Before discussing it let us see some basic database terminologies.
- Data is a raw fact. (Collection of student’s information like name, age, DOB, etc.)
- Information is known data with some meaning.
- Metadata is known as data about data.
What is a database?
It is a collection of related data. Data are facts that can be recorded and that have implicit meaning (called information).
Defining it involves specifying the data types, structures, and constraints of the data to be stored in the database.
The database definition or descriptive information is also stored in the database in the form of a catalog or dictionary: it is called meta-data.
Constructing it is the process of storing the data on some storage medium that is controlled by the DBMS.
For example, The name, phone number, and addresses of peoples which you know. You may have recorded this data in an indexed address book or you may have stored it on a hard drive, using a personal computer and software such as Microsoft Access or Excel or any other data store software.
Properties of a database:
- It represents some aspect of the real world, sometimes called the mini world or the universe of discourse. Changes to the mini word are reflected in it.
- It is a logically coherent collection of data with some inherent meaning. A random assortment of data cannot correctly be referred to as a database.
- It is designed, built, and populated with data for a specific purpose. It has an intended group of users and some preconceived applications in which these users are interested.
- It can be of any size.
- It may be generated and maintained manually or it may be computerized.
- A computerized database may be created and maintained either by a group of application programs written specifically for that task or by a DBMS.
What is DBMS?
A database management system(DBMS) is a management system that is used to manages the data or sometimes the database.
And in technical words, we can say that a DBMS is a collection of programs that enables users to create and maintain a database.
The DBMS is a general-purpose software system that facilitates the processes of defining, constructing, manipulating, and sharing databases among various users and applications.
For example:
Oracle, IBM DB2, SQL Server, MongoDB, and Microsoft Access are some of the DBMS software.