Comptia A Ch.3

Question 1

APIC (Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller)

Answer 1

A type of controller that supports more interrupts than the traditional 16 (24 is one example) and allows interrupt sharing between devices. There are two common types: LAPIC and I/O APIC. LAPIC is normally integrated into each CPU and has its own timer, whereas the I/O APIC is used throughout any of the peripheral buses and is integrated into the chipset.

Question 2

CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor)

Answer 2

A special type of memory on a motherboard in which Setup configuration is saved.

Question 3

Device Manager

Answer 3

A Windows program that is used to view and configure hardware.

Question 4

ESCD (extended system configuration data)

Answer 4

Data that provides the BIOS and operating system a means for communicating with plug and play devices. As the computer boots, the BIOS records legacy device configuration information. Plug and play devices use this information to configure themselves and avoid conflicts. Once an adapter has resources assigned and the resources are saved in ESCD, the resources do not have to be recalculated unless a new device is added to the computer.

Question 5

flash BIOS

Answer 5

A type of motherboard memory that allows updates by disk or by downloading Internet files.

Question 6

I/O address (input/output address)

Answer 6

A port address that allows an external device to communicate with the microprocessor. It is analogous to a mailbox number.

Question 7

IRQ (interrupt request)

Answer 7

A microprocessor priority system that assigns a number to each expansion adapter or port to facilitate orderly communication.

Question 8

jumper

Answer 8

A plastic cover for two metal pins on a jumper block.

Question 9

memory address

Answer 9

A unique address for memory chips.

Question 10

MSI (message signaled interrupt)

Answer 10

A type of interrupt method that delivers up to 32 interrupts to the CPU using software and memory space on behalf of a single device. A PCIe card is required to support MSI.

Question 11

MSI-X (message signaled interrupt)

Answer 11

A type of interrupt method that allows a device to allocate up to 2,048 interrupts. Note that most devices do not use this many. A PCIe card is required to support MSI-X.

Question 12

PnP (plug and play)

Answer 12

A bus specification that allows automatic configuration of an adapter.

Question 13

registry

Answer 13

A central Windows database file that holds hardware and software configuration information.

Question 14

Setup

Answer 14

Software that tells a computer about itself and the hardware it supports, such as how much RAM memory, type of hard drive installed, current date and time, and so on.

Question 15

system resources

Answer 15

The collective set of interrupt, I/O address, and DMA configuration parameters.

Question 16

UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface)

Answer 16

The interface between the operating system and firmware. It is used today in configuring device such as kiosks and touch screen technologies.