Computer Hardware & Software – Rapid Review

Hardware Categories

• Physical components; five main classes: input, output, processing, storage, communication

Input Devices (Data → Computer)

• Keyboard – alphanumeric entry

• Mouse / Touchpad – pointer control

• Touchscreen – direct touch interface

• Scanner – converts paper → digital

Output Devices (Computer → User)

• Monitor – visual display (LCD, LED, OLED)

• Projector – large-screen display

• Printer – $2$ D (inkjet, laser) & $3$ D models

• Plotter – precision line graphics

• Speakers / Headphones – audio

Storage Hardware

• Key metrics: capacity, speed, $cost/MB$

• Magnetic: HDD, magnetic tape (high capacity, slow)

• Optical: CD, DVD (laser pits/lands)

• Flash (solid-state): SSD, USB flash drive, SD/microSD (fast, no moving parts)

Network & Extended Storage

• Cloud Storage – remote data centres via Internet

• NAS – file-level, $TCP/IP$ Ethernet, easy setup, RAID capable

• SAN – block-level, Fibre Channel, high speed, enterprise scale

• RAID – combines multiple drives for redundancy &/or speed

Communication Hardware

• NIC / WNIC – network interface (wired/wireless)

• Modem – $analog \leftrightarrow digital$ conversion for ISP link

• Router – forwards packets between networks; provides NAT, DHCP

• Switch – connects devices within LAN (MAC-based forwarding)

• Hub – legacy broadcast repeater (shared bandwidth)

• WAP – creates Wi-Fi cell; Repeaters/Extenders widen coverage

Motherboard Essentials

• CPU socket (PGA / LGA) – mounts processor

• RAM slots – volatile working memory

• Chipset – controls data flow among CPU, RAM, I/O

• Expansion slots – $PCIe$ add-in cards (GPU, NIC, sound)

• BIOS / UEFI – firmware startup & configuration

• Power connectors – $24$-pin ATX, $8$/$4$-pin CPU

• SATA / NVMe connectors – drive interfaces

• I/O ports – USB, audio, Ethernet, video

• Onboard components – integrated audio, GPU, Wi-Fi

• Cooling – heatsink + fan or liquid (AIO / custom loop)

Software Categories

• Application Software – end-user tasks (productivity, multimedia, education)

• System Software – operates hardware & hosts apps

System Software Breakdown

• Operating System – UI, resource management, multitasking (Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS)

• Device Drivers – translate OS ↔ specific hardware

• Utility Software – maintenance (antivirus, backup, file compression, disk management)

Quick Comparisons

• $SSD$ vs $HDD$: faster I/O, no moving parts, lower power, higher $cost/GB$

• NAS vs SAN: file vs block, Ethernet vs Fibre Channel, easy vs complex management

• Switch vs Hub: intelligent MAC-based forwarding vs broadcast

Core Definitions

• Network – interconnected devices sharing resources

• Fault Tolerance – system continues despite component failure

• Cache – small high-speed memory near CPU

• Multitasking – OS shares CPU time among programs

Exam Tips

• Always state category + function for any device

• Link storage type to use-case (backup, OS boot, media)

• Recall motherboard path: $Power \rightarrow BIOS/UEFI \rightarrow OS$

• Differentiate application vs system software by purpose, not by example alone