Some of the components of database design include producing a data model of the database, designing a data definition language, designing the views that will access and make sense of the raw data, and creating user interface boundaries and security measures that help maintain the integrity of the system.
Database design and construction is a daunting task for the average computer user, and is usually considered difficult for even the most well-trained computer specialists due to the complexities of database design, the use of complex mathematical equations in the system, and the need to visualize the entire database and how it should relate to itself in order to deliver the needed data to the correct person at the right time, in the requested format.
Security is relevant in every computer application and database, particularly to database systems that will be housed or accessible over the internet. Passwords, password creation, and levels of accessibility are all components of the security system embedded into the database structure.
There are several different ways to structure the planned database. These methods are differentiated by the type of logic used to process the data. Hierarchical, relational, network, object-relational, object, associative, and multi-dimensional are all different methods which can be used to structure a database model.
In the hierarchical database organizational method, all data is accessed from top to bottom in a logical flow of information, such as from general accounting to payroll records. Hierarchical databases require users to “back out” of one path in order to access data that is stored in another path.
The relational database is structured based on mathematical relationships between the bits of data.
A network organizational structure can take a user from point “A” to point “D” directly without having to “back out” of the original process in order to change directions.