What does the presence of a WHERE clause in an UPDATE command accomplish?

The presence of a WHERE clause in an UPDATE command is essential for specifying which records in a database should be modified. When included, it acts as a filter that identifies the specific rows that meet defined criteria. This means only those rows that satisfy the conditions outlined in the WHERE clause will be updated, leaving all other rows unchanged.

For example, if there is a table of employees and you want to update the salary of only those employees in a specific department, the WHERE clause can specify that department, applying the update solely to those records. Without a WHERE clause, the UPDATE command would apply the changes to every row in the table, which can lead to unintended modifications and data loss.

The other options suggest actions that do not accurately describe the role of the WHERE clause in an UPDATE command, making this understanding crucial for effective database management.