The physical database design is a refinement of the logical design. In this phase, you examine how the user will access the database. During this phase, ask yourself:
What data will I commonly use?
Which columns in the table should I index based on data access?
Where should I build in flexibility and allow for growth?
Should I denormalize the database to improve performance?
At this stage you might denormalize the database to meet performance requirements.
Once you determine the physical design of your database, you must determine how to map the database to your hardware. Maintaining the physical database is the primary responsibility of a database administrator. The OpenEdge RDBMS discusses the physical storage of the OpenEdge database.
What data will I commonly use?