Foreign Key Relationship in Rails

Question

I am a beginner in Rails and I read that the Rails enforces the foreign key relationships at the model level and also at the database level in the migration file, while creating the table. Is it really necessary and what kind of advantage does it provide

Answer 1

I highly recommend creating foriegn keys, you can look at my answer here.

Short answer: can increase performance due to indexes created by foreign keys. Reduces invalid data, which can lead to cleaner code.

Answer 2

It is not strictly required, however it is a good idea both from the perspective of documenting that the relationship exists, and to help to maintain database integrity and bring business logic errors to light more quickly. It is also generally a good idea to follow rails conventions rather than swim against the tide, unless you have a very compelling reason to do so.