SPI_cursor_open

Name

SPI_cursor_open -- set up a cursor using a plan created with SPI_prepare

Synopsis

Portal SPI_cursor_open(const char * name, void * plan, Datum * values, const char * nulls)

Description

SPI_cursor_open sets up a cursor (internally, a portal) that will execute a plan prepared by SPI_prepare.

Using a cursor instead of executing the plan directly has two benefits. First, the result rows can be retrieved a few at a time, avoiding memory overrun for queries that return many rows. Second, a portal can outlive the current procedure (it can, in fact, live to the end of the current transaction). Returning the portal name to the procedure's caller provides a way of returning a row set as result.

Arguments

const char * name

name for portal, or NULL to let the system select a name

void * plan

execution plan (returned by SPI_prepare)

Datum * values

actual parameter values

const char *nulls

An array describing which parameters are null values. n indicates a null value (entry in values will be ignored); a space indicates a nonnull value (entry in values is valid). If nulls is NULL then SPI_cursor_open assumes that no parameters are null.

Return Value

pointer to portal containing the cursor, or NULL on error