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Microsoft Access Database Normalization

This material originally appeared in Alison Balter's book Mastering Microsoft Office Access 2007 Development and is reprinted here with the author's permission.

Normalization And Normal Forms

Some of the most difficult decisions that you face as a developer are what tables to create and what fields to place in each table, as well as how to relate the tables that you create. Normalization is the process of applying a series of rules to ensure that your database achieves optimal structure. Normal forms are a progression of these rules. Each successive normal form achieves a better database design than the previous form did. Although there are several levels of normal forms, it is generally sufficient to apply only the first three levels of normal forms. The following sections describe the first three levels of normal forms.

First Normal Form

To achieve first normal form, all columns in a table must be atomic. This means, for example, that you cannot store first names and last names in the same field. The reason for this rule is that data becomes very difficult to manipulate and retrieve if multiple groups are stored in a single field. Using the full name as an example, it would become impossible to sort by first name or last name independently if both groups were stored in the same field. Furthermore, you or the user must perform extra work to extract just the first name or the last name from the field.

Second Normal Form

To achieve second normal form, all non-key columns must be fully dependent on the primary key. In other words, each table must store data about only one subject. To achieve second normal form, you must break this data into two tables: an order table and an order detail table. The process of breaking the data into two tables is called decomposition. It is considered to be non-loss decomposition because no data is lost during the decomposition process. After you separate the data into two tables, you can easily bring the data back together by joining the two tables in a query.

Third Normal Form

To attain third normal form, a table must meet all the requirements for first and second normal form, and all non-key columns must be mutually independent. This means that you must eliminate any calculations, and you must break out data into lookup tables.

An example of a calculation stored in a table is the product of price multiplied by quantity. Instead of storing the result of this calculation in the table, you would generate the calculation in a query, or in the control source of a control on a form or a report.

Author Attribution

The preceding information originally appeared in Alison Balter's book Mastering Microsoft Office Access 2007 Development and is reprinted here with the author's permission.

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When you need a Microsoft Access programmer for your Seattle, WA business, call MS Access Solutions at (323) 285-0939. We have over 25 years experience as a Microsoft Access programmer. We create Access database applications for all industries, including medical offices and hospitals, oil and gas companies, government agencies at the local, state, and f ederal level, the U.S. military, school districts, junior colleges and universities, agriculture, human resources departments and employment agencies, and insurance agencies and insurance corporations.

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At MS Access Solutions, we've dedicated over twenty five years to Microsoft Access and SQL Server database programming. Our development team doesn't simply create databases; we build tailored solutions that measurably improve how businesses operate. One of our recent projects involved a regional healthcare provider struggling with appointment scheduling. Their system would practically grind to a halt during morning call hours, frustrating both staff and patients. We analyzed their workflow and developed a hybrid system using Access for the front-end interface while migrating their data to SQL Server. The results were immediate: booking times dropped from three minutes to under one minute per patient, and those persistent synchronization errors that plagued their multiple locations finally disappeared.

Improving Existing Systems

Not every database challenge requires rebuilding from the ground up. Many of our clients benefit from targeted improvements to existing systems. We frequently address specific issues like financial reports showing inaccurate totals, customer forms that mysteriously lose entered data, or automated processes that fail to execute when needed. A property management company contacted us last quarter about their monthly statement generation process. Their weekend batch processing had grown so slow that it was still running Monday morning when staff arrived. We identified a poorly constructed recursive query that was exponentially increasing processing time as their data grew. After rewriting this single component, their processing time decreased by 78%, eliminating the Monday morning bottleneck that had disrupted operations for months.

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How To Use Normalization In Microsoft Access

Keeping your Microsoft Access database clean and reliable starts with understanding one core principle: Normalization. It sounds technical, but it's really just a method of organizing your data so everything has its place and nothing is duplicated or inconsistent. If you're new to databases, this process helps you avoid a mess later on.

When data isn't organized well, it becomes harder to update, harder to trust, and easier to break. Normalization fixes that by breaking your data into smaller, related tables. It's not about over-complicating your setup. It's about creating a structure that holds up over time.

1. Identify The Repeating Data
   Start by looking for information that shows up more than once. For example, if you have a table that stores customer orders, you don't want to repeat the customer's name and address in every row. That info should live in its own Customers table, with a unique ID that links to the Orders table.
2. Break It Into Logical Tables
   Once you find the repeats, split them into separate tables. Think of it like organizing a kitchen: utensils in one drawer, plates in another. You might have tables for Customers, Orders, Products, and so on. Each table focuses on one subject.
3. Use Primary Keys
   Every table needs a primary key, a unique value that identifies each row. In Microsoft Access, this is often an AutoNumber field. The key lets you connect data between tables without repeating everything.
4. Set Up Relationships
   Now that your tables are split and each one has a key, you need to define how they relate. In Access, use the Relationships window to connect them. This creates referential integrity so Access won't let you add an order for a customer that doesn't exist.
5. Stick To One Fact Per Field
   Each column in your table should store one piece of information. Don't put full names in one field—split them into FirstName and LastName. Don't combine city and zip code into one column. Keep it clean and separate.

Normalization doesn't mean your database has to be complex. It means your database is reliable. If you build it right the first time, everything runs smoother, from data entry to reporting.