Which term describes the condition where each foreign key has a corresponding value in the primary key table?

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Referential integrity is the term that describes the condition where each foreign key in a database has a corresponding and valid value in the primary key table. This concept is fundamental in relational databases as it ensures that relationships between tables are consistently maintained, preventing orphaned records and ensuring that the foreign key fields only refer to existing entities in the referenced table.

By enforcing referential integrity, a database ensures that any foreign key value must match an existing primary key value in its respective table. This safeguards the relationships between tables and maintains the logical coherence of the database structure.

While data integrity refers to the overall accuracy and consistency of data stored in the database, and entity integrity focuses on ensuring that primary keys are unique and not null, referential integrity specifically deals with the valid linkage between the foreign key in one table and the primary key in another. Key integrity is not a standard term used in database normalization or integrity constraints and does not accurately reflect the relationship dynamics that referential integrity encompasses.

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