Cursors

This is a template for cursor boilerplate, if you must. variableList is a list of variables, assumed already declared.

DECLARE _myCursor CURSOR LOCAL FOR
  SELECT statement -- query to return the results you want to step through
 
-- open the cursor and get the first row
OPEN _myCursor 
FETCH NEXT FROM _myCursor INTO variableList
 
WHILE @@FETCH_STATUS = 0 -- i.e. while the last FETCH NEXT returned a row
BEGIN
 
  /*
   * Do some work here, presumably 
   * using the values in variableList.
   */
 
  -- get the next row
  nextRow: -- label useful here for CONTINUE effect
    FETCH NEXT FROM _myCursor INTO variableList
END
 
-- close and 'undeclare' the cursor
CLOSE _myCursor 
DEALLOCATE _myCursor

The nextrow label allows you to use GOTO nextRow in the WHILE body to achieve a CONTINUE effect without omitting to FETCH NEXT.

Uncommented

DECLARE _myCursor CURSOR LOCAL FOR
  SELECT statement
 
OPEN _myCursor 
FETCH NEXT FROM _myCursor INTO variableList
 
WHILE @@FETCH_STATUS = 0
BEGIN
 
 
 
  FETCH NEXT FROM _myCursor INTO variableList
 
END
 
CLOSE _myCursor 
DEALLOCATE _myCursor

tsql, development