all

Returns an ActiveRecord::Relation scope object.

posts = Post.all
posts.size # Fires "select count(*) from  posts" and returns the count
posts.each {|p| puts p.name } # Fires "select * from posts" and loads post objects

fruits = Fruit.all
fruits = fruits.where(color: 'red') if options[:red_only]
fruits = fruits.limit(10) if limited?

You can define a scope that applies to all finders using ActiveRecord::Base.default_scope.