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Designing databases
The first step in creating a relational database is to construct a data model, which is a precise, complete definition of the data you want to store. After you prepare your data model, you must implement it as a database and tables. To implement your data model, you first select a data type for each column and then you create a database and tables and populate the tables with data. You can also implement fragmentation strategies and control access to your data.
Designing and Implementing a Database
The Informix® Database Design and Implementation Guide provides information to help you design, implement, and manage your Informix databases. It includes data models that illustrate different approaches to database design and shows you how to use structured query language (SQL) to implement and manage your databases.
Basics of database design and implementation
Plan a database
Use ANSI-compliant databases
Determine if an existing database is ANSI-compliant

Designing databases
The first step in creating a relational database is to construct a data model, which is a precise, complete definition of the data you want to store. After you prepare your data model, you must implement it as a database and tables. To implement your data model, you first select a data type for each column and then you create a database and tables and populate the tables with data. You can also implement fragmentation strategies and control access to your data.
- Designing and Implementing a Database
  The Informix® Database Design and Implementation Guide provides information to help you design, implement, and manage your Informix databases. It includes data models that illustrate different approaches to database design and shows you how to use structured query language (SQL) to implement and manage your databases.

Determine if an existing database is ANSI-compliant

The following list describes two methods to determine whether a database is ANSI-compliant:

From the sysmaster database you can execute the following statement:
```
SELECT name,is_ansi FROM sysmaster:sysdatabases
```
The query returns the value 1 for ANSI-compliant databases and 0 for non-ANSI-compliant databases for each database on your database server.
If you are using an SQL API such as Informix® ESQL/C, you can test the SQL Communications Area (SQLCA). Specifically, the third element in the SQLCAWARN structure contains a W immediately after you open an ANSI-compliant database with the DATABASE or CONNECT statement. For information about SQLCA, see the Informix® Guide to SQL: Tutorial or your SQL API manual.