Implementing XML Schema inside a relational database

XML Schema has emerged as a promising data model that unites structured and unstructured content. The Oracle database has led the commercial database community in integrating support for XML Schema inside an enterprise data server. The foundation for this was laid with the absorption of the SQL:1999 'objectrelational' type system in the database, which provided the necessary hierarchical abstractions necessary for representing XML. We look at how XML Schemas have been implemented in Oracle XML DB, what optimizations are available to cover the diverse use-cases for schema-based XML storage and retrieval, and how this technology contributes to richer data management.