Quote Originally Posted by InLaNoche View Post
Reporting is half the battle. If it's difficult to enter the data, it's harder to sell this system. So the form for entering the data should generally be based on the switch selected. The 'inputter' should be able to select a switch and then see the ports it has (24, 48, 50, 52). I would prefer that it only shows a number of fields that equal the number of ports (I'm good with VBA and doing that, but more need the help with the DB architecture...) hopefully that gives enough background.

What every software project needs:

1) A skilled of a database designer to properly model the information into a normalized structure.

2) A skilled of a UX professional to design the user interface to model the workflow and business processes.

3) A skilled program to build the User Interface based on the designs of the other two.

Having a team of three people, one skilled in each area, sure makes software development easier.


Quote Originally Posted by InLaNoche View Post
Good points on getting the table design down first, though that ship has sailed. This is more than just a database as it interfaces with a floorplan visio diagram, and soo to also interface with switch/server rack diagrams. Ok,
The needs of other system/application should not any influence with your table design. You will build some "interface" that will pass the data to the other system/application in a format they can consume. Fo example: create an SQL Server view that presents the information in a vay the meets the needs of the Visio diagram.