3.2.6

Normalisation

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Normalisation to 3NF

Normalising data is a process which makes a database more efficient to run and store.

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Stages of normalisation

  • To ensure the most efficient database structure possible, we use a process called normalisation.
  • There are 3 stages of normalisation:
    • First normal form (1NF).
    • Second normal form (2NF).
    • Third normal form (3NF).
  • Normalisation can turn a flat-file database into a relational database.
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Unnormalised data

  • Before going to 1NF, a flat-file table structure is put together.
  • We refer to this stage as unnormalised data or 0NF.
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First normal form

  • For a database to be in 1NF it has to obey the following:
    • No columns with repeated or similar data.
    • Each row is unique with a primary key.
    • Each field must have a unique name.
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Second normal form

  • For a database to be in 2NF, it has to be in 1NF.
  • Each of the fields must rely on the primary key to be unique.
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Third normal form

  • For a database to be in 3NF, it has to be in 2NF.
  • No field should rely on another non-key field.
  • For example, a database should not store someone's age and date of birth.
  • It should store the date of birth only and the surrounding software should be used to calculate the age.

Jump to other topics

1Components of a Computer

2Software & Software Development

3Exchanging Data

4Data Types, Data Structures & Algorithms

5Legal, Moral, Cultural & Ethical Issues

6Elements of Computational Thinking

6.1Thinking Abstractly

6.2Thinking Ahead

6.3Thinking Procedurally

6.4Thinking Logically

6.5Thinking Concurrently

7Problem Solving & Programming

8Algorithms

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