CHAPTER 2

THE COMPUTER SYSTEM HARDWARE

 Contents

 Central Processing Unit (CPU)
o Arithmetic logic unit
o Registers
o Control Unit (CU)
 Memory unit
o Cache memory
o Primary memory
o Secondary memory
 Instruction format
 Instruction set
 Instruction cycle—Fetching, decoding,executing, storing

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 CHAPTER 2
THE COMPUTER SYSTEM HARDWARE

 Instruction cycle—Fetching, decoding, executing, storing
 Microprocessor—CISC, RISC
 Interconnecting the units of a computer— System bus,
expansion bus, external ports
 Performance of a computer—Registers, RAM, system
clock, bus, cache memory
 Inside a computer cabinet—Motherboard, ports and
interfaces, expansion slots, ribbon cables, memory chips,
storage devices, processor

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 CHAPTER 2
THE COMPUTER SYSTEM HARDWARE

 The computer as a machine consists of different
components that interact with each other to provide
the desired functionality of the computer.
 As a user of the computer, we need to be aware of
the main components of the computer, their
functions and the interconnection between
 the different components of the computer.
 This chapter describes the different hardware
components of the computer.

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 CHAPTER 2
INTRODUCTION

 the three related terms that require introduction
are—computer architecture, computer organization
and computer design.

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 CHAPTER 2
Computer architecture

 Computer architecture

 refers to the structure and behavior of the computer.
It includes the specifications of the components, for
example, instruction format, instruction set and
techniques for addressing memory, and how they
connect to the other components.

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 CHAPTER 2
Computer Organization

 Computer organization focuses on the
organizational structure.
 It deals with how the hardware components operate
and the way they are connected to form the
computer.

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 CHAPTER 2
Computer Design

 computer design focuses on the hardware to be used
and the interconnection of parts.
 Different kinds of computer, such as a PC or a
mainframe computer may have different
organization; however, basic organization of the
computer remains the same.

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 CHAPTER 2
transistor

 A transistor is essentially a tiny electrically operated switch, or gate,
that can alternate between “on” and “off ” many millions of times per
second.
 The transistor was developed by Bell Labs in 1947. The first transistors
were one-hundredth the size of a vacuum tube, needed no warm-up
time, consumed less energy, and were faster and more reliable.

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 CHAPTER 2
Silicon

 Silicon is an element that is widely found in clay and
sand. It is used not only because its abundance makes
it cheap but also because it is a semiconductor.

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 CHAPTER 2
microprocessor

 Microchips—―industrial rice,‖ as the Japanese call them— are
responsible for the miniaturization that has revolutionized consumer
electronics, computers, and communications.
 They store and process data in all the electronic gadgetry we‘ve become
accustomed to—from microwave ovens to videogame controllers to
music synthesizers to cameras to automobile fuel-injection systems to
pagers to satellites.

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 CHAPTER 2
microprocessor

 There are different kinds of microchips—for example, microprocessor,
memory, logic, communications, graphics, and math coprocessor chips.
 A microprocessor (“microscopic processor” or “processor on a chip”) is
the miniaturized circuitry of a computer processor—the CPU, the part
that processes, or manipulates, data into information.
 When modified for use in machines other than computers,
microprocessors are called microcontrollers or embedded computers.

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 CHAPTER 2
integrated circuit

 integrated circuit —an entire electronic circuit, including
wires, formed on a single “chip,” or piece, of special
material, usually silicon,
 as part of a single manufacturing process. Integrated circuits
were developed by Jack Kilby at Texas Instruments, who
demonstrated the first one in 1958.

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 CHAPTER 2
Components

 A computer consists of three main components—(1)
Input/Output (I/O) Unit, (2) Central Processing
Unit (CPU), and (3) Memory Unit. The computer
user interacts with the computer via the I/O unit.
 The purpose of I/O unit is to provide data and
instructions as input to the computer and to present
relevant information as output from the computer.
 CPU controls the operations of the computer and
processes the received input to generate the relevant
output.

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 CHAPTER 2
Components

 The memory unit stores the instructions and the data
during the input activity, to make instructions
readily available to CPU during processing.
 It also stores the processed output.
 This chapter discusses the hardware components of
the computer and the interaction between them.

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CHAPTER 2
Parts of CPU


15
 CHAPTER 2
Parts of CPU


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 CHAPTER 2
Parts of CPU


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CHAPTER 2 Parts of CPU

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 CHAPTER 2
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

 Central Processing Unit (CPU) or the processor is also often called the
brain of computer.
 CPU consists of Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU) and Control Unit (CU). In
addition, CPU also has a set of registers which are temporary storage
areas for holding data, and instructions.
 ALU performs the arithmetic and logic operations on the data that is
made available to it.

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 CHAPTER 2
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

 CU is responsible for organizing the processing of data and instructions.
 CU controls and coordinates the activity of the other units of computer.
 CPU uses the registers to store the data, instructions during processing.

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 CHAPTER 2
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

 CPU executes the stored program instructions, i.e.
instructions and data are stored in memory before
execution.
 For processing, CPU gets data and instructions from the
memory.
 It interprets the program instructions and performs the
arithmetic and logic operations required for the
 processing of data.
 Then, it sends the processed data or result to the memory.
CPU also acts as an administrator and is responsible for
supervising operations of other parts of the computer.

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 CHAPTER 2
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

 The CPU is fabricated as a single Integrated Circuit
(IC) chip, and is also known as the microprocessor.
 The microprocessor is plugged into the
motherboard of the computer (Motherboard is a
circuit board that has electronic circuit etched on it
and connects the microprocessor with the other
hardware components).

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 CHAPTER 2
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT


 The CPU
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 CHAPTER 2
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

 Arithmetic Logic Unit


 ALU consists of two units—arithmetic unit and
logic unit.
 The arithmetic unit performs arithmetic
operations on the data that is made available to it.
 Some of the arithmetic operations supported by
the arithmetic unit are—addition, subtraction,
multiplication and division.

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 CHAPTER 2
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

 The logic unit of ALU is responsible for performing
logic operations.
 Logic unit performs comparisons of numbers, letters
and special characters.
 Logic operations include testing for greater than, less
than or equal to condition.
 ALU performs arithmetic and logic operations, and
uses registers to hold the data that is being processed.

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 CHAPTER 2
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

 Registers

 Registers are high-speed storage areas within the
CPU, but have the least storage capacity.
 Registers are not referenced by their address, but are
directly accessed and manipulated by the CPU
during instruction execution.
 Registers store data, instructions, addresses and
intermediate results of processing.

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 CHAPTER 2
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

 Registers are often referred to as the CPU‘s working
memory.
 The data and instructions that require processing
must be brought in the registers of CPU before they
can be processed.
 For example, if two numbers are to be added, both
numbers are brought in the registers, added and the
result is also placed in a register.

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 CHAPTER 2
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

 Registers are used for different purposes, with each register
serving a specific purpose.
 Some of the important registers in CPU are as follows—
o Accumulator (ACC) stores the result of arithmetic and
logic operations.
o Instruction Register (IR) contains the current instruction
most recently fetched.
o Program Counter (PC) contains the address of next
instruction to be processed.
o Memory Address Register (MAR) contains the address of
next location in the memory to be accessed.
o Memory Buffer Register (MBR) temporarily stores data
from memory or the data to be sent to memory.
o Bstores the operands and any other data.
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 CHAPTER 2
CPU registers

 CPU registers

 The number of registers and the size of each
(number of bits) register in a CPU helps to
determine the power and the speed of a CPU.
 The overall number of registers can vary from
about ten to many hundreds, depending on the
type and complexity of the processor.
 The size of register, also called word size, indicates
the amount of data with which the computer can
work at any given time.
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 CHAPTER 2
CPU registers

 The bigger the size, the more quickly it can process data.
 The size of a register may be 8, 16, 32 or 64 bits.
 For example, a 32–bit CPU is one in which each register is
32 bits wide and its CPU can manipulate 32 bits of data at
a time.
 Nowadays, PCs have 32–bit or 64–bit registers.
 32-bit processor and 64-bit processor are the terms used to
refer to the size of the registers.
 Other factors remaining the same, a 64-bit processor can
process the data twice as fast as one with 32-bit processor.

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 CHAPTER 2
Control Unit

 Control Unit

 The control unit of a computer does not do any
actual processing of data. It organizes the processing
of data and instructions. It acts as a supervisor and,
controls and coordinates the activity of the other
units of computer.
 CU coordinates the input and output devices of a
computer. It directs the computer to carry out stored
program instructions by communicating with the
ALU and the registers.
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 CHAPTER 2
CPU registers

 CU uses the instructions in the Instruction Register (IR) to
decide which circuit needs to be activated. It also instructs
the ALU to perform the arithmetic or logic operations.
 When a program is run, the Program Counter (PC)
register keeps track of the program instruction to be
executed next.
 The function of a (CU) can be considered synonymous
with that of a conductor of an orchestra.
 The conductor in an orchestra does not perform any work
by itself but manages the orchestra and ensures that the
members of orchestra work in proper coordination.
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 CHAPTER 2
MEMORY UNIT

 The memory unit consists of cache memory and primary
memory. Primary memory or main memory of the computer
is used to store the data and instructions during execution
of the instructions.
 Random Access Memory (RAM) and Read Only Memory
(ROM) are the primary memory.
 In addition to the main memory, there is another kind of
storage device known as the secondary memory.
Secondary memory is non-volatile and is used for
permanent storage of data and programs.
 A program or data that has to be executed is brought into
the RAM from the secondary memory.
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 CHAPTER 2
Cache Memory

 The data and instructions that are required during the
processing of data are brought from the secondary
storage devices and stored in the RAM. For processing, it
is required that the data and instructions are accessed
from the RAM and stored in the registers.
 The time taken to move the data between RAM and CPU
registers is large.
 This affects the speed of processing of computer, and
results in decreasing the performance of CPU.
 Cache memory is a very high speed memory placed in
between RAM and CPU. Cache memory increases the
speed of processing.
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 CHAPTER 2
Cache Memory

 Cache memory is a storage buffer that stores the data
that is used more often, temporarily, and makes
them available to CPU at a fast rate.
 During processing, CPU first checks cache for the
required data. If data is not found in cache, then it
looks in the RAM for data.

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 CHAPTER 2
Cache Memory

 To access the cache memory, CPU does not have to use the
motherboard‘s system bus for data transfer. (The data transfer
speed slows to the motherboard‘s capability, when data is
passed through system bus.
 CPU can process data at a much faster rate by avoiding the
system bus.)

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 CHAPTER 2
Cache Memory

 Cache memory is built into the processor, and may also be
located next to it on a separate chip between the CPU and
RAM.
 Cache built into the CPU is faster than separate cache, running
at the speed of the microprocessor itself.
 However, separate cache is roughly twice as fast as RAM.

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 CHAPTER 2
Cache Memory

 The CPU has a built-in Level 1 (L1) cache and Level2 (L2) cache,
as shown in. In addition to the built-in L1 and L2 cache, some
CPUs have a separate cache chip on the motherboard.
 This cache on the motherboard is called Level 3 (L3) cache.
 Nowadays, high-end processor comes with built-in L3 cache,
like in Intel core i7. The L1, L2 and L3 cache store the most
recently run instructions, the next ones and the possible ones,
respectively.
 Typically, CPUs have cache size varying from 256KB (L1), 6 MB
(L2), to 12MB (L3) cache.
 Cache memory is very expensive, so it is smaller in size.
Generally, computers have cache memory of sizes 256 KB to 2
MB.

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 CHAPTER 2
Primary Memory

 Primary memory is the main memory of computer. It is
used to store data and instructions during the processing
of data.
 Primary memory is semiconductor memory.
 Primary memory is of two kinds—Random Access
Memory (RAM) and Read Only Memory (ROM).
 RAM is volatile.
 It stores data when the computer is on. The information
stored in RAM gets erased when the computer is turned
off. RAM provides temporary storage for data and
instructions.
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 CHAPTER 2
Primary Memory

 ROM is non-volatile memory, but is a read only memory. The
storage in ROM is permanent in nature, and is used for storing
standard processing programs that permanently reside in the
computer.
 ROM comes programmed by the manufacturer.
 RAM stores data and instructions during the execution of
instructions.
 The data and instructions that require processing are brought
into the RAM from the storage devices like hard disk.
 CPU accesses the data and the instructions from RAM, as it can
access it at a fast speed than the storage devices connected to
the input and output unit
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 CHAPTER 2
Primary Memory

 The input data that is entered using the input unit is stored in
RAM, to be made available during the processing of data.
 Similarly, the output data generated after processing is stored
in RAM before being sent to the output device.
 Any intermediate results generated during the processing of
program are stored in RAM.
 RAM provides a limited storage capacity, due to its high cost.

Interaction of
CPU with
memory
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Technology
 CHAPTER 2
Secondary Memory

 The secondary memory stores data and instructions
permanently.
 The information can be stored in secondary memory for a
long time (years), and is generally permanent in nature
unless erased by the user.
 It is a non-volatile memory.
 It provides back-up storage for data and instructions. Hard
disk drive, floppy drive and optical disk drives are some
examples of storage devices.

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 CHAPTER 2
Secondary Memory

 The data and instructions that are currently not being
used by CPU, but may be required later for processing,
are stored in secondary memory.
 Secondary memory has a high storage capacity than the
primary memory.
 Secondary memory is also cheaper than the primary
memory.
 It takes longer time to access the data and instructions
stored in secondary memory than in primary memory.
 Magnetic tape drives, disk drives and optical disk drives are the
different types of storage devices.
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 CHAPTER 2
INSTRUCTION FORMAT

 A computer program is a set of instructions that describe the
steps to be performed for carrying out a computational task.
The program and the data, on which the program operates, are
stored in main memory, waiting to be processed by the
processor.
 This is also called the stored program concept.
 An instruction is designed to perform a task and is an
elementary operation that the processor can accomplish.
 An instruction is divided into groups called fields. The common
fields of an instruction are— Operation (op) code and Operand
code

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 CHAPTER 2
INSTRUCTION FORMAT

 The remainder of the instruction fields differs from one
computer type to other.
 The operation code represents action that the processor must
execute. It tells the processor what basic operations to perform.
 The operand code defines the parameters of the action and
depends on the operation.
 It specifies the locations of the data or the operand on which the
operation is to be performed. It can be data or a memory
address.

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 CHAPTER 2
INSTRUCTION SET

 A processor has a set of instructions that it understands, called
as instruction set.
 An instruction set or an instruction set architecture is a part of
the computer architecture.
 It relates to programming, instructions, registers, addressing
modes, memory architecture, etc.
 An Instruction Set is the set of all the basic operations that a
processor can accomplish.
 The instructions in the instruction set are the language that a
 processor understands. All programs have to communicate
with the processor using these instructions.

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 CHAPTER 2
INSTRUCTION SET

 An instruction in the instruction set involves a series of logical
operations (may be thousands) that are performed to complete
each task.
 The instruction set is embedded in the processor (hardwired),
which determines the machine language for the processor.
 All programs written in a high-level language are compiled and
translated into machine code before execution, which is
understood by the processor for which the program has been
coded.

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 CHAPTER 2
INSTRUCTION SET

 Two processors are different if they have different instruction sets.
 A program run on one computer may not run on another computer
having a different processor.
 Two processors are compatible if the same machine level program can
run on both the processors.
 Therefore, the system software is developed within the processor‘s
instruction set.
 Microarchitecture is the processor design technique used for
implementing the Instruction Set.
 Computers having different microarchitecture can have a common
Instruction Set. Pentium and Athlon CPU chips implement the x86
instruction set, but have different internal designs.
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 CHAPTER 2
INSTRUCTION CYCLE

 The primary responsibility of a computer processor is to
execute a sequential set of instructions that constitute a
program. CPU executes each instruction in a series of
steps, called instruction cycle.
A instruction cycle involves four steps (Figure 2.9)—
 o Fetching The processor fetches the instruction from the
memory. The fetched instruction is placed in the
Instruction Register. Program Counter holds the address of
next instruction to be fetched and is incremented after
each fetch.
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 CHAPTER 2
INSTRUCTION CYCLE

 o Decoding The instruction that is fetched is broken down into parts
or decoded. The instruction is translated into commands so that they
correspond to those in the CPU‘s instruction set. The instruction set
architecture of the CPU defines the way in which an instruction is
decoded.
 o Executing The decoded instruction or the command is executed.
CPU performs the operation implied by the program instruction. For
example, if it is an ADD instruction, addition is performed.
 o Storing CPU writes back the results of execution, to the computer‘s
memory.

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 CHAPTER 2
INSTRUCTION CYCLE


Instruction cycle
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 CHAPTER 2
INSTRUCTION CYCLE


Steps in instruction cycle

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 CHAPTER 2
INSTRUCTION CYCLE

 Instructions are of different categories. Some categories of
instructions are—
 Memory access or transfer of data between registers.
 Arithmetic operations like addition and subtraction.
 Logic operations such as AND, OR and NOT.
 Control the sequence, conditional connections, etc.
 A CPU performance is measured by the number of
instructions it executes in a second, i.e., MIPS (million
instructions per second), or BIPS (billion instructions per
second).

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MICROPROCESSOR

 A processor‘s instruction set is a determining factor in its
architecture.
 On the basis of the instruction set, microprocessors are
classified as—Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC), and
Complex Instruction Set Computer (CISC).
 The x86 instruction set of the original Intel 8086 processor is of
the CISC type.
 The PCs are based on the x86 instruction set.

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MICROPROCESSOR

 CISC architecture hardwires the processor with complex
instructions, which are difficult to create otherwise using basic
instructions.
 CISC combines the different instructions into one single CPU.
 CISC has a large instruction set that includes simple and
fast instructions for performing basic tasks, as well as
complex instructions that correspond to statements in the
high level language.
 An increased number of instructions (200 to 300) results in
a much more complex processor, requiring millions of
transistors.
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MICROPROCESSOR

 Instructions are of variable lengths, using 8, 16 or 32 bits for
storage. This results in the processor‘s time being spent in
calculating where each instruction begins and ends.
 With large number of application software programs being
written for the processor, a new processor has to be backwards
compatible to the older version of processors.
 AMD and Cyrix are based on CISC.

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 CHAPTER 2
RISC - Reduced Instruction Set Computer

 RISC has simple, single-cycle instructions, which performs only
basic instructions.
 RISC architecture does not have hardwired advanced functions.
All high-level language support is done in the software.
 RISC has fewer instructions and requires fewer transistors,
which results in the reduced manufacturing cost of
processor.
 The instruction size is fixed (32 bits). The processor need
not spend time in finding out where each instruction begins
and ends.
 RISC architecture has a reduced production cost compared
to CISC processors.
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 CHAPTER 2
RISC - Reduced Instruction Set Computer

 The instructions, simple in nature, are executed in
just one clock cycle, which speeds up the program
execution when compared to CISC processors.
 RISC processors can handle multiple instructions
simultaneously by processing them in parallel.
 Apple Mac G3 and PowerPC are based on RISC.
Processors like Athlon XP and Pentium IV
use a hybrid of both technologies.

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 CHAPTER 2
Pipelining

 Pipelining improves instruction execution speed by
putting the execution steps into parallel.
 A CPU can receive a single instruction, begin
executing it, and receive another instruction before
it has completed the first. This allows for more
instructions to be performed, about, one instruction
per clock cycle.

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Parallel Processing

 Parallel Processing is the simultaneous execution of
instructions from the same program on different
processors.
 A program is divided into multiple processes that
are handled in parallel in order to reduce execution
time.

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 CHAPTER 2
INTERCONNECTING
THE UNITS OF A COMPUTER

 CPU sends data, instructions and information to the
components inside the computer as well as to the peripherals
and devices attached to it.
 Bus is a set of electronic signal pathways that allows
information and signals to travel between components inside
or outside of a computer.
 The different components of computer, i.e., CPU, I/O unit, and
memory unit are connected with each other by a bus.
 The data, instructions and the signals are carried between the
different components via a bus.

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 CHAPTER 2
The features and functionality
of a bus are as follows—


 A bus is a set of wires used for interconnection, where each wire can
carry one bit of data.
 A bus width is defined by the number of wires in the bus.
 A computer bus can be divided into two types—Internal Bus and
External Bus.
 The Internal Bus connects components inside the motherboard like,
CPU and system memory.
 It is also called the System Bus. Its interaction between processor and
memory.

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INTERCONNECTING
THE UNITS OF A COMPUTER

 The External Bus connects the different external devices,
peripherals, expansion slots, I/O ports and drive connections
to the rest of computer.
 The external bus allows various devices to be attached to the
computer.
 It allows for the expansion of computer‘s capabilities. It is
generally slower than the system bus. It is also referred to as
the Expansion Bus.
 A system bus or expansion bus comprise of three kinds of
buses — data bus, address bus and control bus.

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CPU MEMORY

 The interaction of CPU with memory and I/O
devices involves all the three buses.
 The command to access the memory or the I/O
device is carried by the control bus.
 The address of I/O device or memory is carried by
the address bus.
 The data to be transferred is carried by the data bus.

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System Bus

 The functions of data bus, address bus and control bus, in the system
bus, are as follows—
 Data Bus transfers data between the CPU and memory. The bus width
of a data bus affects the speed of computer.
 The size of data bus defines the size of the processor.
 A processor can be 8, 16, 32 or 64-bit processor. An 8–bit processor has 8
wire data bus to carry 1 byte of data. In a 16–bit processor, 16–wire bus
can carry 16 bits of data, i.e., transfer 2 bytes, etc.

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System Bus

 Address Bus connects CPU and RAM with set of wires similar
to data bus.
 The width of address bus determines the maximum number of
memory locations the computer can address. Currently, Pentium
Pro, II, III, IV have 36–bit address bus that can address 236
bytes or 64 GB of memory.
 Control Bus specifies whether data is to be read or written to
the memory, etc.

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Expansion Bus

 The functions of data bus, address bus and control bus, in the
expansion bus, are as follows—
 The expansion bus connects external devices to the rest of
computer. The external devices like monitor, keyboard and
printer connect to ports on the back of computer.
 These ports are actually a part of the small circuit board or
expansion card that fits into an expansion slot on the
motherboard.
 Expansion slots are easy to recognize on the motherboard.

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Expansion Bus

 Expansion slots make up a row of long plastic connectors at
the back of the computer with tiny copper ‗finger slots‘ in a
narrow channel that grab the connectors on the expansion
cards.
 The slots are attached to tiny copper pathways on the
motherboard (the expansion bus), which allows the device to
communicate with the rest of computer.
 Data Bus is used to transfer data between I/O devices and
CPU. The exchange of data between CPU and I/O devices is
according to the industry standard data buses.
 The most commonly used standard is Extended Industry
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Expansion Bus

 Some of the common bus technologies are—
 Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus for hard disks,
sound cards, network cards and graphics cards,
 Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) bus for 3–D and full motion
video,
 Universal Serial Bus (USB) to connect and disconnect different
devices.
 Address Bus carries the addresses of different I/O devices to
be accessed like the hard disk, CD ROM, etc.
 Control Bus is used to carry read/write commands, status of
I/O devices, etc.
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External Ports

 The peripheral devices interact with the CPU of the
computer via the bus.
 The connections to the bus from the peripheral devices are
made via the ports and sockets provided at the sides of the
computer.
 The different ports and sockets facilitate the connection of
different devices to the computer.

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External Ports

 Some of the standard port connections available on the outer
sides of the computer are— port for mouse, keyboard, monitor,
network, modem, and, audio port, serial port, parallel port and
USB port.
 The different ports are physically identifiable by their different
shapes, size of contact pins and number of pins.

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PERFORMANCE OF A COMPUTER

 There are a number of factors involved that are related to the
CPU and have an effect on the overall speed and performance
of the computer.
 Some of the factors that affect the performance of the computer
include—
 Registers The size of the register (word size) indicates the
amount of data with which the computer can work at any
given time. The bigger the size, the more quickly it can process
data. A 32–bit CPU is one in which each register is 32 bits
wide.

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PERFORMANCE OF A COMPUTER

 RAM It is used to store data and instructions during execution
of the instructions.
 Anything you do on your computer requires RAM. When the
computer is switched on, the operating system, device drivers,
the active files and running programs are loaded into RAM.
 If RAM is less, then the CPU waits each time the new
information is swapped into memory from the slower devices.
Larger the RAM size, the better it is.
 PCs nowadays usually have 1 GB to 4 GB of RAM.

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System Clock

 System Clock The clock speed of a CPU is defined as
the frequency with which a processor executes
instructions or the data is processed.
 Higher clock frequencies mean more clock ticks per
second.
 The computer‘s operating speed is linked to the
speed of the system clock.
 The clock frequency is measured in millions of
cycles per second or megahertz (MHz) or gigahertz
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System Clock

 A CPU‘s performance is measured by the number of
instructions it executes in a second, i.e., MIPS or
BIPS. PCs nowadays come with a clock speed of
more than 1 GHz.
 In Windows OS, you can select the System Properties
dialog box to see the processor name and clock frequency.

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Bus Data bus

 Bus Data bus is used for transferring data between CPU and memory.
 The data bus width affects the speed of computer. In a 16–bit
processor, 16–bit wire bus can carry 16 bits of data.
 The bus speed is measured in MHz. Higher the bus speed the better it
is.
 Address bus connects CPU and RAM with a set of wires similar to data
bus.
 The address bus width determines the maximum number of memory
locations the computer can address.
 Pentium Pro, II, III, IV have 36–bit address bus that can address 236
bytes or 64 GB of memory. PCs nowadays have a bus speed varying
from 100 MHz to 400 MHz.
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Cache Memory

 Cache Memory Two of the main factors that affect a
cache‘s performance are its size (amount of cache
memory) and level L1, L2 and L3.
 Larger the size of cache, the better it is. PCs
nowadays have a L1 cache of 256KB and L2 cache of
1MB.

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INSIDE A COMPUTER CABINET

 The computer cabinet encloses the components that
are required for the running of the computer.
 The components inside a computer cabinet include
the power supply, motherboard, memory chips,
expansion slots, ports and interface, processor,
cables and storage devices.

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Motherboard

 The computer is built up around a motherboard.
 The motherboard is the most important component in the
PC. It is a large Printed Circuit Board (PCB), having many
chips, connectors and other electronics mounted on it.

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Motherboard

 The motherboard is the hub, which is used to connect all the
essential components of a computer.
 The RAM, hard drive, disk drives and optical drives are all
plugged into interfaces on the motherboard.
 The motherboard contains the processor, memory chips,
interfaces and sockets, etc.

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Motherboard

 The motherboard may be characterized by the form factor, chipset and
type of processor socket used.
 Form factor refers to the motherboard‘s geometry, dimensions,
arrangement and electrical requirements.

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Motherboard

 Different standards have been developed to build motherboards,
which can be used in different brands of cases. Advanced Technology
Extended (ATX) is the most common design of motherboard for
desktop computers.
 Chipset is a circuit, which controls the majority of resources
(including the bus interface with the processor, cache memory and
RAM, expansion cards, etc.)

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Motherboard

 Chipset‘s job is to coordinate data transfers between the various
components of the computer (including the processor and memory).
 As the chipset is integrated into the motherboard, it is important to
choose a motherboard, which includes a recent chipset, in order to
maximize the computer‘s upgradeability.

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Motherboard

 The processor socket may be a rectangular connector
 into which the processor is mounted vertically (slot), or a
square-shaped connector with many small connectors into
which the processor is directly inserted (socket).
 The Basic Input Output System (BIOS) and Complementary
Metal-Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) are present on the
motherboard.

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ROM BIOS

 BIOS It is the basic program used as an interface between the
operating system and the motherboard. The BIOS is stored in
the ROM and cannot be rewritten.
 When the computer is switched on, it needs instructions to
start. BIOS contain the instructions for the starting up of the
computer.
 The BIOS runs when the computer is switched on.

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ROM BIOS

 The BIOS runs when the computer is switched on. It performs a Power
On Self Test (POST) that checks that the hardware is functioning
properly and the hardware devices are present.
 It checks whether the operating system is present on the hard drive.
 BIOS invokes the bootstrap loader to load the operating system into
memory.
 BIOS can be configured using an interface named BIOS setup, which
can be accessed when the computer is booting up (by pressing the DEL
key).

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ROM BIOS

 CMOS Chip BIOS ROMs are accompanied by a smaller CMOS
(CMOS is a type of memory technology) memory chip.
 When the computer is turned off, the power supply stops
providing electricity to the motherboard.
 When the computer is turned on again, the system still
displays the correct clock time.

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ROM BIOS

 This is because the CMOS chip saves some system information, such
as time, system date and essential system settings.
 CMOS is kept powered by a button battery located on the
motherboard .
 The CMOS chip is working even when the computer power is
switched off. Information of the hardware installed in the computer
(such as the number of tracks or sectors on each hard drive) is stored
in the CMOS chip.

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Ports and Interfaces

 Motherboard has a certain number of I/O sockets that are
connected to the ports and interfaces found on the rear side of
a computer.
 You can connect external devices to the ports and interfaces,
which get connected to the computer‘s motherboard.
 Serial Port— to connect old peripherals.
 Parallel Port— to connect old printers.

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Ports and Interfaces

 USB Ports—to connect newer peripherals like cameras, scanners and
printers to the computer.
 It uses a thin wire to connect to the devices, and many devices can
share that wire simultaneously.
 Firewire is another bus, used today mostly for video cameras and
external hard drives.
 RJ45 connector (called LAN or Ethernet port) is used to connect the
computer to a network.

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Ports and Interfaces

 It corresponds to a network card integrated into the motherboard.
 VGA connector for connecting a monitor. This connector interfaces
with the built-in graphics card.
 Audio plugs (line-in, line-out and microphone), for connecting sound
speakers and the microphone.
 This connector interfaces with the built-in sound card.
 PS/2 port to connect mouse and keyboard into PC.
 SCSI port for connecting the hard disk drives and network connectors.

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Expansion Slots

 The expansion slots are located on the motherboard. The
expansion cards are inserted in the expansion slots. These
cards give the computer new features or increased
performance. There are several types of slots:
 ISA (Industry Standard Architecture) slot—To connect modem
and input devices.
 PCI (Peripheral Component InterConnect) slot—To connect
audio, video and graphics. They are much faster than ISA cards.
 AGP (Accelerated Graphic Port) slot—A fast port for a graphics
card.

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Expansion Slots

 PCI (Peripheral Component InterConnect) Express
slot—Faster bus architecture than AGP and PCI buses.
 PC Card—It is used in laptop computers. It includes
Wi-Fi card, network card and external modem.

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Ribbon Cables

 Ribbon cables are flat, insulated and consist of several tiny wires
moulded together that carry data to different components on the
motherboard.
 There is a wire for each bit of the word or byte and additional wires to
coordinate the activity of moving information.

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Ribbon Cables

 They also connect the floppy drives, disk drives and CD-ROM drives to
the connectors in the motherboard.
 Nowadays, Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) cables
have replaced the ribbon cables to connect the drives to the
motherboard.

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Memory Chips

 The RAM consists of chips on a small circuit board (Figure 2.19). Two
types of memory chips— Single In-line Memory Module (SIMM) and
Dual In-line Memory Module (DIMM) are used in desktop computers.
 The CPU can retrieve information from DIMM chip at 64 bits compared
to 32 bits or 16 bits transfer with SIMM chips. DIMM chips are used in
Pentium 4 onwards to increase the access speed.

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Storage Devices

 The disk drives are present inside the machine.
 The common disk drives in a machine are hard disk drive, floppy drive
and CD drive or DVD drive.
 High-storage devices like hard disk, floppy disk and CDs are inserted
into the hard disk drive, floppy drive and CD drive, respectively.
 These storage devices can store large amounts of data, permanently.

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Processor

 The processor or the CPU is the main component of the computer.
Select a processor based on factors like its speed, performance,
reliability and motherboard support. Pentium Pro, Pentium 2 and
Pentium 4 are some of the processors.

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