Database schema evolution through the specification and maintenance of changes on entities and relationships

Chien Tsai Liu, Panos K. Chrysanthis, Shi Kuo Chang

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

18 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A flexible database system needs to support changes to its schema in order to facilitate the requirements of new applications and to support interoperability within a multidatabase system. In this paper, we present an approach to schema evolution through changes to the Entity-Relationship (ER) schema of a database. We enhance the graphical constructs used in ER diagrams, and develop EVER, an EVolutionary ER diagram for specifying the derivation relationships between schema versions, relationships among attributes, and the conditions for maintaining consistent views of programs. Algorithms are presented for mapping the EVER diagram into the underlying database and constructing database views for schema versions. Through the reconstruction of views after database reorganization, changes to an ER diagram can be made transparent to the application programs while all objects in the database remain accessible to the application programs.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationEntity-Relationship Approach - ER 1994
Subtitle of host publicationBusiness Modelling and Re-Engineering - 13th International Conference on the Entity-Relationship Approach, Proceedings
PublisherSpringer Verlag
Pages132-151
Number of pages20
Volume881 LNCS
ISBN (Print)9783540587866
Publication statusPublished - 1994
Event13th International Conference on the Entity-Relationship Approach, ER 1994 - Manchester, United Kingdom
Duration: Dec 13 1994Dec 16 1994

Publication series

NameLecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)
Volume881 LNCS
ISSN (Print)0302-9743
ISSN (Electronic)1611-3349

Other

Other13th International Conference on the Entity-Relationship Approach, ER 1994
Country/TerritoryUnited Kingdom
CityManchester
Period12/13/9412/16/94

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Theoretical Computer Science
  • Computer Science(all)

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