sp_describe_cursor_tables (Transact-SQL)
Applies to: 
SQL Server
Reports the objects or base tables referenced by a server cursor.
Transact-SQL syntax conventions
Syntax
sp_describe_cursor_tables
[ @cursor_return = ] cursor_return OUTPUT
, [ @cursor_source = ] { N'local' | N'global' | N'*cursor_source*' }
, [ @cursor_identity = ] N'cursor_identity'
[ ; ]
Arguments
[ @cursor_return = ] cursor_return OUTPUT
The name of a declared cursor variable to receive the cursor output. @cursor_return is an OUTPUT cursor, with no default, and must not be associated with any cursors at the time sp_describe_cursor_tables is called. The cursor returned is a scrollable, dynamic, read-only cursor.
[ @cursor_source = ] { N'local' | N'global' | N'cursor_source' }
Specifies whether the cursor being reported on is specified by using the name of a local cursor, a global cursor, or a cursor variable. @cursor_source is nvarchar(30), with no default.
[ @cursor_identity = ] N'cursor_identity'
When @cursor_source is local, @cursor_identity is the name of a cursor created by a DECLARE CURSOR statement either having the LOCAL keyword, or that defaulted to LOCAL.
When @cursor_source is global, @cursor_identity is the name of a cursor created by a DECLARE CURSOR statement either having the GLOBAL keyword, or that defaulted to GLOBAL. @cursor_identity can also be the name of an API server cursor opened by an ODBC application that then named the cursor by calling SQLSetCursorName.
When @cursor_source is variable, @cursor_identity is the name of a cursor variable associated with an open cursor.
@cursor_identity is nvarchar(128), with no default.
Return code values
None.
Cursors returned
sp_describe_cursor_tables encapsulates its report as a Transact-SQL cursor output parameter. This enables Transact-SQL batches, stored procedures, and triggers to work with the output one row at a time. This also means that the procedure can't be called directly from API functions. The cursor output parameter must be bound to a program variable, but the APIs don't support bind cursor parameters or variables.
The following table shows the format of the cursor that is returned by sp_describe_cursor_tables.
| Column name | Data type | Description |
|---|---|---|
table_owner |
sysname | User ID of the table owner. |
table_name |
sysname | Name of the object or base table. In SQL Server, server cursors always return the user-specified object, not the base tables. |
optimizer_hint |
smallint | Bitmap that is made up of one or more of the following options: 1 = Row-level locking ( ROWLOCK)4 = Page-level locking ( PAGELOCK)8 = Table lock ( TABLOCK)16 = Exclusive table lock ( TABLOCKX)32 = Update lock ( UPDLOCK)64 = No lock ( NOLOCK)128 = Fast first-row option ( FASTFIRST)4096 = Read repeatable semantic when used with DECLARE CURSOR (HOLDLOCK)When multiple options are supplied, the system uses the most restrictive. However, sp_describe_cursor_tables shows the flags that are specified in the query. |
lock_type |
smallint | Scroll-lock type requested either explicitly or implicitly for each base table that underlies this cursor. The value can be one of the following options: 0 = None 1 = Shared 3 = Update |
server_name |
sysname, nullable | Name of the linked server that the table resides on. NULL when OPENQUERY or OPENROWSET are used. |
objectid |
int | Object ID of the table. 0 when OPENQUERY or OPENROWSET are used. |
dbid |
int | ID of the database that the table resides in. 0 when OPENQUERY or OPENROWSET are used. |
dbname |
sysname, nullable | Name of the database that the table resides in. NULL when OPENQUERY or OPENROWSET are used. |
Remarks
sp_describe_cursor_tables describes the base tables referenced by a server cursor. For a description of the attributes of the result set returned by the cursor, use sp_describe_cursor_columns. For a description of the global characteristics of the cursor, such as its scrollability and updatability, use sp_describe_cursor. To obtain a report of the Transact-SQL server cursors that are visible on the connection, use sp_cursor_list.
Permissions
Requires membership in the public role.
Examples
The following example opens a global cursor and uses sp_describe_cursor_tables to report on the tables referenced by the cursor.
USE AdventureWorks2022;
GO
-- Declare and open a global cursor.
DECLARE abc CURSOR KEYSET FOR
SELECT LastName
FROM Person.Person
WHERE LastName LIKE 'S%';
OPEN abc;
GO
-- Declare a cursor variable to hold the cursor output variable
-- from sp_describe_cursor_tables.
DECLARE @Report CURSOR;
-- Execute sp_describe_cursor_tables into the cursor variable.
EXEC master.dbo.sp_describe_cursor_tables
@cursor_return = @Report OUTPUT,
@cursor_source = N'global',
@cursor_identity = N'abc';
-- Fetch all the rows from the sp_describe_cursor_tables output cursor.
FETCH NEXT from @Report;
WHILE (@@FETCH_STATUS <> -1)
BEGIN
FETCH NEXT from @Report;
END
-- Close and deallocate the cursor from sp_describe_cursor_tables.
CLOSE @Report;
DEALLOCATE @Report;
GO
-- Close and deallocate the original cursor.
CLOSE abc;
DEALLOCATE abc;
GO