Please note : This help page is not for the latest version of Enterprise Architect. The latest help can be found here.
Data Models
Data Modelers and Information Architects are challenged with creating data models that span multiple levels of abstraction - from concept to physical implementation. They might also be responsible for maintaining traceability between these models. Enterprise Architect helps to meet these challenges with easy-to-use tools for building and maintaining all of the fundamental data models - Conceptual, Logical and Physical.
Data Models
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Conceptual Data Models |
Conceptual data models, also called Domain models, establish the basic concepts and semantics of a given domain and help to communicate these to a wide audience of stakeholders. Conceptual models also serve as a common vocabulary during the analysis stages of a project; they can be created in Enterprise Architect using Entity-Relationship or UML Class models. |
Entity Relationship Diagrams (ERDs)
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Logical Data Models |
Logical data models add further detail to conceptual model elements and refine the structure of the domain; they can be defined using Entity-Relationship or UML Class models. One benefit of a Logical data model is that it provides a foundation on which to base the Physical model and subsequent database implementation. Entity-relationship modeling is an abstract and conceptual database modeling method, used to produce a schema or semantic data model of, for example, a relational database and its requirements, visualized in Entity-Relationship Diagrams (ERDs). ERDs assist you in building conceptual data models through to generating Data Definition Language (DDL) for the target DBMS. A Logical model can be transformed to a Physical data model using a DDL Transformation.
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Entity Relationship Diagrams (ERDs)
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Physical Data Models |
Physical data models in Enterprise Architect help you visualize your database structure and automatically derive the corresponding database schema; you use Enterprise Architect's UML Profile for Data Modeling specifically for this purpose. The profile provides useful extensions of the UML standard that map database concepts of Tables and relationships onto the UML concepts of Classes and Associations; you can also model database keys, triggers, constraints, referential integrity and other relational database features. Because Enterprise Architect helps you visualize each type of data model in the same repository, you can easily manage dependencies between each level of abstraction to maximize traceability and verify completeness of system implementation.
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