1.1 The basic structure of Computer Systems

Question 1

What is RAM

Answer 1

• Primary storage area where the computer keeps data and instructions that the CPU needs

Random Accessibility
* Read and Write in order
* high flexibility with memory organised in cells

• 1cell = 8bit = 1bit

Question 2

What are the core blocks of the CPU?

Answer 2

CLU
* Manages and controls Operation of CPU
* Oversees execution of instructions
* Fetches instructions form main memory, decodes them and coordinates their execution
* Controls flow of data

ALU
* Performs Arithmetic operations
* Addition, Substraktion, And, Or, Not

Registers
* Storage location for temporary Data
* Faster then accessing main memory data
* Comon registers: Programm counters, Instruction registers

Question 3

Bus system

Answer 3

• Communication Systems

Address Bus
* CPU notifies RAM which memory to read
Data Bus
* Content of Cell sent to CPU for further processing

Question 4

What are the core elements of the von neumann Architecture?

Answer 4

• CPU
• Main Memory
• Bus System
• Input / Output Devices

Question 5

Input/Output Devices

Answer 5

• Interfaces between System and its environment
• Includes communication with user and with storage devices

Question 6

What are the Steps of the von Neumann Cycle

Answer 6

1. Fetch instructions
2. Decode Instructions
3. Fetch Operand
4. Execute Instructions
5. Store results

Question 7

Programm counter

Answer 7

• Component within CPU
• Contains the memory address of the next instruction to be executed
• This address is either incremented continuously or, in the case of jump instructions, changed completely.

Question 8

1 Fetch Instruction

Answer 8

Computer Instruction is loaded from RAM into CPU
* Address stored in programm counter sent via address bus to main memory
* According data sent back to CPU via Data Bus

Question 9

2 Decode Instruction

Answer 9

Instructions stored in CPU in numerical terms which are decoded in specific operation

Question 10

3 Fetch operand

Answer 10

CPU fetches operands for calculation from RAM or Internal registers

Question 11

4 Execute Instructions

Answer 11

Calculations performed by CPU

Question 12

5 Store result

Answer 12

Results are stored into Memory or Registers

Question 13

Vector Processing

Answer 13

• CPU performs simultaneous operations on set of operands
• X86 Architecture

Question 14

Caches

Answer 14

• Storage between CPU and Memory
• Reduces time to access Data

Question 15

Multi-Core Systems

Answer 15

• Parallel processing
• Multiple CPU´s on single chip

Question 16

Instruction Pipelining

Answer 16

• Overlapping execution of instructions
• One instruction per Clockcycle

Question 17

What is the ‘machine language’ in the context of the von Neumann Cycle?

Answer 17

The Mapping of numbers to the individual instructions of a processor