What does an Entity-Relationship Diagram (ERD) visually represent?

An Entity-Relationship Diagram (ERD) is a powerful visual tool used in data modeling to illustrate the various data entities within a system and the relationships that exist between them. It provides a clear representation of how different entities—such as tables or objects—interact with one another in a structured way. This helps in understanding the database structure and is fundamental during the design phase of database creation.

In an ERD, entities are typically depicted as rectangles, while relationships are shown as lines connecting the rectangles. Attributes of the entities may also be included, giving further insight into the data characteristics. By utilizing an ERD, data managers and designers can effectively communicate the framework of the data model to stakeholders, ensuring everyone understands how data is organized and interrelated.

The other options address different aspects of data management. For example, data storage systems focus on the hardware and software used for data storage rather than its structure. Data processing workflows pertain to the sequence of operations performed on data rather than its entity relationships. Data integrity rules refer to the constraints applied to data to ensure its accuracy and consistency, rather than the representation of entities and their relationships. Therefore, the visual representation of data entities and their relationships is the essence of what an ERD is designed to