Computers – Hardware
Hardware Elements of Computers
There are five core hardware components of the modern digital computer system: the central processing unit or CPU, memory, input devices, output devices, and a bus. While some components are given greater emphasis for a particular computer design (e.g., a faster CPU for computationally intensive tasks), virtually all types of computers have these five key components represented. Key Concept 2.1: Most of the hardware compoCore Computer Hardware nents in the modern digital com- Components puter are contained within small CPU modular semiconductor packages (integrated circuits [ICs] or chip) Memory that, in turn, contain millions of Input devices discrete components. Numerous Output devices ICs are interconnected on a large Bus circuit board, frequently referred to as the motherboard. The motherboard is interfaced with other outside components (e.g., disk drives, power supply, keyboard, network, etc.) using specialized couplers that provide necessary power and connectivity to peripheral devices such as disk drives (storage), video displays, and keyboards.
The central processing unit (CPU) or microprocessor is typically the largest integrated circuit on the motherboard and its role is to execute specific commands or instructions/machine code dictated by a computer program and orchestrate the movement of data and instructions through the entire computer system. Although the CPU is frequently personified as the ‘‘brain’’ of the computer, it has no innate ‘‘intelligence’’ or inherent ability to make decisions. The CPU’s strength is in its ability to process instruc-tions and manipulate data at amazing speeds. In this regard, it is the perfect soldier; it follows all commands presented to it with blazing efficiency.
The number of instructions that a CPU can perform per second is expressed as its clock speed. Typical personal computer CPUs can perform over 3 billion instructions per second or 3 gigahertz (3 GHz). Modern CPUs actually contain two to eight CPUs in one IC or chip (multi-core CPU). This provides unparalleled computational speed as each core shares the processing tasks formerly assigned to one CPU. While the strength of the CPU is in its ability to process instructions, it has limited capability to store data before or after execution. The CPU relies on physical memory to store this information and provides it to the CPU on demand.
2 Computers and Networking
Memory is principally used to temporarily store data (and results) and applications or programs. In contrast to the CPU, a memory module has no capability to process instructions; instead memory is designed to reliably store large chunks of data and then release these data on command (often at the behest of the CPU). Physical memory can exist in solid-state form as an IC or as physical media (spinning disk, compact disk [CD], or digital versatile disk [DVD]). A solid-state memory module that can be erased and rewritten for unlimited number of times is generically referred to as random access memory or RAM.
Memory that can only retain data with power applied is referred to a volatile memory – most of the motherboard memory modules are of this type. These are rated by their storage capacity (given in megabytes or gigabytes), access speed (in nanoseconds), data rate (DDR2), and configuration (single or dualinline memory SIMM or DIMM).
Non-volatile memory will retain data written to it until it is erased or overwritten. Examples include USB memory sticks and disk drives. Since the inherent speed of non-volatile memory is substantially slower than that of volatile memory, volatile RAM is typically employed on the motherboard to augment data processing.
Some forms of memory are designed for specific tasks. Video memory (VRAM) is employed on video graphics cards to store graphical information to improve video display performance. A specialized form of highperformance memory is found on most CPUs to help efficiently buffer data that move in and out of the microprocessor core (L2 cache memory).
There are additional forms of computer memory that are classified simply as storage, principally because they are characterized by slower speed compared to solid-state memory and non-volatile characteristics (data persist indefi-nitely until erased/overwritten). These are made up of spinning media (diskdrives, CDs, and DVDs) and linear media (tape).
On-line storage refers to high-performance, non-removable media that requires no human or mechanical intervention to retrieve. Data on spinning hard disk arrays are an example of on-line storage. Near-line storage consists of removable media (e.g., tapes, CDs, or DVDs) that are made available through.
Types of Data Storage
On-line Near-line Off-line mechanical means such as a robotic tape or optical disk jukebox. The efficiency of data retrieval with a near-line system is dependant upon the mechanical speed of the robotic system and the queuing mechan-ism of the media. Off-line storage is removable media that requires human intervention to load and retrieve data. As a result, performance.
The motherboard, the CPU, and memory retain no previous information about how the computer is configured. Every time the computer turns on, it pulls itself up by its bootstraps (‘‘booting up’’).
Is the lowest for off-line storage. While off-line storage is the least expensive storage strategy, it is otherwise quite inefficient and is therefore reserved for data that have a low probability for future use.
Input/output devices are hardware extensions that allow humans (or other devices) to interact with a computer. Examples of input devices include the keyboard, touch screen, mouse, microphone, and camera. Typical output devices include the video display, printer, plotter, and speaker.
Because the typical microprocessor can execute several billions of commands per second, it is highly dependant upon an efficient mechanism for delivering instructions and data to it. This requires that there is a wellorchestrated method for moving data between the motherboard components and the CPU. The data bus is the physical data chain built into the motherboard that allows for this efficient data transfer. This is supported by several ICs, known as the chipset, which coordinates uninterrupted data transfers through the bus. Mul-tiple different designs have been developed; the most common in use today is peripheral component interconnect (PCI) and PCI-Express. The data bus is defined by a data-width (typically 32 or 64 bits), which specifies how much data are delivered across the bus per cycle and a clock speed (given in megahertz).
Another key component to the typical computer motherboard is the basic input/output system (BIOS). The BIOS is comprised of a non-erasable read only mem-ory (ROM) chip that contains the minimal amount of software necessary to instruct the computer how to access the keyboard,
mouse, display, disk drives, and communications ports.
When the power is first applied to the computer, the motherboard relies on the BIOS to tell what additional components are available to the
motherboard for input and output (e.g., disk drives, memory, keyboard, etc.). The motherboard ‘‘becomes aware’’ of what is avail-able and how to access it, each and every time the computer is
restarted.
The BIOS also provides information to the motherboard on where to find the first piece of software to load during the startup process. The startup process is also known as the boot process. The first piece of software to load is usually a portion of the operating system that will coordinate the other software programs.
Hardware Elements of Computers
There are five core hardware components of the modern digital computer system: the central processing unit or CPU, memory, input devices, output devices, and a bus. While some components are given greater emphasis for a particular computer design (e.g., a faster CPU for computationally intensive tasks), virtually all types of computers have these five key components represented. Key Concept 2.1: Most of the hardware compoCore Computer Hardware nents in the modern digital com- Components puter are contained within small CPU modular semiconductor packages (integrated circuits [ICs] or chip) Memory that, in turn, contain millions of Input devices discrete components. Numerous Output devices ICs are interconnected on a large Bus circuit board, frequently referred to as the motherboard. The motherboard is interfaced with other outside components (e.g., disk drives, power supply, keyboard, network, etc.) using specialized couplers that provide necessary power and connectivity to peripheral devices such as disk drives (storage), video displays, and keyboards.
The central processing unit (CPU) or microprocessor is typically the largest integrated circuit on the motherboard and its role is to execute specific commands or instructions/machine code dictated by a computer program and orchestrate the movement of data and instructions through the entire computer system. Although the CPU is frequently personified as the ‘‘brain’’ of the computer, it has no innate ‘‘intelligence’’ or inherent ability to make decisions. The CPU’s strength is in its ability to process instruc-tions and manipulate data at amazing speeds. In this regard, it is the perfect soldier; it follows all commands presented to it with blazing efficiency.
The number of instructions that a CPU can perform per second is expressed as its clock speed. Typical personal computer CPUs can perform over 3 billion instructions per second or 3 gigahertz (3 GHz). Modern CPUs actually contain two to eight CPUs in one IC or chip (multi-core CPU). This provides unparalleled computational speed as each core shares the processing tasks formerly assigned to one CPU. While the strength of the CPU is in its ability to process instructions, it has limited capability to store data before or after execution. The CPU relies on physical memory to store this information and provides it to the CPU on demand.
2 Computers and Networking
Memory is principally used to temporarily store data (and results) and applications or programs. In contrast to the CPU, a memory module has no capability to process instructions; instead memory is designed to reliably store large chunks of data and then release these data on command (often at the behest of the CPU). Physical memory can exist in solid-state form as an IC or as physical media (spinning disk, compact disk [CD], or digital versatile disk [DVD]). A solid-state memory module that can be erased and rewritten for unlimited number of times is generically referred to as random access memory or RAM.
Memory that can only retain data with power applied is referred to a volatile memory – most of the motherboard memory modules are of this type. These are rated by their storage capacity (given in megabytes or gigabytes), access speed (in nanoseconds), data rate (DDR2), and configuration (single or dualinline memory SIMM or DIMM).
Non-volatile memory will retain data written to it until it is erased or overwritten. Examples include USB memory sticks and disk drives. Since the inherent speed of non-volatile memory is substantially slower than that of volatile memory, volatile RAM is typically employed on the motherboard to augment data processing.
Some forms of memory are designed for specific tasks. Video memory (VRAM) is employed on video graphics cards to store graphical information to improve video display performance. A specialized form of highperformance memory is found on most CPUs to help efficiently buffer data that move in and out of the microprocessor core (L2 cache memory).
There are additional forms of computer memory that are classified simply as storage, principally because they are characterized by slower speed compared to solid-state memory and non-volatile characteristics (data persist indefi-nitely until erased/overwritten). These are made up of spinning media (diskdrives, CDs, and DVDs) and linear media (tape).
On-line storage refers to high-performance, non-removable media that requires no human or mechanical intervention to retrieve. Data on spinning hard disk arrays are an example of on-line storage. Near-line storage consists of removable media (e.g., tapes, CDs, or DVDs) that are made available through.
Types of Data Storage
On-line Near-line Off-line mechanical means such as a robotic tape or optical disk jukebox. The efficiency of data retrieval with a near-line system is dependant upon the mechanical speed of the robotic system and the queuing mechan-ism of the media. Off-line storage is removable media that requires human intervention to load and retrieve data. As a result, performance.
The motherboard, the CPU, and memory retain no previous information about how the computer is configured. Every time the computer turns on, it pulls itself up by its bootstraps (‘‘booting up’’).
Is the lowest for off-line storage. While off-line storage is the least expensive storage strategy, it is otherwise quite inefficient and is therefore reserved for data that have a low probability for future use.
Input/output devices are hardware extensions that allow humans (or other devices) to interact with a computer. Examples of input devices include the keyboard, touch screen, mouse, microphone, and camera. Typical output devices include the video display, printer, plotter, and speaker.
Because the typical microprocessor can execute several billions of commands per second, it is highly dependant upon an efficient mechanism for delivering instructions and data to it. This requires that there is a wellorchestrated method for moving data between the motherboard components and the CPU. The data bus is the physical data chain built into the motherboard that allows for this efficient data transfer. This is supported by several ICs, known as the chipset, which coordinates uninterrupted data transfers through the bus. Mul-tiple different designs have been developed; the most common in use today is peripheral component interconnect (PCI) and PCI-Express. The data bus is defined by a data-width (typically 32 or 64 bits), which specifies how much data are delivered across the bus per cycle and a clock speed (given in megahertz).
Another key component to the typical computer motherboard is the basic input/output system (BIOS). The BIOS is comprised of a non-erasable read only mem-ory (ROM) chip that contains the minimal amount of software necessary to instruct the computer how to access the keyboard,
mouse, display, disk drives, and communications ports.
When the power is first applied to the computer, the motherboard relies on the BIOS to tell what additional components are available to the
motherboard for input and output (e.g., disk drives, memory, keyboard, etc.). The motherboard ‘‘becomes aware’’ of what is avail-able and how to access it, each and every time the computer is
restarted.
The BIOS also provides information to the motherboard on where to find the first piece of software to load during the startup process. The startup process is also known as the boot process. The first piece of software to load is usually a portion of the operating system that will coordinate the other software programs.
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