A database cursor is an object that enables traversal over the rows of a result set. It allows you to process individual row returned by a query. SQL Server cursor life cycle. These are steps for using a cursor: First, declare a cursor. DECLARE cursor_name CURSOR FOR select_statement; Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Nov 22, 2024 · DECLARE CURSOR defines the attributes of a Transact-SQL server cursor, such as its scrolling behavior and the query used to build the result set on which the cursor operates. The OPEN statement populates the result set, and FETCH returns a row from the result set.

Apr 18, 2025 · SQL cursors are a powerful tool for row-by-row processing, allowing for detailed and complex operations that cannot be achieved through set-based SQL commands alone. They are especially useful for iterative tasks , handling hierarchical data , …

Apr 22, 2025 · A SQL Server cursor is a set of T-SQL logic that loops over a predetermined number of rows one at a time. The purpose of the cursor may be to update one row at a time or perform an administrative process, such as SQL Server database backups, in a …

That's essentially what a cursor does in SQL – it allows you to process rows from a result set one at a time, rather than all at once. In more technical terms, a cursor is a database object that allows you to traverse through the rows of a result set, one row at a time.

SQL Cursors - Learn about SQL cursors, their types, usage, and how to manipulate data in a database with SQL. Comprehensive tutorial on cursor management.

Sep 25, 2018 · Cursors are a mechanism to explicitly enumerate through the rows of a result set, rather than retrieving it as such.

Feb 5, 2020 · Each of the examples does not include the optional cursor type arguments in the declaration, such as whether the cursor is local, global, forward only, static and so on. The examples will focus on the different ways it can be written in SQL Server and some additional description of the structure.

Jun 4, 2014 · So this article takes a step back and provides an explanation as to what SQL Server cursors can be used for as well as a basic example that you can run for yourself to test. SQL Server is a relational database management system (RDBMS), and T-SQL is a transactional programming language.

Apr 23, 2025 · A cursor in SQL Server is implemented using Transact-SQL (T-SQL) and follows the same lifecycle as described above. SQL Server provides several types of cursors, each with different characteristics and use cases. SQL Server Cursor Example. A cursor in SQL Server is used to process query results row by row, which is useful when you need to apply logic or operations to each record individually.