SQL PL logic elements in the SQL-procedure body

Sequential execution is the most basic path that program execution can take. With this method, the program starts execution at the first line of the code, followed by the next, and continues until the final statement in the code has been executed. This approach works fine for very simple tasks, but tends to lack usefulness because it can only handle one situation. Programs often need to be able to decide what to do in response to changing circumstances. By controlling a code's execution path, a specific piece of code can then be used to intelligently handle more than one situation.

SQL PL provides support for variables and flow of control statements that can be used to control the sequence of statement execution. Statements such as IF and CASE are used to conditionally execute blocks of SQL PL statements, while other statements, such as WHILE and REPEAT, are typically used to execute a set of statements repetitively until a task is complete.