Data Modeling

When to Use

• Designing new database schemas from domain requirements
• Analyzing existing schemas for optimization opportunities
• Deciding between normalized and denormalized structures
• Choosing appropriate data stores (relational vs NoSQL)
• Planning schema evolution and migration strategies
• Modeling complex entity relationships

Philosophy

Data models outlive applications. A well-designed schema encodes business rules, enforces integrity, and enables performance optimization. The goal is to create models that are correct first, then optimize for access patterns while maintaining data integrity.

Entity-Relationship Modeling

Identifying Entities