Databases are one of the directions of the IT industry, within the framework of which technologies for reliable storage of large amounts of information, its effective search and retrieval at the request of consumers are traditionally considered. The material presented in the textbook covers the main phases of the database life cycle: the main concepts, problems and elements of database theory are discussed sequentially, the processes of their design, programming and management, as well as database administration technologies are considered in order to achieve high performance of data access and ensure the required level of information security.