Internal System Components Flashcards
What is the motherboard?
▪ Printed circuit board (or PCB) that acts as the central hub where all other
hardware components connect and communicate, making it an essential
part of any computing device
What does UEFI stand for?
User Extensible Firmware Interface
What is the CPU?
o Central Processing Unit (CPU)
▪ Executes instructions and processes data, making it a critical component
of any computing device
What is ARM, and RISC?
ARM (Advanced RISC Machine)
RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer) is a type of microprocessor
architecture that utilizes a small, highly-optimized set of instructions
rather than the highly-specialized set of instructions typically found in
other architectures e.g. for mobile devices
What cycle does the processor follow?
Fetch -> Decode -> Execute
What does 32-bit and 64-bit refer to?
The amount of data the processor can process per second
How much memory can a 32-bit system address?
4GB
What is clock speed?
▪ Measured in gigahertz (GHz) to indicate how many instructions a
processor can execute per second
What is bus speed?
▪ Refers to how fast the processor can communicate with other
components in the system
What is hyper-threading?
▪ Innovative technology implemented in select Intel processors, enabling a
single processor core to manage multiple threads of execution
simultaneously
▪ This technology works by creating virtual cores within a physical core,
allowing it to handle multiple threads concurrently
What is virtualization?
Improves the performance of software virtualization solutions, allowing
multiple operating systems to run simultaneously on the same machine,
each with its own set of resources
What is a GPU?
o Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)
▪ Specialized processor designed to accelerate rendering images and
videos on a device’s screen
What are the differences between an integrated GPU and a discrete GPU? What are the advantages/disadvantages of both?
▪ Integrated GPU
● Are built into the processor, sharing system memory and
resources with the CPU
● Integrated GPUs are typically more energy-efficient, cost
effective, and space-saving
▪ Discrete GPU
● Are separate components that can be added to a computer
system
● Discrete GPUs require additional power, produce more heat, and
may require larger form factors
What is RAM?
o Random Access Memory (RAM)
▪ Provides temporary storage for data that the processor needs to access
quickly
What is DRAM?
o Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM)
▪ It stores each bit of data in a separate capacitor within an integrated
circuit
What is SDRAM?
o Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (SDRAM)
▪ Type of DRAM that synchronizes with the clock speed of the computer,
which enhances the overall speed of the system
What forms does SDRAM come in, where would you find them both?
▪ SDRAM comes in the Dual In-line Memory Module (DIMM) format for
Desktop PCs and Small Outline Dual In-line Memory Module (SODIMM)
format for laptops
What is the updated version of SDRAM called?
o Double Data Rate SDRAM
▪ Updated version of SDRAM that can transfer data on both the rising and
falling edges of the clock signal, effectively doubling the memory chip’s
data throughput
How many versions of DDR SDRAM are there?
DDR1 - 5, they are not backwards compatible
What forms of permanent storage are there?
HDD and SSD
What are the advantages of SSD’s?
- The absence of mechanical components allows for near instantaneous data access times, accelerating boot times, file transfers, and application load times
How can computers use fixed storage to supplement RAM? What is the proccess called?
To supplement RAM, computers use a portion of the HDD or SSD as virtual memory. This process is known as paging in the Windows operating system and a
“swap file” in the Linux and Unix operating systems
What is a NIC?
o Network Interface Card (NIC)
▪ Provides a dedicated, full-time connection to a network, translating the
data produced by the computer into a format that can be transmitted
over the network, and vice versa
What is a system bus?
o System Bus
▪ Critical component in computer architecture, serving as the primary
communication channel between the various components of a computer
system
