Recognises content held outside the database by reference
A column holding a file path or URL to content the database does not control. Deleting the row leaves the file, deleting the file leaves the row, a rollback restores one and not the other, and backups of the two are not taken at the same moment. A deletion anomaly across two stores.
Can AI do this?
Not tested yet
No AI benchmark covers this knobit yet. New results are announced in the Can AI Do the Job? newsletter.
What it looks like in practice
Expected result: The column and the consistency the database cannot guarantee
How it is assessed: Flags the deficient case and passes the acceptable one. Deficient: loan_document.file_path = '\\fs01\loans\2026\...\agreement.pdf'; the share is reorganised and the paths point nowhere Acceptable: An object-store key whose lifecycle is tied to the row through one service, a DQ rule that every key resolves, and a statement of which store is the system of record; or a BLOB column where the volume allows it
Also known as: Data held outside the database by reference (physical model)
Related knobits
Builds on
All 40 knobits of Design the physical data model.
Source: Review checklist 06-physical, row 9; Karwin, Phantom Files