The Data Lifecycle
- The data life cycle refers to the stages that data goes through from its creation to its destruction.
- The data life cycle has five stages:
- Creation
- Storage
- Usage
- Preservation
- Destruction
Stage 1: Data creation
- The first stage of the data life cycle is the creation of data.
- New data may be created through manual data entry or collected automatically through the use of different technologies.
- Data creation might happen manually, for example, with an employee of a company inputting needed data into a system.
- It might also occur automatically, for example, when an algorithm automatically stores calculations needed for further iterations or runs.
Stage 2: Data Storage
- Once the data has been created, it needs to be stored persistently.
- All stored data should be kept safe with appropriate security measures.
Reflect on knowledge about the components of computers (topic 3.3B of this textbook, if you've studied it) and identify three components that may be used to store data.
Stage 3: Usage
- Using the data for necessary operations or modifying it so that it may satisfy set conditions.
- Data may be used raw or with modifications, with or without special digital tools for its usage.
An example of data usage would be using and modifying text files. Data may be read and used raw, or modified with tools such as word processors.
Stage 4: Preservation
- Saving the data securely to ensure its maintenance.
- Preservation is important for reuse at a later time.
Stage 5: Destruction
- Removing the data to save up memory storage space, or to comply with legal regulations.
- There are two types of data destruction:
- Deletion: Moving the data to a separate partition memory location dedicated to deleted data, such as the Recycle Bin. This data may be retrieved as long as there is enough storage space.
- Erasure: Total destruction of data where the erased data may not be retrieved.
