A procedure is a database object similar to a function. The difference is

that a procedure does not return a value, so there is no return type

declaration. While a function is called as part of a query or DML

command, a procedure is called explicitly using

the <xref linkend="sql-call"/> statement.

command, a procedure is called in isolation using

the <xref linkend="sql-call"/> command. If the CALL command is not

part of an explicit transaction, a procedure in many server-side

languages can commit, rollback, and begin new transactions during

its execution, which is not possible in functions.

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