System Architecture Flashcards
What is the purpose of the CPU and what does it stand for?
Central processing unit - the brain of the computer that processes program instructions.
Explain the Fetch/Decode/Execute Cycle?
Fetch - Causes the next instruction and any data involved to be fetched from the main memory
Decode- decodes the instruction.
Execute- executes the instruction.
And this repeats.
What is the MAR?
Memory Address Register - Stores the address of the instruction/data.
What is the MDR?
Memory Data Register - Stores the actual instruction of data.
What is the Accumulator?
Stores the arithmetic and logic results.
Whats does the program counter do?
Points to the next instruction.
Whats is the ALU?
Arithmetic Logic Unit - carries out the arithmetic/logic calculations.
What is the CU?
Control Unit - The component of the CPU that manages instructions.
What is the CACHE?
A piece of temporary memory. It can refer to a part of the RAM, storage disk, CPU, or an area for storing
Name 3 things that affect the CPU’s performance?
- Clock Speed
- Cache Size
- Number of Cores
How does increasing the number of Cores help the speed of CPU?
CPU’s with multiple cores have more power to run multiple programs at the same time.
How does increasing Cache Size help speed up the CPU?
The more cache memory, the more data and instructions can be held in the cache and be accessed faster.
How does increasing Clock Speed help increase the speed of CPU?
The higher the clock speed the more cycles the processor can make in a second, increasing its speed.
What is an embedded system?
An embedded system is a device that use microprocessors to control their functions
What is the purpose of an embedded system?
They are used for systems that have very simple processes that don’t need operating systems etc.
