Chapter 22. Constraints

A constraint is a rule or restriction about what constitutes valid instance data of the categories on the data model. The LDS notation does not accommodate constraints, and the process of controlled evolution discourages you from discussing most constraints. This is by design; we think premature discussion of constraints is a bad idea. This chapter describes why.

Postponing the consideration of constraints makes economic sense. (We are invoking the “Do what’s worth doing” principle articulated in the beginning of this book book.) You postpone discussing constraints for the following reasons:

  • Constraint definition requires a mature, stabilized data model.
  • Many candidate constraints turn out to be false.
  • Many constraints ...

Get Mastering Data Modeling: A User-Driven Approach now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.