Relational Database Model

• Logical structure of data

• Can be the conceptual structure of data
• Cannot be physical structure of the data
 Keys

• Keys are important in a relational model

• Two main types of keys:
• Primary Key
• Foreign Key
 Primary Key
• The PRIMARY KEY constraint uniquely identifies each row in a
table. CUSTOMER
Customer_ID (PK)
First_Name
Last_Name
Gender
Email_id

Customer_ID (PK) First_Name Last_Name Gender Email_id

1 Mary Gold F mary.gold@xyz.ca
2 Jane Smith F Jane.Smith@xyz.ca
3 Susy Summers F Susy.Summers@xyz.ca
4 Jean Grey F jean .grey@xyz.ca
5 Tom Brown M tom.brown@xyz.ca
6 Sam Chang M sam. chang@xyz.ca
7 Maria Cruz F maria.cruz@xyz.ca
 Foreign Key
• A FOREIGN KEY is a key used to link two tables together. A primary
key from one table is used to join to another table forming a parent
child relationship.
CUSTOMER ORDERS
Customer_ID (PK) Order_ID (PK)
First_Name Customer_ID (FK)
Last_Name Order_Desc
Gender Order_Qty
Email_id Unit_Price
Order_ID (PK) Customer_ID (FK) Order_Description Order_Qty Unit_Price
1 1 Apparel 4 50.26
2 2 Power Tools 3 45.12
3 2 Books 3 45.5805
4 4 Electronics 550 16.086
5 4 Furniture 3 57.0255
6 5 Office Supplies 100 37.086
7 6 Hardwood 5 26.5965
8 3 Toys 550 27.0585
Integrity Rules
 Relationships

• Graphical representation of how an entity’s data is related

to another entity.
• One to one relationship
• One to many relationship
• Many to many relationship
 One to One relationship
• In a One to One relationship between two tables, a row in one
table can only relate to one row in the table on the other side
of their relationship and vice versa.

Student Student_ID

Person Social_Insurance_number

Phone IMEI
 One to many relationship
• In a one-to-many relationship, one record in a table can be
associated with one or more records in another table.

Customer Orders

Patient Hospital_visits

Customer Orders
 Many to many relationship
• A many-to-many relationship occurs when multiple records in
a table are associated with multiple records in another table.

Books Authors

Books Authors

Book_Author
 Data Redundancy
• Unnecessarily storing same data at different places
• Islands of information: Scattered data locations
– Increases the probability of having different versions of
the same data
• Proper use of foreign keys minimizes data
redundancies
 Data Redundancy Implications
• Poor data security
• Data inconsistency
• Increased likelihood of data-entry errors when
complex entries are made in different files
• Data anomaly: Develops when not all of the required
changes in the redundant data are made successfully
 Types of Data Anomaly

Update Anomalies

Insertion Anomalies

Deletion Anomalies