Knowledge-based Integrity Constraint Validation
Xiaolei Qian, Gio C. M. Wiederhold · Very Large Data Bases · 1986
One of the important means of specifying the semantics about data is via integrity constraints. Experience has shown that the conventional database approach to integrity constraint enforcement is not successful. In this paper, we demonstrate the feasibility and power of a knowledge-based approach to the efficiency problem of constraint validation. We propose a transformational mechanism which exploits knowledge about the application domain and database organization to reformulate integrity constraints into semantically equivalent ones from which efficient code can be generated. database. This verification process can be performed using theorem proving techniques. However, integrity constraints are intrinsically state-dependent and have to be validated against the database extension whenever state transition happens. This leads to a third validation function in which the key challenge is the efficiency of validation. Finally, the constraint manager has to make decision on what to do when an invalid request for changing database state is encountered. This may include either rejecting the request or making some further state changes to get another valid state.