Week 27 - Memory and Boot Procedure Overview Flashcards
What is the difference between volatile and non-volatile storage, and what are they typically used for?
Non-volatile: Permanent storage without power
Volatile: Requires power to store data
Typically, non volatile is used for long term (SSD) and volatile for fast temporary (RAM)
What is RAM made out of?
RAM is built from microscopic capacitors that can each represent a binary 1 or 0
Binary 1 is a capacitor with a charge, binary 0 is one without
What does RAM speed refer to?
The bus that transmits between the module and the memory controller
What units of measurement do we use when referring to RAM capacity and speed?
Capacity: GB
Speed: MHz
What part of the OS manages memory?
Kernel
Where does the kernel reside when the computer is running?
RAM
Where does the kernel reside when the computer is shut down?
Hard drive
Where are memory chips attached to?
A memory module
What are 2 common types of memory chips and where would you find them?
DIMM: For desktops
SoDIMM: For laptops/Mac
What is a common problem in RAM?
Data Corruption - EG, a binary one is flipped to a binary 0
What is kernel panic?
Happens when the kernel encounters a non-recoverable error and halts or restarts to prevent further possible damage
Known in the windows world as the blue screen of death (BSOD)
What is firmware and what uses it?
Programming stored in a chip, like ROM, EEPROM, Flash etc
Everything uses firmware fuckface
What is a volume?
A logical storage unit formatted with a file system that can be accessed by a computer
What is a file system?
A required system of data structures and methods for storing, retrieving, and keeping track of data
HDDS and SSDs are platform agnostic, file systems often aren’t
Reading and writing to an external drive requires the computer’s OS be able to understand the drive’s volumes and file systems
What is system firmware and where is it located?
The underlying system used to initialize computer and load the OS
Located in EEPROM/Flash on motherboard
