Chapter 2

Basic Structure of Computers

Jin-Fu Li
Department of Electrical Engineering
National Central University
Jungli, Taiwan

Outline

Functional Units
Basic Operational Concepts
Bus Structures
Software
Performance

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

Content Coverage
Main Memory System
Address

Data/Instruction

Central Processing Unit (CPU)

Operational
Registers
Cache
memory

Program
Counter

Arithmetic
and
Logic Unit

Instruction
Sets

Control Unit

Input/Output System

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

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Functional Units
A computer consists of three main parts:
A processor (CPU)
A main-memory system
An I/O system

The CPU consists of a control unit, registers, the

arithmetic and logic unit, the instruction execution unit,
and the interconnections among these components
The information handled by a computer

Instruction

Govern the transfer information within a computer as well as

between the computer and its I/O devices
Specify the arithmetic and logic operations to be performed

Data

Numbers and encoded characters that are used as operands by the

instructions

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Program
A list of instructions that performs a task is called a
program
The program usually is stored in a memory called
program memory
The computer is completely controlled by the stored
program, except for possible external interruption by an
operator or by I/O devices connected to the machine
Information handled by a computer must be encoded in a
suitable format. Most present-day hardware employs
digital circuits that have only two stable states, 0 (OFF)
and 1 (ON)

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

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Memory Unit
Memory

The storage area in which programs are kept when they are
running and that contains the data needed by the running
programs

Types of memory
Volatile memory: storage that retains data only if it is receiving
power, such as dynamic random access memory (DRAM)
Nonvolatile memory: a form of memory that retains data even in
the absence of a power source and that is used to store programs
between runs, such as flash memory

Usually, a computer has two classes of storage

Primary memory and secondary memory

Primary memory

Also called main memory. Volatile memory used to hold

programs while they are running; typically consists of DRAM in
todays computers

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

Memory Unit
Secondary memory

Nonvolatile memory used to store programs and data between

runs; typically consists of magnetic disks in todays computers

The memory consists of storage cells, each capable of

storing one bit of information
The storage cells are processed in groups of fixed size called
words
To provide easy access to any word in the memory, a distinct
address is associated with each word location

The number of bits in each word is often referred to as the

word length of the computer

Typical word length from 16 to 64 bits

The capacity of the memory is one factor that

characterizes the size of a computer
Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

Memory Unit
Instruction and data can be written into the memory or
read out under the control of the processor
It is essential to be able to access any word location in the
memory as quickly as possible
Memory in which any location can be reached in a short and
fixed amount of time after specifying its address called randomaccess memory (RAM)

The time required to access one word is called the

memory access time

This time is fixed, independent of the location of the word being

accessed

The memory of a computer is normally implemented as a

memory hierarchy of three or four levels
The small, fast, RAM units are called caches
The largest and slowest unit is referred to as the main memory

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

Arithmetic and Logic Unit

Most computer operations are performed in the
arithmetic and logic unit (ALU) of the processor
For example, consider two numbers stored in the memory
are to be added

They are brought into the processor, and the actual addition is
carried out by the ALU. Then sum may be stored in the memory
or retained in the processor for immediate use

Typical arithmetic and logic operation

Addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, comparison,

complement, etc.

When operands are brought into the processor, they are

stored in high-speed storage elements called registers.

Each register can store one word of data

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

Control Unit
The control unit is the nerve center that sends control
signals to other units and senses their states

Thus the control unit serves as a coordinator of the memory,

arithmetic and logic, and input/output units

The operation of a computer can be summarized as

follows:
The computer accepts information in the form of programs and
data through an input unit and stores it in the memory
Information stored in the memory is fetched, under program
control, into an ALU, where it is processed
Processed information leaves the computer through an output
unit
All activities inside the machine are directed by the control unit

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Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

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Computer Components: Top-Level View

Memory

Input/Output

System Bus

MAR

MDR

PC

R0
R1

IR

.
.
.

Processor

Control

ALU

Rn-1
n general purpose registers
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Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

11

Basic Operational Concepts

Memory

Input/Output

System Bus

MAR

MDR

PC

R0
R1

IR

.
.
.

Processor

Control

ALU

Rn-1
n general purpose registers

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Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

12

A Partial Program Execution Example

Memory
300
301
302

1940
5941
2941

940
941

0003
0002

..
.

Memory
300
301
302

940
941

1940
5941
2941

..
.

0003
0002

CPU Register
300

Memory

PC

1940

AC
IR

Step 1

300
301
302

1940
5941
2941

940
941

0003
0002

CPU Register

Memory

301 PC
0 0 0 3 AC
5941

Step 3

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..
.

IR

300
301
302

940
941
Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

1940
5941
2941

..
.

0003
0002

CPU Register
301 PC
0 0 0 3 AC
1940

IR

Step 2

CPU Register
302 PC
0 0 0 53 AC
5941

IR

3+2=5

Step 4
13

A Partial Program Execution Example

Memory
300
301
302

1940
5941
2941

940
941

0003
0002

..
.

Memory

CPU Register
302 PC
0 0 0 5 AC
2941

Step 5

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IR

300
301
302

1940
5941
2941

940
941

0003
0005

..
.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

CPU Register
303 PC
0 0 0 5 AC
2941

IR

Step 6

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Interrupt
Normal execution of programs may be preempted if some
device requires urgent servicing
To deal with the situation immediately, the normal
execution of the current program must be interrupted
Procedure of interrupt operation
The device raises an interrupt signal
The processor provides the requested service by executing an
appropriate interrupt-service routine
The state of the processor is first saved before servicing the
interrupt

Normally, the contents of the PC, the general registers, and some
control information are stored in memory

When the interrupt-service routine is completed, the state of the

processor is restored so that the interrupted program may
continue

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

15

Classes of Interrupts
Program

Generated by some condition that occurs as a result of an

instruction execution such as arithmetic overflow, division by
zero, attempt to execute an illegal machine instruction, or
reference outside a users allowed memory space

Timer

Generated by a timer within the processor. This allows the

operating system to perform certain functions on a regular basis

I/O

Generated by an I/O controller, to signal normal completion of

an operation or to signal a variety of error conditions

Hardware failure

Generated by a failure such as power failure or memory parity

error

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

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Bus Structures
A group of lines that serves a connecting path for several
devices is called a bus
In addition to the lines that carry the data, the bus must have
lines for address and control purposes
The simplest way to interconnect functional units is to use a
single bus, as shown below

Input

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Output

Memory

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

Processor

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Drawbacks of the Single Bus Structure

The devices connected to a bus vary widely in their speed
of operation
Some devices are relatively slow, such as printer and keyboard
Some devices are considerably fast, such as optical disks
Memory and processor units operate are the fastest parts of a
computer

Efficient transfer mechanism thus is needed to cope with

this problem
A common approach is to include buffer registers with the
devices to hold the information during transfers
An another approach is to use two-bus structure and an
additional transfer mechanism

A high-performance bus, a low-performance, and a bridge for

transferring the data between the two buses. ARMA Bus belongs to
this structure

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

18

Software
In order for a user to enter and run an application
program, the computer must already contain some
system software in its memory
System software is a collection of programs that are
executed as needed to perform functions such as

Receiving and interpreting user commands

Running standard application programs such as word processors,
or games
Managing the storage and retrieval of files in secondary storage
devices
Running standard application programs such as word processors,
etc
Controlling I/O units to receive input information and produce
output results

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

19

Software
Translating programs from source form prepared by the user into
object form consisting of machine instructions
Linking and running user-written application programs with
existing standard library routines, such as numerical computation
packages

System software is thus responsible for the coordination

of all activities in a computing system

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

20

Operating System
Operating system (OS)

This is a large program, or actually a collection of routines, that is

used to control the sharing of and interaction among various
computer units as they perform application programs

The OS routines perform the tasks required to assign

computer resource to individual application programs

These tasks include assigning memory and magnetic disk space

to program and data files, moving data between memory and
disk units, and handling I/O operations

In the following, a system with one processor, one disk,

and one printer is given to explain the basics of OS

Assume that part of the programs task involves reading a data

file from the disk into the memory, performing some
computation on the data, and printing the results

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Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

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User Program and OS Routine Sharing

t0-t1: OS routine initiates loading the application program
from disk to memory, waits until the transfer is completed,
and passes execution control to the application program.

Printer

Disk

OS
routines

Program

t0

t1

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t2

t3

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

t4

t5 Time

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Multiprogramming or Multitasking
Printer

Disk

OS
routines

Program

t0

t1

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t2

t3

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

t4

t5 Time

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Performance
The speed with which a computer executes programs is
affected by the design of its hardware and its machine
language instructions
Because programs are usually written in a high-level
language, performance is also affected by the compiler
that translates programs into machine languages
For best performance, the following factors must be
considered
Compiler
Instruction set
Hardware design

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Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

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Performance
Processor circuits are controlled by a timing signal called
a clock

The clock defines regular time intervals, called clock cycles

To execute a machine instruction, the processor divides

the action to be performed into a sequence of basic steps,
such that each step can be completed in one clock cycle
Let the length P of one clock cycle, its inverse is the clock
rate, R=1/P
Basic performance equation

T=(NxS)/R, where T is the processor time required to execute a

program, N is the number of instruction executions, and S is the
average number of basic steps needed to execute one machine
instruction

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Faster Clock=Shorter Running Time?

Faster steps do not necessarily mean shorter travel time

Solution
1 GHz
4 steps

20 steps
2 GHz

[Source: B. Parhami, UCSB]

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Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

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System Balance is Essential

Note that system balance is absolutely essential for
improving performance
If one replaces a machines processor with a model
having twice the performance, this will not double the
overall system performance unless corresponding
improvements are made to other parts of the system
CPU - bound task

Input

Processing

I/O -bound task

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Output

[Source: B. Parhami, UCSB]

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

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Performance Improvement
Pipelining and superscalar operation
Pipelining: by overlapping the execution of successive
instructions
Superscalar: different instructions are concurrently executed with
multiple instruction pipelines. This means that multiple
functional units are needed

Clock rate improvement

Improving the integrated-circuit technology makes logic circuits
faster, which reduces the time needed to complete a basic step
Reducing amount of processing done in one basic step also makes
it possible to reduce the clock period, P. However, if the actions
that have to be performed by an instruction remain the same, the
number of basic steps needed may increase

Reduce the number of basic steps to execute

Reduced instruction set computers (RISC) and complex

instruction set computers (CISC)

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Reporting Computer Performance

Measured or estimated execution times for three
programs
Time on machine
X

Time on machine
Y

Speedup of Y
over X

Program A

20

200

0.1

Program B

1000

100

10.0

Program C

1500

150

10.0

All 3 progs

2520

450

5.6

Analogy

If a car is driven to a city 100 km away at 100 km/hr and returns

at 50 km/hr, the average speed is not (100 + 50) / 2 but is
obtained from the fact that it travels 200 km in 3 hours
[Source: B. Parhami, UCSB]

Advanced Reliable Systems (ARES) Lab.

Jin-Fu Li, EE, NCU

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