Database management is the system for managing information that aids an organization’s business operations. It involves storing and distributing data it to users and applications, editing it as needed as well as monitoring changes in data and preventing data corruption due to unexpected failure. It is an element of a company’s informational infrastructure that aids in decision-making, corporate growth and compliance with laws like the GDPR and creatio.cuc.edu.co the California Consumer Privacy Act.

The first database systems were developed in the 1960s by Charles Bachman, IBM and others. They developed into information management systems (IMS) which allowed huge amounts of data to be stored and retrieved for a range of reasons. From calculating inventory, to supporting complex financial accounting functions as well as human resource functions.

A database is a set of tables that organizes data in accordance with a specific pattern, such as one-to many relationships. It utilizes primary keys to identify records and permit cross-references between tables. Each table has a set of fields, known as attributes, that represent facts about the data entities. The most popular type of database that is currently in use is a relational model, created by E. F. „Ted“ Codd at IBM in the 1970s. This model is based on normalizing data to make it easier to use. It also makes it simpler to update data by avoiding the need to change several databases.

Most DBMSs support multiple types of databases and offer different internal and external levels of organization. The internal level deals with costs, scalability, and other operational issues including the design of the database’s physical storage. The external level is the representation of the database in user interfaces and applications. It can include a mixture of different external views based on different data models and may include virtual table that are computed using generic data to enhance the performance.