Module 1 Flashcards
What are registers in a computer system?
Very fast computer memory used to store data/instruction.
Registers consist of a group of flip-flops and gates.
What do special purpose registers (SPR) hold?
Program state, including:
* Program counter (instruction pointer)
* Stack pointer
* Status register (aka processor status word)
What is the function of general purpose registers?
Hold temporary data while performing different operations, e.g., Accumulator.
What is a register file?
An array of processor registers in a CPU that hold data and addresses.
What is register banking?
A method of using a single name to access multiple different physical registers depending on the operating mode.
What steps are involved in typical operations with registers?
- Read operand from memory into MDR
- Transfer from MDR to ALU
- Store result in memory if needed
- Increment PC to point to next instruction.
What is the role of the bus in a computer system?
A communication pathway connecting two or more devices.
What are the three functional groups of bus lines?
- Data lines
- Address lines
- Control lines
What is the address bus?
Carries memory addresses from the processor to other components and is unidirectional.
What is the data bus?
Carries data between the processor and other components and is bidirectional.
What is the control bus?
Carries control signals from the processor to other components and is unidirectional.
What are the four essential registers for instruction execution?
- Program counter (PC)
- Instruction register (IR)
- Memory address register (MAR)
- Memory buffer register (MBR)
What does the Program Counter (PC) do?
Contains the address of the next instruction to be fetched.
What is the function of the Instruction Register (IR)?
Holds the instruction currently being executed or decoded.
What is the Memory Address Register (MAR)?
Stores the memory address of an instruction and is connected to the Address Bus.
