1.1 Sys Architeture Flashcards
What are the two main internal components of a computer ?
CPU and RAM
Name the ALUs functions
- arithmetic calculations
- making logical decisions
What does the control unit do ?
- sends signals to control how data moves around the CPU
What does the cache do ?
- provides fast access to frequently used instructions and data
What do the registers do ?
- very specific individual things
What are registers ?
Tiny , super fast pieces of onboard memory inside the CPU
Name the 4 registers
- accumulator
- memory address register
- program counter
- memory data register
Who designed computers with stored programs ?
John von Neumann
What are the other three components in von Neumann architecture that aren’t the registers ?
Cache , control until and arithmetic logic unit
What’s the key cycle that a computer does ?
Fetch decode execute
What is the Von Neumann architecture?
The Von Neumann architecture consists of a Control Unit (CU), Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU), and Memory Unit (typically RAM).
What is the stored-program concept?
It is based on the concept that both instruction data and program data are stored in the same memory in binary form.
How can you identify data in memory?
There is no way to know if the pure binary held in memory is representing instructions or data simply by looking at it.
What is the function of the Program Counter (PC)?
The Program Counter (PC) holds the address of the next instruction in memory.
What does the Memory Address Register (MAR) do?
The Memory Address Register (MAR) holds the address of where data is to be fetched or stored.
What is the role of the Memory Data Register (MDR)?
The Memory Data Register (MDR) holds the data fetched from, or to be written to memory.
What does the Accumulator do?
The Accumulator holds the results of calculations.
What is Clock Speed measured in?
Clock Speed is measured in Hz, which equals cycles per second.
What regulates the CPU?
The CPU is regulated with clock signals.
What is a clock cycle?
A clock cycle is the time between two clock signals.
What can be executed per clock cycle?
A set number of instructions can be executed per clock cycle.
What happens when clock cycles are faster?
The faster these cycles are, the more instructions can be executed per second.
What is the purpose of cache?
Cache exists to speed up the operation of the fetch stage.
How does cache size affect performance?
The larger the cache, the more instructions can be accessed faster.
