Use positioned updates and deletes or SQLSetPos to update data. Although positioned updates do not apply to all types of applications, developers should use positioned updates and deletes when it makes sense. Positioned updates (either through UPDATE WHERE CURRENT OF CURSOR or through SQLSetPos) allow the developer to signal the driver to "change the data here" by positioning the database cursor at the appropriate row to be changed. The designer is not forced to build a complex SQL statement, but simply supplies the data to be changed.

In addition to making the application more maintainable, positioned updates usually result in improved performance. Because the database server is already positioned on the row for the Select statement in process, performance-expensive operations to locate the row to be changed are not needed. If the row must be located, the server typically has an internal pointer to the row available (for example, ROWID).