Data Design Diagram

Definition

A data design diagram is a design diagram work product (a kind of object or entity-relationship diagram) that primarily documents the design of the data components of an application.

Objectives

The typical objectives of a data design diagram is to:

• Document the data elements (e.g., classes, tables) of the data components.
• Document their component data (e.g., attributes, columns).
• Document the relationships between them.

Benefits

The typical benefits of a data design diagram are to:

• Drive the implementation of the data components.

Contents

The typical contents of a data design diagram are:

• TBD

Stakeholders

The typical stakeholders of a data design diagram are:

• Producers:
  • Database Team
• Evaluators:
  • Database Inspection Team
• Approvers:
  • Project Manager
  • Technical Leader
  • Customer Representative
• Maintainers:
  • Database Team
• Users:
  • Database Team, who use it to implement database schema.
  • Software Development Team, who use it to develop database wrapper software.
  • Content Management Team, who use it to implement templates and data components.

Phases

• Business Strategy: Not Applicable
• Business Optimization: Not Applicable
• Initiation: Not Applicable
• Construction: Completed
• Delivery: Maintained
• Usage: Maintained
• Retirement: Archived

Preconditions

Data design diagrams can typially be started if the following preconditions hold:

• The initiation phase has started.
• The database team is adequately staffed and trained in data component design.

Inputs

The typical inputs to a data design diagram include:

• Work Products:
  • SystemRequirementsSpecification
  • External API Specification
  • System Architecture Document
  • Information Architecture Document
  • Data Architecture Diagram
• Stakeholders:
  • TBD

Guidelines

• The data design diagrams are typically incorporated into the database design document.

Conventions

Data design diagrams are typically constrained by the following conventions:

• Work Flow
• Content and Format Standard
• Inspection Checklist

Examples

The following data design diagram is an entity-relationship-attribute (ERA) diagram of the primary data for a simple order entry application.