How can I design a good database?

This is a very broad question. I'll try to present different areas for you to consider when designing a database.

1. What is the database program and what is the OS it will reside on?
2. What is the scope of the database? Small (100 tables), medium (500 tables), large (1000+ tables and maybe a Terabyte of data?)
3. What type of data needs to be stored?
4. You'll need to know the hierarchy, related data (to make relationships between the tables), nature of the data within the tables to properly size the tables for future growth.

Now, if you don't have all the up-front information, you can always create the database with what you do know. However, realize that later you may have to restructure, recreate the tables larger and copy the data or it may be easier just to recreate the database. If you need to do this, you can export the data if you have any that needs saved. If on the same node, you can do this table to table or by flat files. Table to table, you will have to disable auditing and any constraints, they reenable when finished. If you insert by flat files, it is faster and you will not have to disable.

There is a lot to designing, updating and maintaining a database.

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