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Database design tools for MS Access
List of tools that allow for the design of a database.
Database design is a set of activities aimed at improving the development, implementation, and maintenance of an enterprise data management system. Its main goal is to reflect the outline of the database system into real models: physical and logical. Database designers determine what data is to be stored inside the database, and how objects are to be related to each other.
Gleek.io
Gleek.io diagram maker is freemium text-to-diagram tool for developers and software architects. It enables the visual design of database online, in the cloud and from any browser. Create informal, UML, or entity-relationship diagrams - using just your keyboard.
| Desktop/Cloud: | Cloud |
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| Generate DDL scripts: |
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dbConstructor
dbConstructor is a database design tool that speeds up and eases the database creation and maintenance process by means of an extremely user-friendly interface. It also lets you do change management and schema verification.
| Desktop/Cloud: | Desktop |
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ERD Concepts
ERD Concepts is a database designer and SQL query tool for all major databases. It helps to create a professional and visual attractive Entity Relationship Diagram with domains, tables, foreign keys, views, stored procedures, and more. Your base ERD design is alternatively used to generate DDL scripts to create the actual database.
| Desktop/Cloud: | Desktop |
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| ER Diagram: |
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X-TEA Modeler
X-TEA Modeler helps you write models and plans of enterprise systems. Its editor helps you to write specifications of tables, functions, and also to create/alter tables in your database.
| Desktop/Cloud: | Desktop |
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| Generate DDL scripts: |
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ModelRight
ModelRight is a database design and data modeling tool. It is used by data modelers, database developers, and database architects to create, visualize, and document their databases as an Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD).
| Desktop/Cloud: | Desktop |
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MagicDraw
MagicDraw is the award-winning business process, architecture, software and system modeling tool with teamwork support. With Cameo Data Modeler plugin, data-related modeling can be peroformed on MagicDraw. It includes entity-relationship diagram, SQL database modeling/diagramming and DDL script generation/reverse features.
| Desktop/Cloud: | Desktop |
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| Generate DDL scripts: |
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| ER Diagram: |
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Jeddict
Jeddict is an open source development platform that simplifies development tasks of creating complex entity relationship models. It provides forward & reverse engineering capabilities, import models from existing database, generate complex SQL/DDL, and much more.
| Desktop/Cloud: | Desktop |
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| Generate DDL scripts: |
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| ER Diagram: |
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DTM Data Modeler
DTM Data Modeler is an easy-to-use tool allowing you to work both with logical and physical data models in the form of an entity-relationship diagram. The program can create database schema objects directly in the database and can create SQL scripts corresponding to the model taking into account the specified settings.
| Desktop/Cloud: | Desktop |
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| Generate DDL scripts: |
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| Free edition: |
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| ER Diagram: |
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The database design process can be very complicated. The more complex the system, the more sophisticated the tool is needed. Their functionality can vary greatly, however, core features include:
• creating and editing database objects,
• database architecture modeling,
• visualization of a database schema,
• tracking relationships between entities,
• grouping logically related objects into clusters,
• diagrams overview.
Database designer tools enable building graphical models and generating DDL scripts on their basis. The script describes data and relations between entities in the designed database. Furthermore, the tools enable reverse engineering (visualization of the model from the SQL script).
Key factors of creating a reliable and well-organized database are:
• a properly designed data structure,
• establishing what data should be stored in particular objects,
• how objects should be related to each other.
All of them can be improved by using the relevant Database design tool. Additionally, some of them allow the visual representation of data using ERD, makes it easier to visualize even more complex schemas.
Without proper software, development is based on raw code. This increases the risk of errors at the initial stage. The tools allow users to edit the visual layout using simple drag-and-drop functions. With a user-friendly interface, browsing the structure is possible even for non-IT people.
We have created a list of tools that support the process of creating database structure and its content. Our list includes free database design tools as well as advanced, more professional data management tools.