What can I use instead of cursor in SQL Server?

What can I use instead of cursor in SQL Server?

SQL Server Alternatives Cursor

  • Using Cursor.
  • Using Table Variable.
  • Using Temporary Table.

Why cursor is not recommended in SQL?

Cursors could be used in some applications for serialized operations as shown in example above, but generally they should be avoided because they bring a negative impact on performance, especially when operating on a large sets of data.

Is while loop better than cursor?

Depending on the type of cursor you request, you can even fetch records that you’ve previously fetched. Because a cursor is an actual object inside the database engine, there is a little overhead involved in creating the cursor and destroying it.

Which is better cursor or temp table?

So if you can use set-based operations to fill and use your temporary tables, I would prefer that method over cursors every time. Temp tables can be fine or bad depending on the data amount and what you are doing with them. They are not generally a replacement for a cursor.

What are the different types of cursor in SQL server?

SQL Server supports three cursor implementations.

  • Transact-SQL cursors. Transact-SQL cursors are based on the DECLARE CURSOR syntax and used mainly in Transact-SQL scripts, stored procedures, and triggers.
  • Application programming interface (API) server cursors.
  • Client cursors.
  • Forward-only.
  • Static.
  • Keyset.
  • Dynamic.

What is difference between cursor and while loop in SQL?

Loop and cursor can be utilized in a circumstance to deal with row-based processing in T-SQL. While SQL While loop is quicker than a cursor, reason found that cursor is defined by DECLARE CURSOR. Every emphasis of the loop will be executed inside system memory and consuming required server assets.

How do you optimize a cursor in SQL?

Tips for using SQL Server 2016 cursors

  1. Reduce the number of rows to process in the cursor.
  2. Do not forget to close SQL Server 2016 cursor when its result set is not needed.
  3. Try to avoid using insensitive, static and keyset cursors, whenever possible.
  4. Use FAST_FORWARD cursors, whenever possible.

What are the different types of cursor in SQL Server?

Is it good to use cursor in SQL?

SQL Cursors are fine as long as you use the correct options: INSENSITIVE will make a temporary copy of your result set (saving you from having to do this yourself for your pseudo-cursor). READ_ONLY will make sure no locks are held on the underlying result set.

What is magic tables in SQL Server?

There are Magic Tables (virtual tables) in SQL Server that hold the temporal information of recently inserted and recently deleted data in the virtual table. A magic table can be utilized in INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE activity with the table in a trigger, which is the common understanding of people.

What is the difference between #temp and ## temp in SQL?

#temp tables are available ONLY to the session that created it and are dropped when the session is closed. ##temp tables (global) are available to ALL sessions, but are still dropped when the session that created it is closed and all other references to them are closed.

What is SQL cursor example?

A SQL Server cursor is a set of T-SQL logic to loop over a predetermined number of rows one at a time. The purpose for the cursor may be to update one row at a time or perform an administrative process such as SQL Server database backups in a sequential manner.

Which is the best way to replace cursors in SQL?

Temporary tables have been in use for a long time and provide a n excellent way to replace cursors for large data sets. J ust like table variables, temporary tables can hold the result set so that we can perform the necessary operations by processing it with an iterating algorithm such as a ‘while’ loop.

How to create a cursor to rename a table?

Let’s create a SQL cursor to rename all tables in the sample database by adding ‘_Backup’ to each table’s name while also ensuring that table s containing ‘_Backup’ in their name will not be renamed again by runn ing the following code: N ow, Press F5 in SSMS (SQL Server Management Studio) to run the script and see the results:

How are temporary tables used to replace cursors?