1.2 Flashcards
(27 cards)
What are the main factors affecting CPU performance?
- Clock speed
- Cache size
- Number of cores
How is clock speed measured?
In hertz (Hz) and gigahertz (GHz)
What does a faster clock speed mean for a CPU?
More instructions are fetched, decoded, and executed in a second
What is the typical clock speed range for a PC?
Between 2GHz and 4GHz
True or False: A 4GHz processor will always operate twice as fast as a 2GHz processor.
False
What analogy is used to explain bottlenecks in CPU performance?
A three-lane motorway reducing to a single-lane road
What is the role of cache memory in CPU performance?
It stores frequently used instructions or data temporarily
Why is accessing main memory (RAM) slower than CPU operations?
Because reading from and writing to main memory is much slower
What is the typical RAM size for a PC in 2020?
8 or 16GB
How much cache memory might a typical PC have?
About 2MB
What happens if the required information is not in the cache?
It has to be fetched from RAM
Fill in the blank: The more _______ a computer has, the more data and instructions can be held in cache.
cache memory
What is the relationship between cache memory size and CPU performance?
More cache memory improves processor performance
What is the compromise modern computers face regarding memory?
Between speed and cost
What is Level 1 cache?
Extremely fast but small cache (between 2-64KB) that speeds up the Fetch-Execute cycle.
What is the size range of Level 2 cache?
256KB-2MB.
How does Level 2 cache compare to RAM?
Fairly fast and much faster than RAM.
What is the purpose of Level 3 data cache?
Some CPUs include it for additional caching.
What is the relationship between clock speed and cache memory in computer performance?
Higher clock speed and larger cache can improve performance.
What type of memory is the most expensive?
Cache memory.
What does a dual-core processor contain?
Two processing units within the CPU.
How many processing units does a quad-core processor have?
Four processing units.
What is parallel processing?
Executing two or more instructions simultaneously.
True or False: A dual-core processor can perform twice as many operations per second.
False.
