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Database documentation tools
List of tools that allow the documentation (e.g. with descriptions) of schema of your databases.
Database documentation is a set of descriptions of the data, that facilitate management, maintenance, and retrieval of resources. Documentation can take many forms, however, it usually acts as a data catalog that holds detailed information about the table schema, all relationships, data types, etc. Description of datasets as well as single data objects also is referred to as metadata (data about the data).
Dataedo
Dataedo enables you to catalog, document and understand your data with Data Dictionary, Business Glossary and ERDs. It enables to document your relational databases and share documentation in interactive HTML.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | External repository |
| Export: | HTML,MS Excel,PDF |
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Elasoft SqlSpec
SqlSpec is a database documentation tool that generates documentation about all the objects (tables, views, stored procedures, triggers, indexes, constraints, functions, etc) in your database. It has both GUI and command-line interface. It enables you to generate entity-relation diagrams.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | CHM,HTML |
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Spectral Core Documenter
Spectral Core Documenter is the easiest way to generate detailed documentation of your database. All tables, procedures, functions, triggers, and user-defined types are listed with every detail.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | CHM,HTML |
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Leadum DBScribe
DBScribe is a SQL documentation tool that automatically creates comprehensive technical documentation of every detail of your database schema. DBScribe SQL documentation tool helps prevent from long routing documenting work and synchronization with database changes, enabling to perform precise database documentation.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | CHM,HTML,MS Word |
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Yohz DB Doc
DB Doc is the documentation tool for PostgreSQL databases. It customizes the layouts to your needs and automates the documentation generation process os that you could even generate your database schema documents every hour, ensuring you'll always have the most up-to-date details.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | CHM,HTML,PDF |
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DTM Schema Reporter
DTM Schema Reporter is a documenting tool for database schema. With DTM Schema Reporter, you can analyze and audit database structure, create schema documentation, create a hard copy of the structure snapshots, etc.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | CHM,HTML,MS Excel,MS Word,PDF,Plain text,RTF,XML |
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xSQL Documenter
xSQL Documenter provides comprehensive, uniform, and easily navigable database documentation in HTML and compiled CHM format. It can run as a console application, useful for automating the process of generating documentation for your databases on a schedule, or for integrating xSQL Documenter into your development process.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | CHM,HTML |
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TechWriter for Databases
TechWriter for Databases is a documentation tool for databases that leverages the information locked inside your database to automatically produce database reference documentation for Access, MySQL, Oracle, SAS, SQL Server, PostgreSQL and DB2 databases.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | CHM,HTML,MS Word,PDF,RTF,XML,XPS |
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SchemaSpy
Free and open source tool that generates interactive entity relationship diagrams to HTML from database schema. Requires Java 5 or higher.
| Commercial: | Free |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | External repository |
| Export: | HTML |
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SchemaCrawler
SchemaCrawler is a free database schema discovery and comprehension tool. Using the tool, you can search for database schema objects using regular expressions, and output the schema and data in a readable text format. The output serves for database documentation and is designed to be diff-ed against other database schemas.
| Commercial: | Free |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | External repository |
| Export: | CSV,HTML,JSON,Plain text |
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Vertabelo
Vertabelo is a database modeler that gives you the power of visual design of databases online and create and export documentation for your current model with just a few clicks.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | HTML,MS Word,PDF |
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DeZign for Databases
DeZign for Databases is an intuitive data modeling tool that can help you model, create and maintain databases along with generating the documentation of the models.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | HTML,MS Word,PDF |
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DbWrench
DbWrench helps in creating and modifying databases quicker and easier. It streamlines many common database tasks and generates HTML documentation of database designs.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | HTML |
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DbSchema
DbSchema facilitates to design, document and manage SQL and NoSQL databases. It is an intuitive designer for complex databases and provides documentation in HTML and PDF formats with interactive diagram vector image.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | HTML,PDF |
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SQLGate
SQLGate is an integrated database management and development solution that simplifies the construction and operation of databases. It allows you to generate database documentation containing details of all objects created in the database.
| Commercial: | Commercial |
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| Free edition: |
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| Allows editing: |
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| Metadata stored in: | Database comments/extended properties |
| Export: | HTML,PDF |
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Database documentation tools support data management by creating helpful descriptions, meaningful aliases, and annotating data assets with additional elements. The tools capture all the relevant information about the metadata and make it available to the users in a convenient way (tabular or graphical). The features of documentation tools can vary widely. The tools allow users to:
• Facilitate datasets with meaningful descriptions/aliases,
• Create relational diagrams,
• Advance search of resources,
• Track schema changes,
• Document repositories from various sources, through compatibility with many database engines,
• Automatic documentation export to user-friendly formats and easy-to-share formats (HTML, PDF, Excell )
Developers (especially those working on the backend) are constantly faced with questions from non-IT teams or customers about what a given object means. This is because creating and maintaining documentation is not a top priority. However, using documentation tools has many benefits such as:
• Help Data stewards quickly discover database schema,
• Data becomes understandable for non-IT members,
• Documentation as a single source of truth about the data is available to everyone
• Easier implementation for new people working on the repository,
We have selected database documenters that, we believe, are truly noteworthy. We have included both, open-source tools and advanced, professional software (offering trial versions).