RDBMS : Benefit of Database Management System

A major advantage that the database approach has over the conventional approach is that a database management system provides centralized of data.

Following are some of the benefits of the database approach :

a. Redudancy is reduced : in the database approach, applications do not have to maintain their own data file. The same course data file is used by the course scheduling application, the instructor scheduling application, and the semester planning application.

b. Inconsistency is avoided : because redundancy is reduced, inconsistency is also avoided. Consider a situation where ten students have enrolled for a course. This information is stored in the student data file. The other applications will use the same student file and therefore, no inconsistency can occur. If this information is recorded in more than one place, inconsistency can occur, as changes made in one data file may not get reflected in another data file.

c. Data is shared : while the existing applications can share data in the database, new applications can also be developed that will use the same database.

d. Standards are enforced : with centralized control of data, the DBA can ensure that standards are maintained in stored data formats. This is particularly useful for data interchange, or migration of data between two systems.

e. Security restrictions are applied : the DBA eensures that only authorized persons have access to the database. The DBA defines the security checks to be carried out. Differenet checks can be applied to different operations on the same data. For instance, a person may have access to query a file, but may not have the right to delete or update that file.

f. Integrity is maintained : inconsistency between two entries can lead to integrity problems. Even without redundancy, the database can still be inconsistent. For example, a student enrolls in 10 courses when the maximum number of courses a student can enroll is seven. Or, a student enrolls in a course that is not being offered in that semester. Such problems can be avoided in a DBMS by establishing certain integrity checks that are performed with any update operation.