An entity relationship diagram (ERD) shows the relationships of entity sets stored in a database. An entity in this context is an object, a component of data. An entity set is a collection of similar entities. These entities can have attributes that define its properties.

By defining the entities, their attributes, and showing the relationships between them, an ER diagram illustrates the logical structure of databases.

ER diagrams are used to sketch out the design of a database.

There are two reasons to create a database diagram. You're either designing a new schema or you need to document your existing structure.

If you have an existing database you need to to document, you create a database diagram using data directly from your database. You can export your database structure as a CSV file , then have a program generate the ERD automatically.

This will be the most accurate potrait of your database and will require no drawing on your part.

Entities, which are represented by rectangles. An entity is an object or concept about which you want to store information. A weak entity is an entity that must defined by a foreign key relationship with another entity as it cannot be uniquely identified by its own attributes alone.

Actions, which are represented by diamond shapes, show how two entities share information in the database. In some cases, 

entities can be self-linked. For example, employees can supervise other employees.

Attributes, which are represented by ovals. A key attribute is the unique, distinguishing characteristic of the entity. For example, an employee's social security number might be the employee's key attribute.Connecting lines, solid lines that connect attributes to show the relationships of entities in the diagram.Cardinality specifies how many instances of an entity relate to one instance of another entity. Ordinality is also closely linked to cardinality. While cardinality specifies the occurrences of a relationship, ordinality describes the relationship as either mandatory or optional. In other words, cardinality specifies the maximum number of relationships and ordinality specifies the absolute minimum number of relationships.

When documenting a system or process, looking at the system in multiple ways increases the understanding of that system. ERD diagrams are commonly used in conjunction with a data flow diagram to display the contents of a data store. They help us to visualize how data is connected in a general way, and are particularly useful for constructing a relational database.

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