Exporting Zim Table Definitions

If you have developed an application in Zim and want to maintain a portion of the data in an SQL database, the definitions of those objects must be maintained in the SQL database as well as in Zim. Zim’s SQL definition interface translates Zim definitions into equivalent definitions in the SQL server environment. Refer to Importing and Exporting SQL Definitions topics. An EntitySet in the E-R model maps directly to a table in the relational model. Thus a Zim EntitySet maps to an SQL table with the same field (column) structure. Relationships, however, are explicitly represented in the E-R model and implicitly in the relational model. A Zim relationship with no fields is not represented in a relational database. Zim generates SQL join statements when the relationship is referenced. If a relationship is defined to own fields (a data relationship), then the relationship maps to a table in the SQL server environment with the same field (column) structure. The associated relationship condition is handled in the same manner as for relationships without fields – that is, it contributes to SQL join conditions in the generated SQL statement(s).