How do you declare a cursor variable?

To create a cursor variable, either declare a variable of the predefined type SYS_REFCURSOR or define a REF CURSOR type and then declare a variable of that type. You cannot use a cursor variable in a cursor FOR LOOP statement. You cannot declare a cursor variable in a package specification.

What is ref cursor in PL SQL?

A REF CURSOR is a PL/SQL data type whose value is the memory address of a query work area on the database. In essence, a REF CURSOR is a pointer or a handle to a result set on the database.

How can you make a cursor variable point to a query work area?

You can make a cursor variable (or parameter) point to a query work area in two ways:

1. OPEN the cursor variable FOR the query.
2. Assign to the cursor variable the value of an already OPEN ed host cursor variable or PL/SQL cursor variable.

How can we write cursor in procedure in PL SQL?

To work with cursors you must use the following SQL statements: DECLARE CURSOR. OPEN. FETCH….Cursors in SQL procedures

1. Declare a cursor that defines a result set.
2. Open the cursor to establish the result set.
3. Fetch the data into local variables as needed from the cursor, one row at a time.
4. Close the cursor when done.

Which statement is used to control a cursor variable?

You use three statements to control a cursor variable: OPEN – FOR , FETCH , and CLOSE . First, you OPEN a cursor variable FOR a multi-row query. Then, you FETCH rows from the result set. When all the rows are processed, you CLOSE the cursor variable.

How do you write a code of cursor and execute it?

There are four steps in using an Explicit Cursor.

1. DECLARE the cursor in the Declaration section.
2. OPEN the cursor in the Execution Section.
3. FETCH the data from the cursor into PL/SQL variables or records in the Execution Section.
4. CLOSE the cursor in the Execution Section before you end the PL/SQL Block.

How do I open parameter cursor in PL SQL?

PL/SQL Cursor with Parameters

1. CURSOR cursor_name (parameter_list) IS cursor_query;
2. OPEN cursor_name (value_list);

What is the difference between a PL SQL cursor and PL SQL ref cursor?

A cursor is really any SQL statement that runs DML (select, insert, update, delete) on your database. A ref cursor is a pointer to a result set. This is normally used to open a query on the database server, then leave it up to the client to fetch the result it needs.

What is bulk collection in Oracle PL SQL?

A bulk collect is a method of fetching data where the PL/SQL engine tells the SQL engine to collect many rows at once and place them in a collection. The SQL engine retrieves all the rows and loads them into the collection and switches back to the PL/SQL engine. All the rows are retrieved with only 2 context switches.

What is difference between PL SQL cursor and PL SQL ref cursor?

What is the difference between explicit cursor and cursor FOR loop?

Unlike an implicit cursor, you can reference an explicit cursor or cursor variable by its name. Therefore, an explicit cursor or cursor variable is called a named cursor. The cursor FOR LOOP statement lets you run a SELECT statement and then immediately loop through the rows of the result set.