Processing

Motherboard / Main Printed Circuit Board

• Purpose: holds together many of the crucial components of a computer, including the central processing unit (CPU), memory and connectors for input and output devices and serves as the main communication backbone, allowing these components to interact effectively and efficiently.

• Contains the buses or electrical pathways found in a computer that facilitate communication between the CPU, memory, and other hardware components, allowing for efficient data transfer and processing.

• Buses: allow data to travel among various components and facilitate communication between the CPU, memory, and peripheral devices, ensuring efficient processing and data transfer.

Types of Buses:

• Data Bus: Transports actual data between the components.

• Address Bus: Carries information about where data should be sent or retrieved from.

• Control Bus: Sends control signals to manage the operations of the CPU and other components.

Motherboard Form Factors

• Describes the physical layout of the different components and devices on the motherboard

• Various form factors exist for motherboards, the most common being the ATX

• ATX (Advanced Technology Extended): EATX, ATX, Micro ATX, Mini ATX

• ITX (Information Technology Extended): Mini-ITX, Nano-ITX, Pico-ITX, Mobile-ITX

Power Supply Unit (PSU)

• The PSU converts alternating current (AC) power from the wall socket into direct current (DC)

  • Must provide enough power for the installed components and future additions

  • Total wattage determines power supply

  • Connects through a 24 pin block

• To add additional hard drives to a computer, one must ensure the PSU has a free connector and the ability to power the unit

The CPU

• The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is known as the brain or processor of the computer by executing a program, which is a sequence of stored instructions

  • Manufacturers: Intel, AMD

  • Form Factors: Dual Inline Package (DIP), Pin Grid Array (PGA), Land Grid Array (LGA)

    • PGA and LGA are most relevant for course

    • PGA pins are most fragile due to nature of pins

    • CPU depends on the motherboard

  • Advanced RISC Machines Architectures are CPUs that are used most commonly in mobile phones and Tablets

• CPU’s have two types of architecture:

  • 32 bit or 64 bits (represents how many bits of data can be input at one time)

  • The wider the bus, the more data that can be processed per unit of time.

  • These CPU architectures are found in laptops, workstations, and Servers

  • Note: 32 bit systems are also known as x86, and 64-bit systems are known as x64.

    • Irrelevant to exam but related to identification numbers

  • Bits are the smallest unit of storage

  • a 32 bit software can work on a 32 bit cpu, or a 64 bit cpu, but 64 bit software can only work on 64 bit cpu

• CPU Speed

  • Measured in cycles per seconds: megahertz (MHZ) or gigahertz (GHz)

    • 1000 MHZ per GHz

  • Overclocking is a technique used to make a processor work at a faster speed than its original specification

    • Can potentially burn out the CPU

  • Throttling: a technique used to decrease the speed of the processor