Data modeling is the process of structuring and organizing data. It defines a structure for data that is typically implemented in a database management system and that enables (and limits) to enter data in that structure. Data modeling is often the first step in database design and object-oriented programming as the designers first create a conceptual model of how data items relate to each other. Data modeling involves a progression from conceptual model to logical model to physical schema.

Data processing is a computer process that converts data into required information. The processing is usually assumed to be automated and running on a computer. There are many data processing applications, such as accounting programs that convert raw financial data into meaninful reports for various purpose. Another example is customer relationship management systems (CRM) and employee relationship data systems.

Data scubbing, also called as data cleaning, is the process of detecting and removing and/or correcting a database to increase data accuracy, reduce redundancy and enhance consistency of different sets of data that have been merged from separate databases. Sophisticated software applications are available to clean a database data using algorithms, rules and look-up tables, a task that was once done manually and therefore still subject to human error.

Data structure is the pattern to store data in a computer so that it can be used efficiently. Often a carefully chosen data structure will allow a more efficient algorithm to be used. The choice of the data structure often begins from the choice of an abstract data structure. A well-designed data structure allows a variety of critical operations to be performed, using as few resources, both execution time and memory space, as possible. Data structures are implemented using the data types, references and operations on them provided by a programming language.

Data transformation converts data from a source data format into destination data. Data transformation can be divided into two steps: 1) data mapping maps data elements from the source to the destination and captures any transformation that must occur; 2) code generation that creates the actual transformation program.

Database administration refers to duties, typically performed by a DBA in an organization, such as disaster recovery (backups and testing of backups), performance analysis and tuning, and some database design or assistance thereof.

A database model is a theory or algorithm describing how a database is structured and used. Several such models have been suggested, for example, Hierarchical model, Network model, Relational model, Object-Relational model, Object model, Associative, Concept-oriented, Entity-Attribute-Value, Multi-dimensional model, Semi-structured, and Star schema.

Databases normalization is a process that eliminates redundancy, organizes data efficiently, reduces the potential for anomalies during data operations and improves data consistency. The formal classifications used for quantifying "how normalized" a relational database is are called normal forms. A non-normalized database is vulnerable to data anomalies because it stores data redundantly. If data is stored in two locations, but later is updated in only one of the locations, then the data is inconsistent; this is referred to as an "update anomaly". A normalized database stores non-primary key data in only one location.

Database query language is a kind of programming language to retrieve information from a database. The person formulating the query is expected to understand the relevant rules for formulating the query, and to program the query according to the requirements. Examples of the database query language are the CODASYL database language, "network" databases, relational algebra, relational calculus, Datalog, SQL3, QUEL, XPointer, XPath and OQL.

A database server is a computer program that provides database services to other computer programs or computers, as defined by the client-server model. The term may also refer to a computer dedicated to running such a program. Database management systems frequently provide database server functionality, and some DBMS's (e.g., MySQL) rely exclusively on the client-server model for database access.