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Lec 4. Database System Approach Vs File System Approach

The database approach provides a single repository of data that is defined once and accessed by multiple users, offering several advantages over the file system approach. These include the database being self-describing through metadata, insulating programs from data changes and allowing multiple views of the data. The database also allows sharing of data and multi-user transaction processing through concurrency control.

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292 views2 pages

Lec 4. Database System Approach Vs File System Approach

The database approach provides a single repository of data that is defined once and accessed by multiple users, offering several advantages over the file system approach. These include the database being self-describing through metadata, insulating programs from data changes and allowing multiple views of the data. The database also allows sharing of data and multi-user transaction processing through concurrency control.

Uploaded by

Jasjeet Singh
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Database System Approach Vs File System Approach OR

Advantages of the Database Approach


In traditional File processing, each user defines and implements the files needed for a specific application as
part of programming the application.
In the database approach, a single repository of data is maintained that is defined once and then is accessed by
various users. The main characteristics of the database approach versus the file processing approach are
following:

1) Self-Describing Nature of a Database System: The database system contains not only the database itself
but also a complete definition or description of the database structure and constraints.

This definition is stored in the system catalog, which contains information such as:
a) the Structure of each File,
b) the Type and Storage format of each Data Item, and
c) various constraints on the data.

• The information stored in the catalog is called META-DATA (also called as data about data), and it
describes the structure of the primary database.
• In traditional file processing, data definition is typically part of the application programs themselves.
Hence, these programs are constrained to work with only one specific database, whose structure is
declared in the application programs. For example, a C++ program may have “struct” or “class”
declarations to define its files.
• Whereas file-processing software can access only specific database, DBMS software can access diverse
databases by extracting the database definitions from the catalog and then using these definitions.

2) Insulation between Programs and Data, and Data Abstraction:


• In traditional file processing, the structure of data files is embedded in the access programs; any changes
to the structure of a file may require changing all programs that access this file.
• By contrast, DBMS access programs do not require such changes in most cases.
• The structure of the data files is stored in the DBMS catalog separately from the access programs.
• This property is known as Program-Data Independence.

In advanced DBMS softwares user can define operations on the data as part of the database definitions.
• An operation (also called a function) is specified in two parts. The interface (or Signature) of an
operation includes the operation name and the data types of its arguments (or Parameters). The
implementation (or method) of the operation is specified separately and can be changed without
affecting the interface.
• User application programs can operate on the data by invoking these operations through their names and
arguments, regardless of how the operations are implemented. This may be termed as Program-
Operations Independence.

Characteristics that allows program-data independence and program-operation independence is called Data
Abstraction.
A DBMS provides users with a Conceptual Representation of data that does not include many of the details
of how the data is stored or how the operations are implemented.

3) Support of Multiple Views of the Data:


• A database typically has many users, each of whom may require a different perspective or view.
• A view may be a subset of the database or it may contain Virtual data that is derived from the database
files but is not explicitly stored.
• Some users may not need to aware of whether the data they refer to is stored or derived.
• A multi-user DBMS whose users have a variety of applications must provide facilities for defining
multiple views.

For example, if a college has a database of the following type:

S.No. Roll No. Name Father’s Name Year Sem Fees


1. 0506814001 Ram Dashrath 2 3 Yes
2. 0506814011 Krishna Nand Baba 2 3 Yes
3. 0506814101 Prahalad Hrinyakashyap 2 3 No
4. 0506814501 Hanuman Kasari 2 3 Yes
5. 0506814551 Arjun Pandu 2 3 No

If Accounts department needs only RollNo., Name and Fees only where as Library needs Name, Year and
Sem. And Registration office needs all the data related to the student. So the three users require three views.

4) Sharing of Data and Multi-user Transaction Processing:


• A multi-user DBMS, must allow multiple users to access the database at the same time.
• This is essential if data for multiple applications is to be integrated and maintained in a single database.
• The DBMS must include Concurrency control software to ensure that several users trying to update
the same data to do so in a controlled manner so that the result of the updates is correct.
• For example, On-Line Railway reservation in which several users try to reserve their seat through the
Internet.

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