Computer Architecture Quiz

Basic Concepts and Computer Evolution

• Computer architecture focuses on attributes visible to the programmer, impacting program execution. Organizational attributes involve hardware details and control signals transparent to programmers.
• Computer organization deals with operational units and their interconnections. These realize architectural specifications.
• IBM System/370 architecture, introduced in 1970, included a variety of models allowing upgrades without software changes.
• A hierarchical system consists of inter-related subsystems, crucial to the design and description of intricate systems. Designers work with a particular level at a time, concentrating on structure and function.
• Computers perform four basic functions: data processing (a broad range of forms and requirements), data storage (short and long-term), data movement (input/output and communications), and control (managing resources and orchestrating functions).
• Computer structure includes components like the Central Processing Unit (CPU), Main Memory, I/O, and System Interconnection. The CPU controls operations and performs data processing. Main Memory stores data. I/O moves data between the computer and its external environment. System Interconnection facilitates communications between these components.
• Multicore units have multiple processing cores on a single chip. Cores are specialized units equivalent to a single-CPU system. Processors are silicon components interpreting and executing instructions. A multicore processor has numerous cores.

Cache Memory

• Cache memory sits between the processor and main memory, smaller and faster than main memory.
• Data from main memory likely to be used soon is placed in the cache to speed up memory access.
• Multiple cache levels (L1, L2, L3, etc.) progressively distance from the CPU core to optimize performance.

History of Computers

• First Generation (Vacuum Tubes): Vacuum tubes were used for digital logic circuits and memory in the 1940s and 1950s. The IAS computer was a prototype of general-purpose computers, built in the mid-1950s using this technology. It used the stored-program concept.
• Second Generation (Transistors): Transistors, solid-state devices made from silicon, replaced vacuum tubes in the 1950s and 1960s. Transistors were smaller, cheaper, and dissipated less heat. Fully transistorized computers became commercially available in the late 1950s.
• Third Generation (Integrated Circuits): Integrated circuits (ICs) revolutionized computer design in the mid-1950s. ICs combined multiple transistors and other components onto a single chip, reducing cost and complexity. Key machines from this era included the IBM System/360 and DEC PDP-8.
• Later Generations (VLSI, ULSI, Processors): Subsequent generations moved towards very large scale integration (VLSI) and ultra-large scale integration (ULSI) to exponentially increase the number of transistors on a single chip. Moore's Law, a trend observed in the 1960s, described the doubling of transistors on a chip roughly every year. This led to smaller, cheaper, faster, and more powerful computers.
• IBM System/360: The first planned computer family with compatible models, launched in 1964, allowed running programs on various models within this family.
• Key milestones include the Intel 4004 (1971), the first microprocessor containing all CPU components on a single integrated circuit, followed by the 8008 (1972, first 8-bit processor), and the 8080 (1974, first general-purpose microprocessor). The evolution of Intel processors is represented in figures and tables detailing their features and specifications.

Registers

• Registers are storage locations internal to the CPU, employed temporarily to hold operands and results in ALU operations. Several specialized registers exist, such as the Memory Buffer Register (MBR), Memory Address Register (MAR), Instruction Register (IR), and the Instruction Buffer Register (IBR), and Program Counter (PC).

Embedded Systems

• Embedded systems integrate electronics and software into products, like appliances and other devices.
• Billions of these are manufactured yearly, often tightly coupled to the environment. This can lead to real-time constraints (interacting with the environment requires timely operation). Real-time constraints dictate the timing of software operations.
• These are organized around a processor, A/D and D/A converters, memory, and other modules like sensors, actuators, and custom logic.
• Deeply embedded systems have processors whose behavior isn't easily observed. They have no user interaction after initial setup.

The Internet of Things (IoT)

• IoT comprises interconnected smart devices used in many systems and applications.
• Driven by deeply embedded systems using wired and wireless connections between the devices and the larger networks like the Internet.
• Generations of deployment (IT, OT, personal technology, sensor/actuator technology) contribute to the complexity.
• The concept encompasses billions of interconnected embedded devices.

Embedded Operating Systems

• Two general approaches to developing embedded operating systems (OSs): adapting existing OSes or creating a custom embedded OS.
• Choosing the right approach depends on whether adapting an existing OS will suffice or whether creating a dedicated OS for specific applications is more desirable

Cloud Computing

• A model for on-demand network access to configurable computing resources, requiring minimal management.
• Benefits include economies of scale, professional network and security management, and only paying for used services. Cloud providers manage infrastructure and security.

Cloud Networking

• Network infrastructure required for enabling cloud computing. This includes features like high-performance connections and security across networks and across IT and OT systems.

Cloud Storage

• A subset of cloud technologies for database storage and database applications hosted on remote cloud servers. Database applications are hosted remotely, enabling access by small businesses and users.

Microcontrollers

• Microcontrollers are microprocessors integrated with additional components like peripherals (analog/digital conversion, serial/parallel I/O ports). They have specialized functionality to handle direct interaction with the environment
• Often have several standard components (memory, timers, etc.) integrated.

ARM

• ARM refers to a processor architecture based on reduced instruction set computing (RISC) principles. It's widely used in embedded systems for its small die size and low power consumption due to specialized RISC designs.
• ARM produces standard instruction sets and processors, like the Cortex-A, Cortex-R, and Cortex-M families.