Glossary

Referential integrity

The condition ensuring relationships between entities remain valid and free of broken references.

The condition ensuring relationships between entities remain valid and free of broken references. It is a business coherence condition, not a database technicality.

A broken reference is rarely detected when it happens: it surfaces months later, when a report does not reconcile or an audit asks for the complete file and a piece nobody can place is missing.

Related terms

Architectural integrity constraint

A rule defining what is methodologically valid, beyond what is structurally possible.

Data model

The structuring of business concepts into entities, attributes, relationships, domains, keys and referential integrity.

Data quality

The degree to which data are accurate, complete, consistent, timely, valid and unique.