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A database designer may have to make use of a surrogate key - Scottish Highers Computing Science - Question 6 - 2018
Question 6
A database designer may have to make use of a surrogate key. Explain what is meant by the term surrogate key.
Worked Solution & Example Answer:A database designer may have to make use of a surrogate key - Scottish Highers Computing Science - Question 6 - 2018
Step 1
Explain what is meant by the term surrogate key.
Answer
A surrogate key is a unique identifier added to an entity within a database to act as its primary or unique key. This key is artificial, meaning it does not hold any intrinsic meaning or business logic related to the entity it represents.
Surrogate keys are particularly useful in situations where a natural (or primary) key does not already exist. For instance, if the natural key is lengthy or compound, using a surrogate key can simplify data management and improve performance.
Additionally, since surrogate keys do not add meaning to the entity, they help maintain data integrity and avoid changes in primary keys that may occur when natural keys are subject to modification.