single computer with one
database) vs. distributed (uses multiple
computers, multiple databases)
Elmasri and Navathe, Fundamentals of Database Systems, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education, Inc.
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