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Fowler Evolutionary Database Design

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Fowler Evolutionary Database Design

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Summary

Martin Fowler describes evolutionary database design as a set of practices for changing databases safely as software evolves. The guidance emphasizes version-controlled database artifacts, migration scripts, close collaboration between developers and database specialists, automated migration tooling, and frequent integration of database changes.

Relevant Findings

  • Database schemas and data both need managed evolution.
  • All database changes should be captured as migrations.
  • Database artifacts should be version controlled with application code.
  • Migration practices need to account for legacy data and data movement, not only schema changes.
  • Database design should evolve with the application while preserving data integrity and deployability.

HELIX Usage

This resource informs the Data Design artifact. HELIX uses it to keep data models explicit about schema evolution, data migration, rollback expectations, and implementation/test consequences.

Authority Boundary

This resource supports database evolution and migration discipline. It does not replace project-specific data modeling, security classification, performance testing, or datastore selection.

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Signed
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