1.2.2 Secondary Storage

Question 1

What is secondary storage?

Answer 1

Stores data. Non-volatile. Larger than primary storage.

Question 2

What is secondary storage needed for?

Answer 2

Secondary storage is needed because ROM is read only and RAM is volatile. It is also needed for:

• Storing data and programs when the power is turned off
• Back up of data files
• Archive of data files

Question 3

What are the common types of secondary storage?

Answer 3

Optical, Magnetic, Solid State

Question 4

What is magnetic storage?

Answer 4

North pole represents 1, south pole represents 0

Question 5

What is optical storage?

Answer 5

Optical storage consists of marks arranged in patterns. When writing to optical media, the laser burns pits into the shiny surface (lands).
When reading optical media, a laser is shined on its surface.When the beam hits the land it reflects (1) and when the beam hits pits (0).

Question 6

What is solid state storage?

Answer 6

A flash of electric current forces electrons into a barrier. The different arrangement of electrons gives us the data.