A database can be classified in the various way one of them is conceptual categories and this is the most popular so, here we provide six major conceptual types of database that may be found in computer-using organizations are as follows:
Table of Contents
Conceptual Types of database
- Operational Database
- Analytical Database
- Data Warehouse
- Distributed Database
- End-User database
- External Database
1. Operational Database
This database stores detailed data need to support the operations of the entire organization. They are also called subject area databases (SADB), transaction databases, and production databases.
2. Analytical Database
These databases store data and information extracted from selected operational and external databases. They consist of summarized data and information needed by an organization’s managers and other end users.
Analytical databases are also called management databases or information databases. They may also be called multidimensional databases since they frequently use a multidimensional database structure to organize data.
These are the databases accessed by the online analytical processing (OLAP) systems, decision support systems, and executive information systems. This is one of the most important conceptual types of databases.
3. Data Warehouse
A data warehouse is currently a subject of widespread interest in the business sector, especially for business trend analysis. Basically, the data warehouse keeps the long-term history of regular processes.
This history can be utilized to generate quick reports and business trend analysis, which in turn, provides support for management decisions. The data warehouse offers scope for decision support systems (DSS).
This is also called an online analytical process (OLAP) and can be developed from an online transaction process (OLTP), i.e. the regular operation. In general data warehouse offers the following benefits:
- Historical data support for a long time
- Scope to generate a quick report
- Business trend analysis
- Correct management, financial, and marketing decisions.
More precisely, a data warehouse is a subject-oriented non-volatile, and time-variant integrated collection of data in support of management’s decisions. In data, warehouse data are organized by splitting into multiple dimensions of categories.
Time is the most common dimension. Operational data are time stamped. All data within a certain time range are derived from the operational data. Dimensions can be thought of as the key used for referencing the information.
On the other hand, granularity refers to the level of detail required. This affects the amount of aggregation or summarization activities that has to be done to the source data. It is a continual process when operational data are brought into to refresh the warehouse data.
4. Distributed database
Many organizations replicate and distribute copies or parts of the database to network servers at a variety of sites. These distributed databases can reside on network servers on the World Wide Web, on corporate intranets or extranets, or on other company networks.
Replication and distribution of databases are done to improve database performance and security. Ensuring that all of the data in an organization’s distributed databases are consistently and concurrently updated is a major challenge of distributed database management.
5. End-User Database
The end-user databases consist of a variety of data files developed by end-users at their workstations. For example, users may have their own electronic copies of documents they download from the World Wide Web, generate with word processing packages, or receive electronic mail. Or they may have their own data files generated using spreadsheets and DBMS packages.
6. External Database
Access to a wealth of information from external databases is available for a fee from commercial online services, and with or without charge from many sources on the internet, especially the World Wide Web (WWW).
Web sites provide an endless variety of hyperlinked pages of multimedia documents for a user to access. Data are available in the form of statistics on economic and demographic activity from statistical data banks.
Or one can view or download abstracts or complete copies of hundreds of newspapers, magazines, newsletters, research papers, and other published material and periodicals from bibliographic and full-text databases.
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