The Relational Model
3
Relational Model Terminology
• A relation is a table with columns and rows.
• Only applies to logical structure of the database, not
the physical structure.
• Attribute is a named column of a relation.
• Domain is the set of allowable values for one or
more attributes.
4
Relational Model Terminology
• Tuple is a row of a relation.
• Degree is the number of attributes in a relation.
• Cardinality is the number of tuples in a relation.
• Relational Database is a collection of normalized
relations with distinct relation names.
5
Instances of Branch and Staff (part)
Relations
6
Examples of Attribute Domains
7
Alternative Terminology for Relational
Model
8
Database Relations
• Relation schema
• Named relation defined by a set of attribute and
domain name pairs.
• Relational database schema
• Set of relation schemas, each with a distinct name.
9
Properties of Relations
• Relation name is distinct from all other relation
names in relational schema.
• Each cell of relation contains exactly one atomic
(single) value.
• Each attribute has a distinct name.
• Values of an attribute are all from the same domain.
10
Properties of Relations
• Each tuple is distinct; there are no duplicate tuples.
• Order of attributes has no significance.
• Order of tuples has no significance, theoretically.
11
Relational Keys
• Superkey
• An attribute, or a set of attributes, that uniquely
identifies a tuple within a relation.
• Candidate Key
• Superkey (K) such that no proper subset is a superkey
within the relation.
• In each tuple of R, values of K uniquely identify that tuple
(uniqueness).
• No proper subset of K has the uniqueness property
(irreducibility).
12
Relational Keys
• Primary Key
• Candidate key selected to identify tuples uniquely
within relation.
• Alternate Keys
• Candidate keys that are not selected to be primary
key.
• Foreign Key
• Attribute, or set of attributes, within one relation that
matches candidate key of some (possibly same)
relation.
13
Relational Integrity
• Null
• Represents value for an attribute that is currently
unknown or not applicable for tuple
• Deals with incomplete or exceptional data.
• Represents the absence of a value and is not the
same as zero or spaces, which are values.
14
Relational Integrity
• Entity Integrity
• In a base relation, no attribute of a primary key can be
null.
• Referential Integrity
• If foreign key exists in a relation, either foreign key
value must match a candidate key value of some tuple
in its home relation or foreign key value must be
wholly null.
15
Relational Integrity
• Enterprise Constraints
• Additional rules specified by users or database
administrators.
16
Views
• Base Relation
• Named relation corresponding to an entity in
conceptual schema, whose tuples are physically
stored in database.
• View
• Dynamic result of one or more relational operations
operating on base relations to produce another
relation.
17
Views
• A virtual relation that does not necessarily actually
exist in the database but is produced upon request,
at time of request.
• Contents of a view are defined as a query on one
or more base relations.
• Views are dynamic, meaning that changes made to
base relations that affect view attributes are
immediately reflected in the view.
18
Purpose of Views
• Provides powerful and flexible security
mechanism by hiding parts of database from
certain users.
• Permits users to access data in a customized way,
so that same data can be seen by different users
in different ways, at same time.
• Can simplify complex operations on base
relations.
19
Updating Views
• All updates to a base relation should be
immediately reflected in all views that reference
that base relation.
• If view is updated, underlying base relation
should reflect change.
20
Updating Views
• There are restrictions on types of modifications
that can be made through views:
- Updates are allowed if query involves a single base
relation and contains a candidate key of base
relation.
- Updates are not allowed involving multiple base
relations.
- Updates are not allowed involving aggregation or
grouping operations.
21
Updating Views
• Classes of views are defined as:
• theoretically not updateable
• theoretically updateable
• partially updateable.
22
Relational Database Schema of
DreamHome
23
