What are cascading updates in relational databases designed to do?

Cascading updates in relational databases are specifically designed to maintain data integrity when changes are made to primary keys. When a primary key in a parent table is updated, cascading updates automatically propagate this change to the corresponding foreign key records in related child tables. This ensures that the relationship between tables remains consistent, preventing issues such as orphaned records that would occur if foreign key values referenced outdated primary key values.

This mechanism is crucial in preserving referential integrity within the database, as it allows for seamless data management even as the primary keys are updated over time. By relying on cascading updates, database administrators can simplify maintenance and reduce the potential for errors that could arise from manually updating related records across multiple tables.