Designing a Relational Database

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If you decide to store the data for your application in a Microsoft® Access database (.mdb), Microsoft® SQL Server™ database, or other relational database, designing the database structure likely will be the most challenging part of building the application. To understand how the tables in the database should be structured and how they should relate to one another, you must understand the data — perfectly. Although it is easy to modify the data model while you are developing the application, it is much more difficult when your customers are using the application. It is important to put as much effort as necessary into the process of designing the data model before you begin writing code. Developing an application based on a well-designed data model is much more rewarding than working with one that is designed poorly.

See Also

Which Technologies Should You Use? | Where Should You Store Data? | Thinking About Data Entry and User Input | Retrieving, Analyzing, and Presenting Data