Is Normalization mandatory in a database? If yes, then justify your answer with an example.

Normalization is not mandatory in a database, but it is generally considered a best practice in database design. Normalization helps to eliminate redundant data, maintain data consistency, and improve the efficiency of queries.

To understand the benefits of normalization, let’s consider an example. Suppose we have a database of customer orders that contains the following fields:

• Order ID
• Customer Name
• Customer Address
• Product Name
• Product Description
• Quantity
• Unit Price
• Order Date

This database is not normalized because it contains redundant data. For example, if a customer places multiple orders, their name and address information will be repeated for each order. Additionally, if a product is ordered multiple times, the product name and description will be repeated for each order.

To normalize this database, we could create separate tables for customers and products, as follows:

Customers table:

• Customer ID
• Customer Name
• Customer Address

Products table:

• Product ID
• Product Name
• Product Description
• Unit Price

Orders table:

• Order ID
• Customer ID (foreign key to Customers table)
• Order Date

OrderDetails table:

• OrderDetail ID
• Order ID (foreign key to Orders table)
• Product ID (foreign key to Products table)
• Quantity

With this normalized database structure, each customer and product is represented only once in the database, and order information is stored in a separate table. This reduces data redundancy and improves data consistency. Additionally, querying the database becomes more efficient because the data is organized into smaller, more focused tables.

In conclusion, while normalization is not mandatory in a database, it is generally considered a best practice to improve data organization, consistency, and efficiency.