HARDWARE Flashcards
what is hardware
physical components of computer categorised into input,processing, output, storage,communication
IPO
input process output
principle followed by computer
motherboard
large printed circuit board (PCB) that houses essential electrical components of device
main component of computer
capabilities of device dictated by motherboard
CPU,RAM and connectors and peripherals all linked to motherboard
how do you extend the capabilities of the motherboard
bus slots
(eg graphic card,sound card)
CPU
central processing unit
largest chip on computer
interprets and executes demands
divided into ALU,CU,Registers
von Neumann architecture
design of the CPU in relation to secondary storage and RAM
programs stored permanently in secondary storage.
in order for program to run, it must be loaded into RAM,as CPU is directly connected to RAM
ALU
arithmetic logical unit
performs logical calculations and simple arithmetic or integer binary numbers
CU
control unit
co-ordinater
sends control signals and instructions to be processed
instructs the memory, logic unit, and both output and input devices of the computer on how to respond to the program’s instructions.
Registers
small memory slots that store instructions CPU is currently processing
BIOS
basic input output system
non volatile firmware
initialise hardware when computer starts up so OS can take over and use hardware afterwards
programmed on ROM chip
RAM
random access memory
primary memory
form of storage that holds data currently being processed
needs power to retain memory
volatile
volatile
unpredictable, dynamic
contents constantly changing during processing and lost when computer switched off
DRAM
dynamic random access memory
constantly needs to be refreshed otherwise all contents will be lost
ROM
read only memory
non volatile
stores list of instructions device needs to run
non volatile
permanent
firmware
set of instructions programmed on a hardware device
semi permanent
typically stored in flash rom
peripherals
connected to the motherboard- not directly placed on
components
placed directly on motherboard
secondary storage
permanent , non volatile storage
can be fixed or removable media
hard drives
stores all users programs and data permanently
housed inside computer case