Design Database For Social Network System In MySQL

MySQL

By bhagwatchouhan

26 April, 2020

This tutorial provides the complete steps to design a database schema of the Social Network System to manage the users, friends, followers, groups, and messages.

The Entity Relationship Diagram or visual database design is shown below.

Social Network System Database

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Social Network System Database

The very first step is to create the Social Network System Database. It can be created using the query as shown below.

CREATE SCHEMA `sns` DEFAULT CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;

I have used the character set utf8mb4 to support a wide range of characters.

User Table

In this section, we will design the User Table to store user information. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the User Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the user.
First Name	The first name of the user.
Middle Name	The middle name of the user.
Last Name	The last name of the user.
Mobile	The mobile number of the user. It can be used for login and registration purposes.
Email	The email of the user. It can be used for login and registration purposes.
Password Hash	The password hash generated by the appropriate algorithm. We must avoid storing plain or encrypted passwords.
Registered At	This column can be used to calculate the life of the user with the application.
Last Login	It can be used to identify the last login of the user.
Intro	The brief introduction of the User.
Profile	User details.

The User Table with the appropriate constraints is shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`user` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `firstName` VARCHAR(50) NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `middleName` VARCHAR(50) NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `lastName` VARCHAR(50) NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `username` VARCHAR(50) NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `mobile` VARCHAR(15) NULL,
  `email` VARCHAR(50) NULL,
  `passwordHash` VARCHAR(32) NOT NULL,
  `registeredAt` DATETIME NOT NULL,
  `lastLogin` DATETIME NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `intro` TINYTEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `profile` TEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  UNIQUE INDEX `uq_username` (`username` ASC),
  UNIQUE INDEX `uq_mobile` (`mobile` ASC),
  UNIQUE INDEX `uq_email` (`email` ASC) );

User Friend Table

In this section, we will design the User Friend Table to store the user friends. The friend status can be used to track the friendship status and type can be used to specify the type of friendship. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the User Friend Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the friendship.
Source Id	The user id to identify the user who initiated the friendship.
Target Id	The user id of the friend.
Type	The type to classify friends. It can be School, College, or Acquaintance.
Status	The status can be New, Rejected, or Active.
Created At	It stores the date and time at which the friend request was initiated.
Updated At	It stores the date and time at which the friend request was updated.
Notes	It stores the notes specific to the friendship.

The User Friend Table with the appropriate constraints is shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`user_friend` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `sourceId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `targetId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `type` SMALLINT NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
  `status` SMALLINT NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
  `createdAt` DATETIME NOT NULL,
  `updatedAt` DATETIME NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `notes` TEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  INDEX `idx_friend_source` (`sourceId` ASC),
  CONSTRAINT `fk_friend_source`
    FOREIGN KEY (`sourceId`)
    REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
    ON DELETE NO ACTION
    ON UPDATE NO ACTION);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`user_friend` 
ADD INDEX `idx_friend_target` (`targetId` ASC);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`user_friend` 
ADD CONSTRAINT `fk_friend_target`
  FOREIGN KEY (`targetId`)
  REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
  ON DELETE NO ACTION
  ON UPDATE NO ACTION;

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`user_friend` ADD UNIQUE `uq_friend`(`sourceId`, `targetId`);

User Follower Table

In this section, we will design the User Follower Table to store the user followers. The follower type can be used to specify the type of follower among Like, Dislike, or Follow. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the User Follower Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the follower.
Source Id	The user id to identify the follower user.
Target Id	The user id to identify the following user.
Type	The type to classify followers. It can be Like, Dislike, or Follow.
Created At	It stores the date and time at which the follower was created.
Updated At	It stores the date and time at which the follower was updated.

The User Follower Table with the appropriate constraints is shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`user_follower` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `sourceId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `targetId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `type` SMALLINT NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
  `createdAt` DATETIME NOT NULL,
  `updatedAt` DATETIME NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  INDEX `idx_ufollower_source` (`sourceId` ASC),
  CONSTRAINT `fk_ufollower_source`
    FOREIGN KEY (`sourceId`)
    REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
    ON DELETE NO ACTION
    ON UPDATE NO ACTION);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`user_follower` 
ADD INDEX `idx_ufollower_target` (`targetId` ASC);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`user_follower` 
ADD CONSTRAINT `fk_ufollower_target`
  FOREIGN KEY (`targetId`)
  REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
  ON DELETE NO ACTION
  ON UPDATE NO ACTION;

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`user_follower` ADD UNIQUE `uq_ufollower`(`sourceId`, `targetId`, `type`);

User Message Table

In this section, we will design the User Message Table to store the user chat messages. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the User Message Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the message.
Source Id	The user id to identify the sender.
Target Id	The user id to identify the receiver.
Message	The message body.
Created At	It stores the date and time at which the message was created.
Updated At	It stores the date and time at which the message was updated.

The User Message Table with the appropriate constraints is shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`user_message` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `sourceId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `targetId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `message` TINYTEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `createdAt` DATETIME NOT NULL,
  `updatedAt` DATETIME NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  INDEX `idx_umessage_source` (`sourceId` ASC),
  CONSTRAINT `fk_umessage_source`
    FOREIGN KEY (`sourceId`)
    REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
    ON DELETE NO ACTION
    ON UPDATE NO ACTION);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`user_message` 
ADD INDEX `idx_umessage_target` (`targetId` ASC);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`user_message` 
ADD CONSTRAINT `fk_umessage_target`
  FOREIGN KEY (`targetId`)
  REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
  ON DELETE NO ACTION
  ON UPDATE NO ACTION;

User Post Table

In this section, we will design the User Post Table to store the user posts. The sender might be required to allow the other users with appropriate permissions to post on the user wall. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the User Post Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the post.
User Id	The user id to identify the corresponding user.
Sender Id	The sender id to identify the corresponding sender.
Message	The message body.
Created At	It stores the date and time at which the post was created.
Updated At	It stores the date and time at which the post was updated.

The User Post Table with the appropriate constraints is shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`user_post` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `userId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `senderId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `message` TINYTEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `createdAt` DATETIME NOT NULL,
  `updatedAt` DATETIME NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  INDEX `idx_upost_user` (`userId` ASC),
  CONSTRAINT `fk_upost_user`
    FOREIGN KEY (`userId`)
    REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
    ON DELETE NO ACTION
    ON UPDATE NO ACTION);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`user_post` 
ADD INDEX `idx_upost_sender` (`senderId` ASC);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`user_post` 
ADD CONSTRAINT `fk_upost_sender`
  FOREIGN KEY (`senderId`)
  REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
  ON DELETE NO ACTION
  ON UPDATE NO ACTION;

Group Table

In this section, we will design the Group Table to store the group data. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the Group Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the group.
Created By	The user id to identify the user who registered the group.
Updated By	The user id to identify the user who updated the group.
Title	The group title.
Meta Title	The meta title to be used for browser title and SEO purposes.
Slug	The slug to form the unique URL.
Summary	The summary to mention the key highlights.
Status	The status of the group can be New, Approved, Active, or Blocked.
Created At	It stores the date and time at which the group is created.
Updated At	It stores the date and time at which the group is updated.
Profile	The column used to store the profile details of the group.
Content	The column used to store the additional details of the group.

It uses the column status to track the status of the group. The status can be either New, Approved, Active, or Blocked. The Group Table with the appropriate constraints is as shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`group` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `createdBy` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `updatedBy` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `title` VARCHAR(75) NOT NULL,
  `metaTitle` VARCHAR(100) NULL,
  `slug` VARCHAR(100) NOT NULL,
  `summary` TINYTEXT NULL,
  `status` SMALLINT NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
  `createdAt` DATETIME NOT NULL,
  `updatedAt` DATETIME NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `profile` TEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `content` TEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  UNIQUE INDEX `uq_slug` (`slug` ASC),
  INDEX `idx_group_creator` (`createdBy` ASC),
  CONSTRAINT `fk_group_creator`
    FOREIGN KEY (`createdBy`)
    REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
    ON DELETE NO ACTION
    ON UPDATE NO ACTION);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group` 
ADD INDEX `idx_group_modifier` (`updatedBy` ASC);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group` 
ADD CONSTRAINT `fk_group_modifier`
  FOREIGN KEY (`updatedBy`)
  REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
  ON DELETE NO ACTION
  ON UPDATE NO ACTION;

Group Meta

The Group Meta Table can be used to store additional information about groups including the group banner URL etc. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the Group Meta Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the group meta.
Group Id	The group id to identify the parent group.
Key	The key identifying the meta.
Content	The column used to store the group's metadata.

The Group Meta Table with the appropriate constraints is as shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`group_meta` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `groupId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `key` VARCHAR(50) NOT NULL,
  `content` TEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  INDEX `idx_meta_group` (`groupId` ASC),
  UNIQUE INDEX `uq_meta_group` (`groupId` ASC, `key` ASC),
  CONSTRAINT `fk_meta_group`
    FOREIGN KEY (`groupId`)
    REFERENCES `sns`.`group` (`id`)
    ON DELETE NO ACTION
    ON UPDATE NO ACTION)
ENGINE = InnoDB;

Group Member Table

In this section, we will design the Group Member Table to store the group members. The member status can be used to track the membership status and member role can be used to identify the member privileges. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the Group Member Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the membership.
Group Id	The group id to identify the corresponding group.
User Id	The user id to identify the corresponding user.
Role Id	The role to check user privileges.
Status	The status can be New, Rejected, Active, or Blocked.
Created At	It stores the date and time at which the member request was initiated.
Updated At	It stores the date and time at which the member was updated.
Notes	It stores the notes specific to the membership.

The Group Member Table with the appropriate constraints is shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`group_member` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `groupId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `userId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `type` SMALLINT NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
  `status` SMALLINT NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
  `createdAt` DATETIME NOT NULL,
  `updatedAt` DATETIME NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `notes` TEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  INDEX `idx_member_group` (`groupId` ASC),
  CONSTRAINT `fk_member_group`
    FOREIGN KEY (`groupId`)
    REFERENCES `sns`.`group` (`id`)
    ON DELETE NO ACTION
    ON UPDATE NO ACTION);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group_member` 
ADD INDEX `idx_member_user` (`userId` ASC);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group_member` 
ADD CONSTRAINT `fk_member_user`
  FOREIGN KEY (`userId`)
  REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
  ON DELETE NO ACTION
  ON UPDATE NO ACTION;
ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group_member` ADD UNIQUE `uq_friend`(`groupId`, `userId`);

Group Follower Table

In this section, we will design the Group Follower Table to store the group followers. The follower type can be Like, Dislike, or Follow. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the Group Follower Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the follower.
Group Id	The group id to identify the corresponding group.
User Id	The user id to identify the corresponding user.
Type	The follower type can be Like, Dislike, or Follow.
Created At	It stores the date and time at which the follower was created.
Updated At	It stores the date and time at which the follower was updated.

The Group Follower Table with the appropriate constraints is shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`group_follower` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `groupId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `userId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `type` SMALLINT NOT NULL DEFAULT 0,
  `createdAt` DATETIME NOT NULL,
  `updatedAt` DATETIME NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  INDEX `idx_gfollower_group` (`groupId` ASC),
  CONSTRAINT `fk_gfollower_group`
    FOREIGN KEY (`groupId`)
    REFERENCES `sns`.`group` (`id`)
    ON DELETE NO ACTION
    ON UPDATE NO ACTION);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group_follower` 
ADD INDEX `idx_gfollower_user` (`userId` ASC);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group_follower` 
ADD CONSTRAINT `fk_gfollower_user`
  FOREIGN KEY (`userId`)
  REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
  ON DELETE NO ACTION
  ON UPDATE NO ACTION;

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group_follower` ADD UNIQUE `uq_friend`(`groupId`, `userId`, `type`);

Group Message Table

In this section, we will design the Group Message Table to store the group chat messages. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the Group Message Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the message.
Group Id	The group id to identify the corresponding group.
User Id	The user id to identify the corresponding user.
Message	The message body.
Created At	It stores the date and time at which the message was created.
Updated At	It stores the date and time at which the message was updated.

The Group Message Table with the appropriate constraints is shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`group_message` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `groupId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `userId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `message` TINYTEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `createdAt` DATETIME NOT NULL,
  `updatedAt` DATETIME NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  INDEX `idx_gmessage_group` (`groupId` ASC),
  CONSTRAINT `fk_gmessage_group`
    FOREIGN KEY (`groupId`)
    REFERENCES `sns`.`group` (`id`)
    ON DELETE NO ACTION
    ON UPDATE NO ACTION);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group_message` 
ADD INDEX `idx_gmessage_user` (`userId` ASC);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group_message` 
ADD CONSTRAINT `fk_gmessage_user`
  FOREIGN KEY (`userId`)
  REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
  ON DELETE NO ACTION
  ON UPDATE NO ACTION;

Group Post Table

In this section, we will design the Group Post Table to store the group posts. The members having the appropriate role can post to the group. Below mentioned is the description of all the columns of the Group Post Table.

Id	The unique id to identify the post.
Group Id	The group id to identify the corresponding group.
User Id	The user id to identify the corresponding user.
Message	The message body.
Created At	It stores the date and time at which the post was created.
Updated At	It stores the date and time at which the post was updated.

The Group Post Table with the appropriate constraints is shown below.

CREATE TABLE `sns`.`group_post` (
  `id` BIGINT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
  `groupId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `userId` BIGINT NOT NULL,
  `message` TINYTEXT NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  `createdAt` DATETIME NOT NULL,
  `updatedAt` DATETIME NULL DEFAULT NULL,
  PRIMARY KEY (`id`),
  INDEX `idx_gpost_group` (`groupId` ASC),
  CONSTRAINT `fk_gpost_group`
    FOREIGN KEY (`groupId`)
    REFERENCES `sns`.`group` (`id`)
    ON DELETE NO ACTION
    ON UPDATE NO ACTION);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group_post` 
ADD INDEX `idx_gpost_user` (`userId` ASC);

ALTER TABLE `sns`.`group_post` 
ADD CONSTRAINT `fk_gpost_user`
  FOREIGN KEY (`userId`)
  REFERENCES `sns`.`user` (`id`)
  ON DELETE NO ACTION
  ON UPDATE NO ACTION;

Summary

In this tutorial, we have discussed the database design of a Social Network System to manage the users, friends, followers, messages, and groups.

You may submit your comments to join the discussion. You may also be interested in designing the database of the Blog, Shopping Cart, and Poll & Survey applications. The complete database schema is also available on GitHub.

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Guide To Design Database For Social Network System In MySQL

Social Network System Database

User Table

User Friend Table

User Follower Table

User Message Table

User Post Table

Group Table

Group Meta

Group Member Table

Group Follower Table

Group Message Table

Group Post Table

Summary

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Guide To Design Database For Social Network System In MySQL

Social Network System Database

User Table

User Friend Table

User Follower Table

User Message Table

User Post Table

Group Table

Group Meta

Group Member Table

Group Follower Table

Group Message Table

Group Post Table

Summary

Share this blog:

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