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A foreign key is defined as an attribute or set of attributes in a relation whose values match a primary key in another relation. The syntax to add such a constraint to an existing table is defined in SQL:2003 as shown below. Omitting the column list in the REFERENCES clause implies that the foreign key shall reference the primary key of the ...
Definition: Referential integrity is a database concept that ensures that relationships between tables remain consistent. When one table has a foreign key to another table, the concept of referential integrity states that you may not add a record to the table that contains the foreign key unless there is a corresponding record in the linked table.
Surrogate key. A surrogate key (or synthetic key, pseudokey, entity identifier, factless key, or technical key[citation needed]) in a database is a unique identifier for either an entity in the modeled world or an object in the database. The surrogate key is not derived from application data, unlike a natural (or business) key.
Database normalization. Database normalization is the process of structuring a relational database in accordance with a series of so-called normal forms in order to reduce data redundancy and improve data integrity. It was first proposed by British computer scientist Edgar F. Codd as part of his relational model .
Relational database. A relational database ( RDB [1]) is a database based on the relational model of data, as proposed by E. F. Codd in 1970. [2] A database management system used to maintain relational databases is a relational database management system ( RDBMS ). Many relational database systems are equipped with the option of using SQL ...
Weak entity. In a relational database, a weak entity is an entity that cannot be uniquely identified by its attributes alone; therefore, it must use a foreign key in conjunction with its attributes to create a primary key. The foreign key is typically a primary key of an entity it is related to. The foreign key is an attribute of the ...
A non-primary key that can be used to identify only one row in a table. Alternate keys may be used like a primary key in a single-table select. Foreign. A key that has migrated to another entity. At the most basic definition, "a key is a unique identifier", [1] so unique key is a pleonasm.
Composite key. In database design, a composite key is a candidate key that consists of two or more attributes, [1] [2] [3] (table columns) that together uniquely identify an entity occurrence (table row). A compound key is a composite key for which each attribute that makes up the key is a foreign key in its own right. [citation needed]