Before defines the second type of integrity constraint, viz., Entity Integrity, we should be well-known with the concept of NULL.

Mostly, NULL is intended as a basis for dealing with the trouble of missing information. This type of situation is frequently encountered in the actual world. For instance, historical records sometimes have entries such as "Date of birth unknown", or police records may contain the entry "Present whereabouts unknown." Therefore it is necessary to have some way of dealing with such concepts in database systems.

Therefore Codd proposed an approach to this issue that creates use of special markers known as NULL to show such missing information.

A given attribute in the relation may or may not be allowed to include NULL. However, can the Primary key or any of its components (in case of the primary key is a composite key) contain a NULL? To answer this Query an Entity Integrity Rule states: No component of the primary key of a relation is permitted to accept NULL. In different words, the definition of each attribute involved in the primary key of any basic relation have to explicitly or implicitly contain the specifications of NULL NOT ALLOWED.