What is a database?
A database is the app's long-term memory — structured storage for records that survives restarts.
Difficulty 1/5
Mental model
Plain English
A database holds your tables of records. The backend talks to it. The frontend never touches it directly. Each table has a shape (schema). Each row has an id. Rows can point to each other (a task points to its wedding).
Analogy
A database is a filing cabinet with labeled drawers. Each drawer = table. Each folder = record. Each line on the folder = field.
Jessica's wedding portal
Tables: weddings, tasks, vendors, documents, teamMembers.
Agentify CRM
Tables: conversations, messages, contacts, agents, tenants.
Go deeper
Where saved data lives.
Common mistakes
- Letting two tables drift apart — adding a field to weddings but not updating the read code.
- Storing the same fact in two places.
AI-agent trap
Agents will sometimes create a new table when an existing one would work. Ask them to list current tables first.
Quick check
Which is true of a database?
Summary
A database is a server that stores records in tables. You query it ('give me all tasks for wedding 123') and you mutate it ('add a new task').
Confidence: