20 min read

Database Management System

The database is the stored facts. The DBMS is the software that looks after them.

People often say "the database" when they mean two different things: the stored facts, and the program that manages them. In this course we keep those ideas separate.

Database vs DBMS

$Database$	$DBMS$
$The organised collection of related data$	$The software that stores and manages that data$
$Members, books, loans — the facts themselves$	$The program you open to add, find, or change rows$
$You cannot install a database without software$	$Microsoft Access, PostgreSQL, MySQL are DBMS products$
$Exists inside a file or server$	$Controls who can read, write, and enforce rules$

At Riverside Public Library, staff might use Microsoft Access . Access is the DBMS . The members, books, and loans inside the Access file are the database . George Clarke opens Access and sees tables on the screen. He is using the DBMS. The rows he types are stored in the database.

What the DBMS does for the library
What the DBMS does for the library

This is a small teaching example. A real library may have thousands of members, books, and loans. We use a few rows so you can see the pattern clearly.

Everyday language

"Open the database" usually means "open the DBMS and work with the stored data." That is fine in conversation. In exams and design work, be precise: database = the data; DBMS = the software.

Practice

Swipe or use the arrows to move between questions.

1 / 3

At the library, Microsoft Access is the\dots

Which tasks does a DBMS perform?

Select every task that belongs to the DBMS, not to the raw data alone.

Which of these is a DBMS product?

Database

DBMS

The organised collection of related data

The software that stores and manages that data

Members, books, loans — the facts themselves

The program you open to add, find, or change rows

You cannot install a database without software

Microsoft Access, PostgreSQL, MySQL are DBMS products

Exists inside a file or server

Controls who can read, write, and enforce rules

What the DBMS does for the library

Everyday language

"Open the database" usually means "open the DBMS and work with the stored data." That is fine in conversation. In exams and design work, be precise: database = the data; DBMS = the software.

Practice

Swipe or use the arrows to move between questions.

1 / 3

At the library, Microsoft Access is the\dots

Which tasks does a DBMS perform?

Select every task that belongs to the DBMS, not to the raw data alone.

Which of these is a DBMS product?