diff --git a/doc/dev/data-structures.md b/doc/dev/data-structures.md
index 2e66ec7b134..f8eb86a5f67 100644
--- a/doc/dev/data-structures.md
+++ b/doc/dev/data-structures.md
@@ -194,93 +194,16 @@ indicating where the new value should be inserted when the key
 is not found.
 Elektra now also uses this trick internally.
 
-### Internal Cursor
-
-`KeySet` supports an
-**external iterator**
-with the two functions
-`ksRewind()` to go to the beginning and `ksNext()` to
-advance the _internal cursor_ to the next key.
-This side effect is used to indicate a position for
-operations on a `KeySet` without any additional parameter.
-This technique is comfortable to see which
-key has caused an error after an unsuccessful key database operation.
-
-Elektra only has some functions to change the cursor of a key set.
-But these allow the user to compose powerful functions.
-Plugins do that extensively as we will see later
-in `ksLookupRE()`.
-The user can additionally write more such functions for
-his or her own purposes.
-To change the internal cursor, it is
-sufficient to iterate
-over the `KeySet` and stop at the wanted key.
-With this technique, we can, for example, realize
-lookup by value, by specific metadata and by
-parts of the name.
-Without an additional index, it is not possible that
-such operations perform more efficiently
-than by a linear iteration key by key.
-For that reason, Elektra’s core does not provide
-such functions.
-The function `ksLookupByName()`, however,
-uses the more efficient binary search
-because the array inside the `KeySet`
-is ordered by name.
-
-### External Cursor
-
-External cursor is an alternative to the approach explained above.
-Elektra provides a limited
-_external cursor_
-through the interface
-`ksGetCursor()` and `ksSetCursor()`.
-It is not possible to advance this cursor.
-The difference to the internal cursor
-is that the position is not stored within `KeySet`.
-
-We considered providing an external cursor for performance reasons.
-But we found out that
-the speed of iteration is mainly limited because of safety checks.
-The investigated methods become slower proportional to the ease of use
-and safety.
-When using null pointers and
-range checks, the function is noticeably slower than without.
-With the same amount of checks,
-using an external cursor is not much faster than
-`ksNext()`.
-External cursor with checks is in a benchmark
-about 10% faster.
-
-But an external cursor directly accessing the array can be much
-faster. Using an unchecked external cursor can be about 50%
-faster than using the internal cursor with ksNext().
-For this endeavour,
-Elektra’s private header files need to be included.
-Including private header files, however,
-should not be done with levity
-because ABI compatibility will be gone on any changes of the data
-structures.
-This fact means the application or plugin needs to be recompiled
-when any of the internal structures of Elektra are
-changed.
-We strongly discourage including these header files.
-
-Nevertheless, the overall
-performance impact for iteration is minimal
-and should not matter too much.
-Even if only a single `keySetMeta()` is used inside
-the iteration loop, the iteration costs are insignificant.
-Only for trivial
-actions such as just changing a variable, counter or marker for every key
-the iteration costs become the lion's share.
-In such situations
-an _internal iterator_
-yields better results.
-For example,
-`ksForEach()` applies a user defined function
-for every key in a `KeySet` without having null pointer or
-out of range problems.
+### Iteration
+
+Iterating over a `KeySet` is similar to iterating over arrays.
+With `ssize_t ksGetSize (const KeySet *ks)`, the total number of `Key`s in a `KeySet`
+can be retrieved and with the function `Key *ksAtCursor (const KeySet *ks, elektraCursor cursor)`
+a pointer to a `Key` at a specified position `cursor` in the `Keyset` can be retrieved.
+The first element (`Key`) has the index 0, so the last `Key` in the `KeySet` `ks` can be
+accessed with `Key * k = ksAtCursor (ks, ksGetSize (ks) - 1)`.
+Please be aware the elements in a `KeySet` can move and therefore change their index, e.g. when
+deleting or adding elements or using `ksCut ()`.
 
 ## Trie vs. Split
 
diff --git a/doc/dev/iterators.md b/doc/dev/iterators.md
index 9d328b4888e..bb3fc2afca0 100644
--- a/doc/dev/iterators.md
+++ b/doc/dev/iterators.md
@@ -1,10 +1,11 @@
-# [CM P0] Replace internal iterators with external iterators (@flo91, @Milangs)
+# Iteration of KeySets
 
-The internal iterator must be removed and replaced with the external iterator.
+The deprecated internal iterator are removed and replaced with external iteration.
 
 # Interactions with users
 
-Developers of plugins should already use the external iterators instead of the internal ones. However, following functions will be removed:
+Developers of plugins should already use the external iterators instead of the internal ones.
+However, following functions will be removed:
 
 ```C
 int ksRewind (KeySet *ks);
@@ -37,11 +38,26 @@ for (elektraCursor it = 0; it < ksGetSize (ks); ++it)
 }
 ```
 
-You can obtain the key at a specific position in the keyset and the overall size of the keyset.
-That should be all you need for iterating over keys.
-For future releases, the function `ksAtCursor` will be renamed to `ksAt`. (see issue #3976)
+You can obtain the `Key` at a specific position in the `KeySet` and the overall size of the `KeySet`.
+
+If you want to delete `Key`s during the iteration of a `KeySet`, be aware that all keys after the
+deleted `Key` are moved one slot forward, so maybe you have to change to value of `it` after deleting
+a `Key`:
+
+```c
+for (elektraCursor it = 0; it < ksGetSize (ks); ++it)
+{
+    Key * cur = ksAtCursor (ks, it);
+    if ( shouldKeyGetDeleted (cur))
+    {
+	    keyDel (cur);
+	    --it; //next key is now at the position of the current key which was deleted
+    }
+}
+```
 
-# Work distribution
+For such scenarios, it is also important that you recalculate the size with `ksGetSize ()`
+within the loop-header or explicitely after changing the `KeySet`, e.g. by deleting a `Key`.
 
-Basically, we plan to work together on all parts of the project.
-However, the main focus of Michael Langhammer will be #4281 and #4279, while Florian Lindner will focus on #4280.
+That should be all you need for iterating over keys.
+For future releases, the function `ksAtCursor` will be renamed to `ksAt`. (see issue #3976)
diff --git a/doc/todo/TESTING b/doc/todo/TESTING
index 94af76c1c63..9179df00062 100644
--- a/doc/todo/TESTING
+++ b/doc/todo/TESTING
@@ -181,8 +181,6 @@ hosts typesafe with plugins enabled
 
 iterator interface (+document better)
 
-ksNext should be safe to missusage?
-
 cursor placement:
 	ksCut within cutted area
 	ksAppend
diff --git a/examples/functional.c b/examples/functional.c
index d2693ef0c01..03b4fbedd62 100644
--- a/examples/functional.c
+++ b/examples/functional.c
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@
 
 #include <stdlib.h>
 
-/* TODO: With an external iterator, ksCurrent() to get the position where execution stopped is no longer avialable.
+/* TODO: With an external iterator, ksCurrent() to get the position where execution stopped is no longer available.
  * TODO: Should we change the return value or make the information about the position unavailable */
 
 /**A functional access to keys.
diff --git a/src/bindings/cpp/README.md b/src/bindings/cpp/README.md
index 7771021e682..0c13a8b549e 100644
--- a/src/bindings/cpp/README.md
+++ b/src/bindings/cpp/README.md
@@ -79,10 +79,9 @@ here](examples/cpp_example_userexception.cpp).
 Next to the C-style fashioned loop:
 
 ```cpp
-ks.rewind();
-while (ks.next())
+for (elektraCursor it = 0; it < ks.size (); ++it)
 {
-	std::cout << ks.current().getName() << std::endl;
+	std::cout << ks.at (it).getName() << std::endl;
 }
 ```
 
diff --git a/src/libs/elektra/backend.c b/src/libs/elektra/backend.c
index 215741b21c6..23f3017da79 100644
--- a/src/libs/elektra/backend.c
+++ b/src/libs/elektra/backend.c
@@ -63,9 +63,6 @@ static Backend * elektraBackendAllocate (void)
  * @param elektraConfig the config where the mountpoint can be found
  * @param [out] errorKey the name also has the mountpoint set
  *
- * @pre ksCurrent() is root key
- * @post ksCurrent() is root key
- *
  * @retval -1 if no mountpoint is found or memory allocation problem
  * @retval 0 on success
  */
diff --git a/src/libs/elektra/kdb.c b/src/libs/elektra/kdb.c
index 9644fce95af..48e718a39c6 100644
--- a/src/libs/elektra/kdb.c
+++ b/src/libs/elektra/kdb.c
@@ -782,10 +782,6 @@ static KeySet * prepareGlobalKS (KeySet * ks, Key * parentKey)
 		{
 			ksAppendKey (cutKS, cur);
 			keyDel (ksLookup (specCut, cur, KDB_O_POP));
-
-			/* TODO: TEST it!
-			 * (old behaviour would be it = 0 (ks gets ksRewind()ed while ksLookup() with pop at ksCurrent()
-			 */
 			it--;
 		}
 	}
@@ -837,7 +833,7 @@ static int elektraGetDoUpdateWithGlobalHooks (KDB * handle, Split * split, KeySe
 	{
 		Backend * backend = split->handles[i];
 
-		/* TOOD: Remove usage of deprecated internal iterator */
+		/* TODO: Remove usage of deprecated internal iterator */
 		ksRewind (split->keysets[i]);
 		keySetName (parentKey, keyName (split->parents[i]));
 		keySetString (parentKey, keyString (split->parents[i]));
@@ -859,7 +855,7 @@ static int elektraGetDoUpdateWithGlobalHooks (KDB * handle, Split * split, KeySe
 			if (p == (STORAGE_PLUGIN + 1) && handle->globalPlugins[PROCGETSTORAGE][FOREACH])
 			{
 				keySetName (parentKey, keyName (initialParent));
-				/* TOOD: Remove usage of deprecated internal iterator */
+				/* TODO: Remove usage of deprecated internal iterator */
 				ksRewind (ks);
 				handle->globalPlugins[PROCGETSTORAGE][FOREACH]->kdbGet (handle->globalPlugins[PROCGETSTORAGE][FOREACH], ks,
 											parentKey);
@@ -868,7 +864,7 @@ static int elektraGetDoUpdateWithGlobalHooks (KDB * handle, Split * split, KeySe
 			if (p == (STORAGE_PLUGIN + 2) && handle->globalPlugins[POSTGETSTORAGE][FOREACH])
 			{
 				keySetName (parentKey, keyName (initialParent));
-				/* TOOD: Remove usage of deprecated internal iterator */
+				/* TODO: Remove usage of deprecated internal iterator */
 				ksRewind (ks);
 				handle->globalPlugins[POSTGETSTORAGE][FOREACH]->kdbGet (handle->globalPlugins[POSTGETSTORAGE][FOREACH], ks,
 											parentKey);
@@ -877,7 +873,7 @@ static int elektraGetDoUpdateWithGlobalHooks (KDB * handle, Split * split, KeySe
 			else if (p == (NR_OF_PLUGINS - 1) && handle->globalPlugins[POSTGETCLEANUP][FOREACH])
 			{
 				keySetName (parentKey, keyName (initialParent));
-				/* TOOD: Remove usage of deprecated internal iterator */
+				/* TODO: Remove usage of deprecated internal iterator */
 				ksRewind (ks);
 				handle->globalPlugins[POSTGETCLEANUP][FOREACH]->kdbGet (handle->globalPlugins[POSTGETCLEANUP][FOREACH], ks,
 											parentKey);
diff --git a/src/libs/elektra/keymeta.c b/src/libs/elektra/keymeta.c
index 0485906e056..a4faa719164 100644
--- a/src/libs/elektra/keymeta.c
+++ b/src/libs/elektra/keymeta.c
@@ -196,15 +196,14 @@ void l(Key *k)
  * @code
 void o(KeySet *ks)
 {
-	Key *current;
 	Key *shared = keyNew ("/", KEY_END);
 	keySetMeta(shared, "shared", "this metadata should be shared among many keys");
 
-	ksRewind(ks);
-	while ((current = ksNext(ks)) != 0)
-	{
+ 	for (elektraCursor it = 0; it < ksGetSize (ks); ++it)
+ 	{
+ 		Key * current = ksAtCursor (ks, it);
 		if (needs_shared_data(current)) keyCopyMeta(current, shared, "shared");
-	}
+ 	}
 }
  * @endcode
  *
diff --git a/src/libs/elektra/keyset.c b/src/libs/elektra/keyset.c
index 2a7c98949ae..47f7462b93f 100644
--- a/src/libs/elektra/keyset.c
+++ b/src/libs/elektra/keyset.c
@@ -104,12 +104,6 @@ static void elektraOpmphmCopy (KeySet * dest ELEKTRA_UNUSED, const KeySet * sour
 }
 
 /** @class doxygenFlatCopy
- *
- * @brief .
- *
- * @note Because the key is not copied,
- * also the pointer to the current metadata keyNextMeta()
- * will be shared.
  */
 
 /**
@@ -131,20 +125,12 @@ static void elektraOpmphmCopy (KeySet * dest ELEKTRA_UNUSED, const KeySet * sour
  * - You can append keys with ksAppendKey() or
  *   with ksAppend() you can append a whole keyset.
  * - Using ksLookup() you can lookup (or pop with #KDB_O_POP) a key.
- * - With ksRewind() and ksNext() you can iterate through the keyset.
+ * - With ksGetSize() and ksAtCursor() you can iterate through the keyset.
  *   Be assured that you will get every key of the set in a stable
  *   order (parents before children).
  *
  * @copydetails doxygenFlatCopy
  *
- * KeySets have an @link ksCurrent() internal cursor @endlink.
- * Methods should avoid to change this cursor, unless they want
- * to communicate something with it.
- * The internal cursor is used:
- *
- * - in ksLookup(): points to the found key
- * - in kdbSet(): points to the key which caused an error
- *
  * KeySet is the most important data structure in Elektra. It makes it possible
  * to get and store many keys at once inside the database. In addition to
  * that, the class can be used as high level datastructure in applications
@@ -385,8 +371,7 @@ KeySet * ksDeepDup (const KeySet * source)
  *
  * @par Implementation:
  * First all Keys in @p dest will be deleted. Afterwards
- * the content of @p source will be added to the destination
- * and ksCurrent() will be set properly in @p dest.
+ * the content of @p source will be added to the destination.
  *
  * A flat copy is made, so Keys will not be duplicated,
  * but their reference counter is updated, so both KeySets
@@ -1752,8 +1737,6 @@ elektraCursor ksGetCursor (const KeySet * ks)
  * or a position that does not lie within the KeySet @p ks
  *
  * @since 1.0.0
- * @see ksGetCursor() for getting the cursor at the current position
- * @see ksSetCursor() for setting the cursor to a specific position
  */
 Key * ksAtCursor (const KeySet * ks, elektraCursor pos)
 {
@@ -2429,10 +2412,8 @@ static Key * elektraLookupCreateKey (KeySet * ks, Key * key, ELEKTRA_UNUSED elek
  * Furthermore, using the kdb-tool, it is possible to introspect which values
  * an application will get (by doing the same cascading lookup).
  *
- * If found, @p ks internal cursor will be positioned in the matched Key
- * (also accessible by ksCurrent()), and a pointer to the Key is returned.
- * If not found, @p ks internal cursor will not move, and a NULL pointer is
- * returned.
+ * If found, a pointer to the Key is returned.
+ * If not found a NULL pointer is returned.
  *
  * Cascading lookups will by default search in
  * all namespaces (proc:/, dir:/, user:/ and system:/), but will also correctly consider
@@ -2454,19 +2435,11 @@ static Key * elektraLookupCreateKey (KeySet * ks, Key * key, ELEKTRA_UNUSED elek
  *
  *
  * @par KDB_O_POP
- * When ::KDB_O_POP is set the Key which was found will be ksPop()ed. ksCurrent()
- * will not be changed, only iff ksCurrent() is the searched Key, then the KeySet
- * will be ksRewind()ed.
+ * When ::KDB_O_POP is set the Key which was found will be ksPop()ed.
  *
  * @note Like in ksPop() the popped Key always needs to be keyDel() afterwards, even
  * if it is appended to another KeySet.
  *
- * @warning All cursors on the KeySet will be invalid
- * iff you use ::KDB_O_POP, so don't use this if you rely on a cursor, see ksGetCursor().
- *
- * The invalidation of cursors does not matter if you use multiple KeySets, e.g.
- * by using ksDup(). E.g., to separate ksLookup() with ::KDB_O_POP and ksAppendKey():
-
  * @snippet ksLookupPop.c f
  *
  * This is also a nice example how a complete application with ksLookup() can look like.
@@ -2491,7 +2464,7 @@ static Key * elektraLookupCreateKey (KeySet * ks, Key * key, ELEKTRA_UNUSED elek
  *
  * @since 1.0.0
  * @see ksLookupByName() to search by a name given by a string
- * @see ksCurrent(), ksRewind(), ksNext() for iterating over a KeySet
+ * @see ksGetSize(), ksAtCursor() for iterating over a KeySet
  */
 Key * ksLookup (KeySet * ks, Key * key, elektraLookupFlags options)
 {
@@ -2555,7 +2528,7 @@ Key * ksLookup (KeySet * ks, Key * key, elektraLookupFlags options)
  *
  * @since 1.0.0
  * @see ksLookup() for explanation of the functionality and examples.
- * @see ksCurrent(), ksRewind(), ksNext() for iterating over a KeySet
+ * @see ksGetSize(), ksAtCursor() for iterating over a KeySet
  */
 Key * ksLookupByName (KeySet * ks, const char * name, elektraLookupFlags options)
 {
diff --git a/src/libs/elektra/keyvalue.c b/src/libs/elektra/keyvalue.c
index 08fb5560004..8d204030082 100644
--- a/src/libs/elektra/keyvalue.c
+++ b/src/libs/elektra/keyvalue.c
@@ -120,12 +120,11 @@ keyDel(key);
  * @code
 KDB *handle = kdbOpen();
 KeySet *ks=ksNew(0, KS_END);
-Key *current=0;
-
 kdbGetByName(handle,ks,"system:/sw/my",KDB_O_SORT|KDB_O_RECURSIVE);
 
-ksRewind(ks);
-while (current=ksNext(ks)) {
+ for (elektraCursor it = 0; it < ksGetSize (ks); ++it)
+ {
+	Key * current = ksAtCursor (ks, it);
 	size_t size=0;
 
 	if (keyIsBinary(current)) {
diff --git a/src/libs/elektra/proposal.c b/src/libs/elektra/proposal.c
index 77627c59742..411583becc2 100644
--- a/src/libs/elektra/proposal.c
+++ b/src/libs/elektra/proposal.c
@@ -17,18 +17,6 @@
  * @param ks the keyset to pop key from
  * @param c where to pop
  *
- * The internal cursor will be rewinded using ksRewind(). You can use
- * ksGetCursor() and ksSetCursor() jump back to the previous position.
- * e.g. to pop at current position within ksNext() loop:
- * @code
- * cursor_t c = ksGetCursor(ks);
- * keyDel (elektraKsPopAtCursor(ks, c));
- * ksSetCursor(ks, c);
- * ksPrev(ks); // to have correct key after next ksNext()
- * @endcode
- *
- * @warning do not use, will be superseded by external iterator API
- *
  * @return the popped key
  * @retval 0 if ks is 0
  */
diff --git a/src/libs/highlevel/elektra.c b/src/libs/highlevel/elektra.c
index 8892e03713e..06a2eda449f 100644
--- a/src/libs/highlevel/elektra.c
+++ b/src/libs/highlevel/elektra.c
@@ -585,7 +585,7 @@ void elektraSaveKey (Elektra * elektra, Key * key, ElektraError ** error)
 			elektraErrorReset (&kdbSetError);
 
 			/* TODO: Remove call the ksCurrent () because the internal iterators are deprecated
-			 * PROBLEM: Change in kdeSet necessary (additional output parameter for position?, change return value?) */
+			 * PROBLEM: Change in kdbSet necessary (additional output parameter for position?, change return value?) */
 			Key * problemKey = ksCurrent (elektra->config);
 			if (problemKey != NULL)
 			{
diff --git a/src/libs/merge/kdbmerge.c b/src/libs/merge/kdbmerge.c
index 31a4b32dc67..c9681c42782 100644
--- a/src/libs/merge/kdbmerge.c
+++ b/src/libs/merge/kdbmerge.c
@@ -844,10 +844,9 @@ static int handleArrays (KeySet * ourSet, KeySet * theirSet, KeySet * baseSet, K
 		{
 			Key * keyInOur = ksLookup (ourSet, checkedKey, 0);
 			Key * keyInTheir = ksLookup (theirSet, checkedKey, 0);
+			/* getValuesAsArray() calls ksLookup() with  KDP_O_POP which makes as ksRewind()*/
 			char * baseArray = getValuesAsArray (baseSet, checkedKey, informationKey);
 
-			/* TODO: TEST it!
-			 * getValuesAsArray() calls ksLookup() with  KDP_O_POP which makes as ksRewind()*/
 			if (baseArray && *baseArray) it = 0;
 
 			if (baseArray == NULL)
diff --git a/tests/abi/testabi_key.c b/tests/abi/testabi_key.c
index 1ad1e4d7e45..70c26660b14 100644
--- a/tests/abi/testabi_key.c
+++ b/tests/abi/testabi_key.c
@@ -1607,8 +1607,7 @@ static void test_keyCopy (void)
 	succeed_if_same_string (keyName (copy), "user:/othername");
 
 	keyDel (copy);
-	ksRewind (ks);
-	succeed_if_same_string (keyName (ksNext (ks)), "user:/orig");
+	succeed_if_same_string (keyName (ksAtCursor (ks, 0)), "user:/orig");
 	ksDel (ks);
 }
 
diff --git a/tests/abi/testabi_ks.c b/tests/abi/testabi_ks.c
index e5b0cb7f4e7..c6bcdedab86 100644
--- a/tests/abi/testabi_ks.c
+++ b/tests/abi/testabi_ks.c
@@ -195,9 +195,7 @@ static void test_ksReference (void)
 	// k1 should be freed by now and instead k2 in the keyset
 	succeed_if (ksGetSize (ks) == 1, "wrong size, should stay after inserting duplication");
 
-	ksRewind (ks);
-	ksNext (ks);
-	succeed_if_same_string (keyValue (ksCurrent (ks)), "newvalue");
+	succeed_if_same_string (keyValue (ksAtCursor (ks, 0)), "newvalue");
 
 	ksDel (ks);
 
diff --git a/tests/ctest/test_order.c b/tests/ctest/test_order.c
index 6f7fd6e80f2..520122e08b9 100644
--- a/tests/ctest/test_order.c
+++ b/tests/ctest/test_order.c
@@ -278,19 +278,7 @@ static void test_append (void)
 
 	succeed_if (!memcmp (ks->array, solution, size), "solution is not correct");
 
-	/*
-	Key *it;
-	ksRewind(ks);
-	while ((it = ksNext(ks)) != 0)
-	{
-		printf ("%s\n", keyName(it));
-	}
-	*/
-
-
 	ksDel (ks);
-
-
 	keyDecRef (key);
 	keyDel (key);
 	keyDecRef (s1);