What is Cursor in PL SQL?

Question

What is Cursor in PL SQL?

Answer 1

Cursor in PL SQL is a pointer to the memory area of Oracle called context area. PL/SQL allows you to control the context area using a cursor. It holds one or more rows that are returned by any SQL statement. The row or set of rows helped by the cursor is the active set. PL/SQL cursors are of two types:

• Implicit Cursor: They are created automatically when there is an execution of the SQL statement and no explicit cursor is available for it. You cannot control implicit cursor along with the information it contains. Whenever you execute a DML statement like INSERT, DELETE, and UPDATE, an implicit cursor is automatically associated with that statement.
• Explicit Cursor: They are user-defined cursors that provide you more control with respect to the context area. You should define the explicit cursor in the declaration section of the block of PL/SQL code. It is created on a PL/SQL SELECT statement that returns multiple rows.

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