What does the JDBC 4.2 feature try-with-resources enable?

The try-with-resources feature, introduced in JDBC 4.2, enables the automatic closing of JDBC resources such as connections, statements, and result sets. This feature simplifies resource management by ensuring that these resources are closed properly, even if an exception occurs during their use. By automatically closing resources, try-with-resources helps prevent resource leaks and improves the overall reliability of the application.

To use try-with-resources, developers simply declare the JDBC resources within the try block. When the block is exited, either because the operation completes normally or an exception is thrown, the resources are automatically closed. This approach eliminates the need for explicit close() calls in the finally block, reducing boilerplate code and the potential for errors.

Understanding and using try-with-resources is essential for writing clean, efficient, and robust JDBC code. It provides a simple and effective way to manage resources, making it easier to build applications that are both performant and maintainable.