1.3 Computer-System Architecture

Question 1

A computer system can be organized according to the number of general-purpose _______.

Answer 1

processors

Question 2

Most computer systems used to have a single processor containing one CPU with a single _______.

Answer 2

processing core

Question 3

The core is the component that executes _______.

Answer 3

instructions

Question 4

The main CPU is capable of executing a general-purpose _______.

Answer 4

instruction set

Question 5

Special-purpose processors run a limited _______.

Answer 5

instruction set

Question 6

Examples of ______ processors include disk, keyboard, and graphics controllers .

Answer 6

Special-purpose

Question 7

The operating system sends information about tasks to special-purpose processors and monitors their _______.

Answer 7

status

Question 8

A disk-controller microprocessor implements its own disk queue and _______.

Answer 8

scheduling algorithm

Question 9

The use of special-purpose microprocessors does not turn a single-processor system into a _______.

Answer 9

multiprocessor

Question 10

If there is only one general-purpose CPU with a single processing core, the system is a _______.

Answer 10

single-processor system

Question 11

Very few contemporary computer systems are defined as _______ systems.

Answer 11

single-processor

Question 12

Multiprocessor systems have ___ or more processors.

Answer 12

two

Question 13

The primary advantage of multiprocessor systems is increased _______.

Answer 13

throughput

Question 14

The speed-up ratio with N processors is _______ than N.

Answer 14

less

Question 15

In symmetric multiprocessing (SMP), each peer CPU processor performs all tasks, including _______ functions.

Answer 15

operating-system

Question 16

In SMP architecture, each CPU processor has its own set of _______.

Answer 16

registers

Question 17

All processors in a multiprocessor system share _______ over the system bus.

Answer 17

physical memory

Question 18

A multiprocessor system allows processes and resources to be _______ dynamically among the various processors.

Answer 18

shared

Question 19

The definition of multiprocessor now includes _______ systems.

Answer 19

multicore

Question 20

On-chip communication is _______ than between-chip communication.

Answer 20

faster

Question 21

A dual-core design features two cores on the same _______.

Answer 21

processor chip

Question 22

The local cache specific to each core is often known as a level 1 or _______ cache.

Answer 22

L1

Question 23

The level 2 cache is local to the chip but is _______ by the two processing cores.

Answer 23

shared

Question 24

A multicore processor with N cores appears to the operating system as _______ standard CPUs.

Answer 24

N

Question 25

Adding additional CPUs increases computing power, but too many will lead to contention for the _______.

Answer 25

system bus

Question 26

The approach where each CPU has its own local memory is known as _______.

Answer 26

non-uniform memory access (NUMA)

Question 27

NUMA systems can scale more effectively as more _______ are added.

Answer 27

processors

Question 28

A potential drawback of NUMA systems is increased _______ when accessing remote memory.

Answer 28

latency

Question 29

Blade servers consist of multiple independent multiprocessor _______.

Answer 29

systems

Question 30

Each blade processor board boots _______ and runs its own operating system.

Answer 30

independently

Question 31

A clustered system gathers together multiple _____.

Answer 31

CPUs

Question 32

Clustered systems are composed of two or more individual systems, also known as _____.

Answer 32

nodes

Question 33

Clustered systems are considered _____.

Answer 33

loosely coupled

Question 34

The generally accepted definition of clustered computers is that they share _____ and are closely linked via a local-area network.

Answer 34

storage

Question 35

Clustering is usually used to provide high-_____ service.

Answer 35

availability

Question 36

High availability is generally obtained by adding a level of _____.

Answer 36

redundancy

Question 37

A layer of cluster software runs on the cluster _____.

Answer 37

nodes

Question 38

The ability to continue providing service proportional to the level of surviving hardware is called _____ degradation.

Answer 38

graceful

Question 39

Systems that can suffer a failure of any single component and still continue operation are called _____.

Answer 39

fault tolerant

Question 40

Fault tolerance requires a mechanism to allow the failure to be detected, diagnosed, and, if possible, _____.

Answer 40

corrected

Question 41

In asymmetric clustering, one machine is in _____ mode while the other is running applications.

Answer 41

hot-standby

Question 42

In symmetric clustering, two or more hosts are running applications and are _____.

Answer 42

monitoring each other

Question 43

Clusters can provide high-_____ computing environments.

Answer 43

performance

Question 44

The technique known as _____ divides a program into separate components that run in parallel.

Answer 44

parallelization

Question 45

Parallel clusters allow multiple hosts to access the same data on shared _____.

Answer 45

storage

Question 46

The function that ensures no conflicting operations occur in a parallel cluster is commonly known as a _____ manager.

Answer 46

distributed lock

Question 47

Cluster technology is changing rapidly, with some products supporting thousands of systems in a cluster, including those separated by _____.

Answer 47

miles

Question 48

Storage-area networks (SANs) allow many systems to attach to a pool of _____.

Answer 48

storage

Question 49

In a database cluster, dozens of hosts can share the same database, greatly increasing _____ and reliability.

Answer 49

performance