How Does Version Control Help in Database Management?

A Database Management System is a collection of computer software applications/programs that monitor and control the generation, creation, modification, extraction and maintenance of information in a database. The database system can also keep a large amount of data and store it in the most effective way. The information could be added into the server one at a time or all at the same time. The main purpose of a database management system is that it does all the hard work for you. 

Version control helps a lot in configuration management, as it helps everyone, especially the database administrators and specialists, to keep tabs on the changes made in the database, and to avoid anything disastrous from the changes made on the original file. To be specific, here’s how to understand what version control does:

1. After you have saved the main file to the repository or the database where the file is stored, you have an immediate back up, and all changes are saved, allowing you to switch from the original file, on to the current version where changes have been applied;
2. All the files are also synchronized, and allow the multiple users of the database to view the changes made by others, and share whatever future changes are to be made;
3. Version control allows you to leave a detailed note or memo on the changes that you have made so that other people will find the development and progress of the file easier to understand, and everyone will know who changed what;
4. You can go back to the latest version of the file if ever you have committed a mistake, or to undo the mistakes made to the file a few months, or a few years back. This can be very helpful especially if there is a bug in the file;
5. To ensure ultimate source code control, version control allows you to sandbox, or to isolate and test the code changes in the repository first, before completely checking in the changes you have made;
6. You can also branch the file into another copy for isolation or sandboxing so that you can track the changes separately;
7. You can merge the branched copy once you are positive that the codes and the changes you have made are correct.

The typical example that we can cite to compare version control with is using the Save As function in documents. Whenever we want to make changes to a document but still want to keep the original file, this is what we do. But sometimes we mistakenly use the Save function instead which totally obliterates the original file you have made with the new one. This is why using version control helps ease the demands of database management. Just imagine all those software applications, and all the creation and changes that can be made, and how version control can help you to track everything and make the necessary changes without any worries that you’ll lose all your work.