5 Questions
What is the basic structure of a magnetic disk?
One or more platters with magnetic coating, divided into tracks and sectors
What is the purpose of a cylinder in the context of a magnetic disk?
It is the collection of all tracks that are the same distance from the edge of the platter
What are sectors in the context of a magnetic disk?
Segments within a track that traditionally contain 512 bytes of data each
What is the function of read-write heads in a hard drive?
To read and write data on the disk's surface
What does a hard drive use to write, rewrite, and access data?
Magnetization process
Study Notes
Magnetic Disk Structure
- A magnetic disk consists of platters, read-write heads, and a spindle motor
- The platters are rigid disks coated with magnetic material, spinning around the spindle motor
- Read-write heads float above the platters to read and write data
Cylinders in a Magnetic Disk
- A cylinder is a vertical column of tracks on multiple platters
- Each cylinder represents a single movement of the read-write heads
Sectors in a Magnetic Disk
- A sector is the smallest unit of data storage on a magnetic disk
- Each sector typically holds 512 bytes of data
- Sectors are divided into tracks, and multiple tracks form a cylinder
Read-Write Heads in a Hard Drive
- Read-write heads are used to read data from and write data to the magnetic disk
- They float above the platters, reading and writing data as the platters spin
Data Writing and Access in a Hard Drive
- A hard drive uses magnetic fields to write and rewrite data on the magnetic disk
- The read-write heads use electromagnetic pulses to magnetize tiny areas on the disk
- The hard drive accesses data by moving the read-write heads to the correct track and sector
Test your knowledge on mass storage, disk partitioning, disk scheduling, file and directory concepts, and data center disk technologies in operating systems.
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