Introduction to Computer A digital computer is designed to process the

data in numerical form, its circuits perform

What is a Computer?
mathematical operations of addition,
The term "Computer" is derived from the Latin subtraction, multiplication, and division. The
word "Computare" which means "to compute" numbers operated on by a digital computer are
or "to calculate." expressed in the binary system.

Computers are machines that perform tasks or Digital Computers are generally classified by
calculations according to a set of instructions or size and power as follows
programs.
 Micro Computer
It is an electronic device used to store data and  Mini Computer
gives the results accurately within a fraction of a  Mainframe Computer
second.  Super Computer

Computers are extensively used everywhere. Micro Computer

It mainly consists of four basic units such as, Micro Computer is a small, relatively
inexpensive computer with a microprocessor as
 Input Unit
its CPU. The invention of the microprocessor
 Storage Unit
(single-chip CPU) gave birth to the much
 CPU cheaper microcomputers.
 Output Unit
Micro Computers are commonly divided into
Analog Computer four types such as
An analog computer represents the data as  Desktop
physical quantities and operates on the data by
 Laptop
manipulating the quantities. It is designed to
 Notebook
process data in which the variable quantities
 PDA (Personal Digital Assistant)
vary continuously.
Desktop
Hybrid Computer
A desktop computer is a personal computer (PC)
A hybrid is a combination of digital and analog
in a form intended for regular use at a single
computers. It combines the best features of
location. Early desktop computers are designed
both types of computers, i.e. It has the speed of
to lie flat on the desk, while modern towers
an analog computer and the memory and
stand upright. Most modern desktop computers
accuracy of a digital computer. It accepts analog
have separate screens and keyboards.
signals, converts them into digital, and
processes them in digital form. A hybrid Laptop Computer
computer may use or produce analog data or
A laptop is a portable computer that has the
digital data. It accepts a continuously varying
same capabilities as a desktop but is small
input, which is then converted into a set of
enough for easy mobility.
discrete values for digital processing.
Notebook Computer
Digital Computer
A notebook computer has a keyboard with an A computer can be categorized according to:
attached screen. A notebook's screen is thinner
 Speed
than the usual desktop computer monitor
 Accuracy
because the machine is designed to be portable,
which is why the notebook itself is small,  Versatility
compact, and lightweight.  Reliability
 Power of remembering
Personal Digital Assistant  Diligence
A Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) is a device  Storage
similar to a computer that fits in the palm of Speed
users' hands and allows them to collect
information such as contacts, appointments, Computers work at an incredible speed. It can
files, programs, and more. carry out instructions at a very high speed. A
powerful computer is capable of performing
Mini Computer about 3-4 million simple instructions per
Mini computers were designed for control, second. It can perform arithmetic and logical
instrumentation, human interaction, and operations within a fraction of a second.
communication switching as it is distinct from Accuracy
calculation and record keeping. A small, multi-
user computer that can support 10 to a hundred The computer provides a high degree of
users simultaneously. accuracy. Computers perform all jobs with 100%
accuracy. The degree of accuracy of a computer
Mainframe Computer depends on the instruction and processor type.
Mainframe Computers is a powerful multi-user Versatility
computer that can support thousands of users
simultaneously. Mainframe computers can also The computer is versatile in nature. It can
process data at very high speeds, i.e., hundreds perform different types of tasks easily. At one
of million instructions per second and they are moment users can use the computer to prepare
also quite expensive. Normally, they are used in a letter document and in the next moment, they
banking, airlines, and railways, etc. for their may play music or print a document.
applications. Power of remembering
Super Computer A computer can store and recall any
Super Computers are best in terms of information because it has secondary storage.
processing capacity and also the most expensive All information can be retained as long as
one. An extremely fast computer that can desired by the user and that can be recalled
perform hundreds of millions of instructions per almost simultaneously and accurately even after
second. several years.

Characteristics of Computer Diligence

What are the characteristics of a computer? Computers can perform long and complex
calculations with the same speed and accuracy
Computers have some important features from the start till the end. Being a machine, a
which have made them so popular.
computer does not suffer from the human traits Input Unit
of tiredness and lack of concentration.
An input device is hardware or peripheral
Storage device used to send data to a computer. An
input device allows users to communicate and
A large volume of data and information can be
feed instructions and data to computers for
stored in the computer and also retrieved
processing, display, storage, and/or
whenever required. The computer has two
transmission.
types of storage. They are Primary storage and
Secondary storage. The important and most commonly used input
devices are
In Primary Storage, a limited amount of data
can be stored temporarily like RAM, ROM.  Keyboard
 Mouse
Secondary storage can store a large amount of
data permanently like a floppy and compact Other input devices are
disk.
 Joystick
Components of Computer System  Scanner
 Barcode Reader
What are the components of a computer
system? CPU (Processing Unit)
The computer is an electronic device that The CPU is the heart of the computer, it is the
accepts (reads) data from the user and part of a computer that interprets and executes
processes the data by performing calculations the instruction.
and operations on it and generates (writes) the
desired output. The two components in the CPU are

A computer consists of four major components  Arithmetic and logic unit (ALU)
such as  Control Unit (CU)

Arithmetic and logic unit (ALU)

 Input Devices (Input Unit) The ALU performs arithmetic and logical
 CPU (Processing Unit) operations. Arithmetic operations include
 Memory (Storage Unit) addition, subtraction, multiplication, and
 Output Devices (Output Unit) division. Logical operations include comparing
numbers, letters, and special characters. The
ALU is a fundamental building block of the
Central Processing Unit of a computer.

Control Unit (CU)

A Control Unit (CU) handles all processor

control signals. It directs all input and output
flow, fetches code for instructions from micro-
programs, and directs other units and models
by providing control and timing signals.
Memory Unit Computer Architecture refers to those
attributes of a system visible to a programmer.
Computer memory is a device that stores
computer data and programs. It stores
programs, data results, or any kind of
Architectural attributes that include instruction
information. Memory stores binary information,
set, number of bits used to represent various
i.e. 0's and 1's in internal storage areas in the
data types (numbers, characters), I/O
computer. Moreover, the term memory is
mechanism, and techniques for addressing
usually used as shorthand for physical memory,
memory.
which refers to the actual chips capable of
holding data. Some computers also use virtual Processing of Computer Organization
memory, which expands physical memory onto
a hard disk.

Output Unit Central Processing Unit (CPU)

Output devices are peripheral equipment that What is a CPU?

converts a computer's output to a form that can
CPU stands for Central Processing Unit.
be seen, heard, or used as an input for another
device, process, or system. The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is the brain of
the computer, it is a part of a computer that
The important output devices, which are used
interprets and executes the instruction.
in computer systems are

 Monitors
 Printer
 Graphic Plotter

Introduction to Computer Organization

Computer Organizations refer to the

operational units and their interconnection that
realize the architectural specifications.
It is also known as microprocessor or processor.
Organizational attributes that include those
hardware details transparent to the The task of performing operations like
programmer, such as control signals, interfaces arithmetic and logical operations is called
between the computer and peripherals, and the processing. The CPU takes data and instructions
memory technology used. from the storage unit and makes all sorts of
calculations based on the instructions given and And also the Central Processing Unit includes
the type of data provided. It is then sent back to the Arithmetic logic unit and control unit. It has
the storage unit five major operations such as

It processes the instructions that it collects by  It accepts data as input.

decoding the code in programs. The CPU chip is  It stores data and instruction.
usually in the shape of a square or rectangle  It processes data as per instruction.
and has one notched corner to help place the  It controls all operations inside a
chip into the motherboard properly. computer.
 It gives the result in the form of output.
The main functions of CPU are to Fetch,
Decode, Execute, and Write back. Central Processing Unit (CPU)
The CPU contains: Processor Speed and Booting
1. Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU) Processor Speed
The Arithmetic and Logic Unit performs A microprocessor (processor or CPU) is where
arithmetic and logical operations. Arithmetic the instructions of a program are processed.
operations include addition, subtraction, (show image)
multiplication, and division. Logic Unit performs
the following operations such as AND, OR, NOT, The high-level language that the programmer
XOR, NOR, NAND, etc uses is transformed into a binary code that the
CPU understands and creates an executable file
2. Control Unit (CU) that will launch the program when double-
clicked.
A Control Unit (CU) handles all processor
control signals. It generates timing signals such A hertz is one cycle per second, 1 MHz is 1
that the coordination among devices takes million cycles per second and 1000 MHz is 1
place. GHz( one billion cycles per second). (refer video)
If the user has a CPU at 2 GHz(animation: that is
The control unit is designed in two ways such as
2000 MHz), it can do 2 billion program
a. Hardwired control instructions per second.

The Design is based on a fixed architecture. The Steps to find the CPU speed in the different
CU is made up of flip-flops, logic gates, digital operating system
circuits, and encoder & decoder.
To find the CPU speed in Windows XP “click the
b. Micro-program control START button, then scroll go to my computer
and right-click on that and select Properties”.
Micro-programs are stored in a special control
memory and are based on flowcharts. They are Users can also find the CPU speed by the Help
replaceable and ideal because of their and Support Center.
simplicity.It directs all input and output flow,
To find the CPU speed in Vista and Windows 7
fetches code for instructions from
“click the START button and scroll to Control
microprograms, and directs other units and
Panel then select the System and Security, in
models by providing control and timing signals.
that click on the System”.
For checking CPU speed in Macs “ click on the The Memory Unit is the part of the computer
Apple menu and select About this Mac". that holds data and instructions for processing.
It stores program results or any kind of
For advanced Windows users of Windows XP
information.
“click the START button and select RUN “.
Memory stores binary information i.e. 0's and
Booting
1's. Memory is measured in bytes.
Booting is the initialization of the computerized
Types of Memory
system. The booting process can be “hard”
when electrical power to the CPU is switched The computer memory is divided into two
from off to on. Soft booting can be initiated by types, they are
hardware such as a button press, or by software
 Primary or Main memory
command.
 Secondary memory
A boot loader is a computer program that loads
an operating system or some other software for
the computer.

The boot sector refers to a single sector

(normally the first in the active partition) that
contains the code to boot the operating system.

A sector of a hard disk, floppy disk, or similar

data storage device that contains code for
booting programs (usually, but not necessarily, Memory
operating systems) stored in other parts of the Primary Memory
disk.
Primary Memory is used for immediate access
Before the boot sector is read, the computer’s to data by the processor. Most computer
BIOS will call a small program called an MBR systems around the world use primary memory.
(Master Boot Record), which normally resides in
the first record of the first disk. Primary memory can be divided into two types.

The small program stored in the boot sector is  RAM (Random Access Memory)
then executed and the operating system will  ROM (Read Only Memory)
begin to load. To be a valid boot sector, the
RAM (Random Access Memory)
two-byte hex word 0xAA55, called the boot
sector signature, must exist at the end of the Random Access Memory is the central storage
sector. Otherwise, either the BIOS or MBR code unit in a computer system. The information
will report an error message and halt any OS stored in the RAM is typically loaded from the
bootstrapping process. computer's hard disk and includes data related
to the operating system and certain
 Memory
applications.
 Hierarchy Memory
There are primarily two forms of RAM
Memory
  Static RAM (SRAM) developed that can be erased and
 Dynamic RAM (DRAM) reprogrammed.

Static RAM (SRAM) EPROM

In SRAM, a bit of data is stored using the state EPROM stands for Erasable Programmable
of a flip-flop. This is most expensive among Read-Only Memory. This type of memory uses
other forms of RAMs, but is generally faster and floating-gate transistors and can be erased by
requires less power than DRAM and, in modern strong ultraviolet light.
computers, is often used as cache memory for
EEPROM
the CPU.
EEPROM stands for Electrically Erasable
Dynamic RAM (DRAM)
Programmable Read-Only Memory. EEPROM
Widely used in modern computers as primary can be erased with an electrical charge and is
memory, DRAM is slower than SRAM but is used in flash memory
inexpensive due to its one transistor-one
Memory
capacitor paired assembly of memory storage.
Secondary Memory
ROM (Read Only Memory)
Secondary Memory refers to storage devices,
The CPU can only fetch or read instructions
such as hard drives and Solid State Drives (SSD).
from ROM. ROM comes with instructions
It may also refer to removable storage media,
permanently stored inside. And these
such as USB flash drives, CDs, and DVDs.
instructions cannot be overwritten by the
Secondary memory is much slower than
computer's CPU.
primary memory, it typically offers a far greater
Types of ROM storage capacity.

 PROM – Programmable Read-Only Secondary memory includes

Memory
 Floppy disk
 EPROM – Erasable Programmable Read-
 Hard disk drive
Only Memory
 Optical disk
 EEPROM – Electrically Erasable
 USB thumb drive
Programmable Read-Only Memory
Floppy Disk
PROM
These are small removable disks that are plastic
PROM Stands for "Programmable Read-Only
coated with magnetic recording material. This
Memory," and is pronounced "p-rom," not
portable storage device is a rewritable media
"prom". PROM is a type of ROM that is
and can be reused a number of times
programmed after the memory is constructed.
PROM chips have several different applications, Hard Disk Drive
including cell phones, video game consoles,
medical devices, and other electronics. They Another form of auxiliary storage is a hard disk.
provide a simple means of programming A hard disk consists of one or more rigid metal
electronic devices. While PROM cannot be plates coated with a metal oxide material that
erased, two other versions of PROM have been allows data to be magnetically recorded on the
surface of the platters
Optical Disk DVD-RW stands for DVD-Rewritable, these disks
can be erased and rewritten at any time.
An Optical disk is any storage media that hold
content in digital format and is read using a USB Thumb Drive
laser assembly is considered as optical media.
A USB flash drive is a data storage device that
The most common types of optical media are includes flash memory with an integrated
Blu-ray, CDs, and DVDs Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface. USB flash
drives are typically removable and rewritable,
CDs can store up to 700 megabytes (MB) of
physically much smaller than an optical disc.
data.
USB drives that are often used for floppy disks
DVDs can store up to 8.5 GB of data.
were used, i.e., for storage, back-up, and
Blu-ray discs, which are the newest type of transfer of computer files. They are smaller,
optical media, can store up to 50 GB of data. faster, and have thousands of times more
capacity, durable, and reliable.
CD
Memory
CD is an abbreviation of a compact disk and is a
form of data storage that can transfer data up Cache Memory
to the speed of 7800 KB/s. A standard 120 mm
A CPU cache is a cache used to reduce the
CD holds up to 700 MB of data, or about 70
average time to access memory. The cache is a
minutes of audio.
smaller, faster memory which stores the copies
There are two types of CD: CD-ROM and CD- of the data from frequently used main memory
RW. locations.

CD-ROM stands for CD-Read Only Memory and Most CPUs have different independent caches,
they function in the same way as Read Only including instruction and data caches, where
Memory does. the data cache is usually organized as a
hierarchy of more cache levels (L1, L2, etc.).
CD-RW Stands for CD-Rewritable, these disks
can be erased and rewritten at any time When the processor needs to read from or
write to a location in main memory, it first
DVD checks whether a copy of that data is in the
DVD is an abbreviation of Digital Versatile Disc cache or not. If so, the processor immediately
and is an optical disc storage media format that reads from or writes to the cache, which is
can be used for data storage. The DVD supports much faster than reading from or writing to the
disks with capacities of 4.7 GB to 17 GB and main memory.
access rates of 600 KBps to 1.3 MBps. A Cache Memory Entries
standard DVD disc store up to 4.7 GB of data.
Data is transferred between memory and cache
There are two types of DVD's in blocks of fixed size, called cache lines. When
DVD-ROM stands for DVD-Read Only Memory a cache line is copied from memory into the
and they function in the same way as Read Only cache, a cache entry is created.
Memory does.
A cache entry will include the copied data as measure of the effectiveness of the cache for a
well as the requested memory location that is given program or algorithm. Read misses delay
called a tag. When a processor needs to read or execution because they require data to be
write a location in main memory, it first checks transferred from memory much more slowly
the corresponding entry in the cache. The cache than the cache itself. Write misses may occur
checks for the contents of the requested without such a penalty since the processor can
memory location in any cache lines that contain continue execution while data is copied to the
the address. main memory in the background.

Cache Hit Replacement Policies

If the processor finds that the memory location The cache may have to evict one of the existing
is in the cache, a cache hit has occurred. If a entries, for the new entry on cache miss in
cache hit, the processor immediately reads or order to make room. It uses to choose the entry
writes the data in the cache line. to evict is called the replacement policy. The
fundamental problem with any replacement
Cache Miss
policy is that it must predict which existing
If the processor does not find the memory cache entry is least likely to be used in the
location in the cache, a cache miss has future. Predicting the future is difficult, so there
occurred. In cache miss, the cache allocates a is no perfect way to choose among the variety
new entry, copies data from the main memory. of replacement policies available.
Then the request is fulfilled from the contents
Write Policies
of the cache.
If data is written to the cache, at some point it
Structure of Cache Entry
must also be written to the main memory. The
Cache row entries usually have the following timing of this write is known as the write policy.
structure In a write-through cache, every write to the
cache causes a write to the main memory.
 Tag Alternatively, in a write-back or copy-back
 data block cache, writes are not immediately mirrored to
 flag bits the main memory. Instead, the cache tracks
The data block (cache line) contains the actual which locations have been written over (these
data fetched from the main memory. locations are marked dirty). The data in these
locations are written back to the main memory
The tag contains (part of) the address of the only when that data is evicted from the cache.
actual data fetched from the main memory.

For each cache row entry, an instruction cache

requires only one flag bit that is a valid bit.

The valid bit indicates whether a cache block

has been loaded with valid data or not.

Cache Performance

The proportion of accesses that result in a cache

hit is known as the hit rate. And it can be a
Relationship between Hardware and Software