Consider the following example: the database administrator needs to create a Finance and Administration (F&A) department database with User Jones as a supervisory user, that is, as database administrator within the F&A department.
The database administrator first creates F&A Database and then allocates space from it to User Jones to act as the F&A database administrator. The database administrator also allocates space from F&A to Jones for his personal use and for creating a Personnel Database, as well as other databases and other user space allocations. The following figure illustrates the hierarchy implicit in this relationship:
F&A Database owns Personnel Database and all the other department databases.
F&A Database also owns User Jones and all other users within the department.
Because User DBC ultimately owns all databases and users, it is the final owner of all the databases and user space belonging to the organization.
This hierarchical ownership structure provides an owner of a database or user space with complete control over the security of owned data. An owner can archive the database or control access to it by granting or revoking privileges on it.