What does the principle of atomicity in data integrity require?

The principle of atomicity in data integrity is a foundational concept in database management and transaction processing. It requires that a transaction is treated as a single indivisible unit of work. This means that a transaction must be completed in its entirety; if any part of the transaction fails, the entire transaction is aborted, and none of the changes made during that transaction are saved to the database. This guarantees that either all changes are reflected in the database, or none are, thus ensuring data integrity and preventing partial updates that could lead to inconsistencies.

In practical terms, when atomicity is upheld, it protects the database from errors and ensures that transactions maintain their integrity even in the event of failures such as power outages or system crashes. The concept is typically part of the broader ACID properties (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability) that underpin reliable database transactions. Thus, the requirement that a transaction must be completed in its entirety or not at all is essential to maintaining the accuracy and reliability of data within a database system.