Lesson 6

CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT

The Central Processing Unit (CPU) of a computer is a piece of

hardware that carries out the instructions of a computer program. It
performs the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output
operations of a computer system. The CPU is like the brains of the
computer - every instruction, no matter how simple, has to go
through the CPU. So let's say you press the letter 'k' on your keyboard
and it appears on the screen - the CPU of your computer is what
makes this possible. The CPU is sometimes also referred to as the
central processor unit, or processor for short. So when you are
looking at the specifications of a computer at your local electronics
store, it typically refers to the CPU as the processor.

What is Processor Core?

A processor core (or simply “core”) is an individual processor within a CPU. Many computers
today have multi-core processors, meaning the CPU contains more than one core.
For many years, computer CPUs only had a single core. In the early 2000s, as processor clock speeds
began plateauing, CPU manufacturers needed to find other ways to increase processing
performance. Initially, they achieved this by putting multiple processors in high-end computers.
While this was effective, it added significant cost to the computers and the multiprocessing
performance was limited by the bus speed between the CPUs.
By combining processors on a single chip, CPU manufactures were able to increase
performance more efficiently at a lower cost. The individual processing units became known as
“cores” rather than processors. In the mid-2000s, dual-core and quad-core CPUs began replacing
multi-processor configurations. While initially only high-end computers contained multiple cores,
today nearly all PCs have multi-core processors.
A processor with two cores is called a dual-core processor; with four cores, a quad-core; six
cores, hexa-core; eight cores, octa-core. As of 2019, the majority of consumer CPUs feature
between two and twelve cores. Workstation and server CPUs may feature as many as 48.
The power of the CPU determines the speed at which software programs can operate. More
cores mean a CPU can do more work. A CPU with DUAL, TRIPLE or QUAD cores will make a significant
difference in the processing power of the laptop you choose.
⮚ THE SINGLE CORE CPU
These are the oldest types of CPUs. Since they can only start one request at a time, they’re not very
good for multitasking. If you often run more than one application at a time, you’ll notice a sharp
decrease in performance. Clock speed largely affects the performance of these types of CPUs (we’ll
talk more about clock speed in a moment).

⮚ THE DUAL CORE CPU

This CPU has two cores that give it the performance of two CPUs. Dual Core CPUs can handle
multitasking much more efficiently than Single Core CPUs: If you call on more than one application,
it can start them at the same time instead of switching back and forth between different data
streams. But in order to take advantage of this technology, the operating system and the program
running on it must have a special code written on them called simultaneous Multi-Thread
Technology (SMT).

⮚ THE QUAD CORE CPU

These CPUs refine dual core technology. They supersede them by adding two more cores for a total
of four to the CPU design. Quad Core CPUs allow for even greater multitasking. But just like dual
cores, unless the program the CPU is running has the SMT code written on it, you won’t feel the
difference. And it doesn’t mean that just one request will be accomplished faster. Rather, your
laptop will feel more responsive when you start more than one request at a time.

What is Hyper-threading?
A “thread” is a stream of data. Remember that an individual processor can only execute one
instruction at a time. As such, if you’re running multiple programs. Each thread into the processor
must be scheduled and executed by the core individually. This causes the delay you notice when
you’re multitasking with more than one program open.
Hyper-Threading is a technology that helps each processor core schedule and assign
resources to two threads of data at once. So, a dual-core CPU can “virtualize” two more cores,
making it act as if it had four processing cores.

What is CPU Clock Speed?

Clock speed or clock rate is the rate at which a processor

can complete a processing cycle. Clock Speed used to be
measured in hertz (Hz). But due to speed improvements given by
the extra cores in a CPU, it’s now measured in gigahertz (GHz). A
CPU’s clock speed rate is a measure of how many clock cycles a
CPU can perform per second. For example, a CPU with a clock rate
of 1.8 GHz can perform 1,800,000,000 clock cycles per second.
A PC’s clock speed is an indicator of its performance and how rapidly a CPU can process
data (move individual bits). A higher frequency (bigger number) suggests better performance in
common tasks, such as gaming. A CPU with higher clock speed is generally better if all other factors
are equal, but a mixture of clock speed, how many instructions the CPU can process per cycle (also
known as instructions per clock cycle/clock, or IPC for short) and the number of cores the CPU has
all help determine overall performance.
Note that clock speed differs from the number of cores a CPU has; cores help you deal with
less common, time-consuming workloads. Clock speed is also not to be confused with bus speed,
which tells you how fast a PC can communicate with outside peripherals or components, like the
mouse, keyboard, and monitor.

COMPONENTS OF CPU

1. Memory or Storage Unit

This unit can store instructions, data, and intermediate results. This unit supplies information to
other units of the computer when needed. It is also known as internal storage unit or the main
memory or the primary storage or Random Access Memory (RAM).
Its size affects speed, power, and capability. Primary memory and secondary memory are two types
of memories in the computer. Functions of the memory unit are −It stores all the data and the
instructions required for processing.

✔ It stores intermediate results of processing.

✔ It stores the final results of processing before these results are released to an output device.
✔ All inputs and outputs are transmitted through the main memory.

Cache is a type of fast memory that buffers between RAM and the CPU. It’s like a temporary
holding place on the CPU for data that’s used all the time. The front side bus (FSB) of a CPU connects
with RAM on the motherboard.
Instead of relying on RAM for commonly used data. It’s stored on the CPU’s cache, which is faster
than RAM because of its physical proximity to the CPU’s processors. This setup allows the CPU to
take requests off memory, greatly increasing laptop speeds.

2. Control Unit
A control unit (CU) handles all processor control signals. It directs all input and output flow,
fetches code for instructions from microprograms and directs other units and models by providing
control and timing signals. A CU component is considered the processor brain because it issues
orders to just about everything and ensures correct instruction execution.
A CU takes its input from the instruction and status registers. Its rules of operation, or
microprogram, are encoded in a programmable logic array (PLA), random logic or read-only
memory (ROM).
Control Unit functions are as follows:
✔ It is responsible for controlling the transfer of data and instructions among other units of a
computer
✔ It manages and coordinates all the units of the computer.
 ✔ It obtains the instructions from the memory, interprets them, and directs the operation of the
computer.
✔ It communicates with Input/Output devices for transfer of data or results from storage.
✔ Sends and receives control signals from other computer devices
✔ Handles multiple tasks, such as fetching, decoding, execution handling and storing results .

CUs are designed in two ways:

✓ Hardwired control: Design is based on a fixed architecture. The CU is made up of flip-flops, logic
gates, digital circuits and encoder and decoder circuits that are wired in a specific and fixed way.
When instruction set changes are required, wiring and circuit changes must be made. This is
preferred in a reduced instruction set computing (RISC) architecture, which only has a small
number of instructions.
✓ Microprogram control: Microprograms are stored in a special control memory and are based on
flowcharts. They are replaceable and ideal because of their simplicity.

3. Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU)

The arithmetic logic unit is that part of the CPU that handles all the calculations the CPU may
need. Most of these operations are logical in nature. Depending on how the ALU is designed, it can
make the CPU more powerful, but it also consumes more energy and creates more heat. Therefore,
there must be a balance between how powerful and complex the ALU is and how expensive the
whole unit becomes. Therefore faster CPUs are more expensive, consume more power and
dissipate more heat.
The main functions of the ALU are to do arithmetic and logic operations, including bit shifting
operations. These are essential processes that need to be done on almost any data that is being
processed by the CPU.
ALUs routinely perform the following operations:

LOGICAL OPERATIONS: perform logic operations such as comparing, selecting, matching, and
merging of data. These include AND, OR, NOT, XOR, NOR, NAND gate, etc.
BIT-SHIFTING OPERATIONS: This pertains to shifting the positions of the bits by a certain number of
places to the right or left, which is considered a multiplication operation.
ARITHMETIC OPERATIONS: This refers to perform arithmetic operations like addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division. All complex operations are done by making repetitive use of the above
operations.

FUNCTIONS OF CPU
The CPU processes instructions it receives in the process of decoding data. In processing this data,
the CPU performs four basic steps:

1. Fetch: Each instruction is stored in memory and has its own address. The processor takes this
address number from the program counter, which is responsible for tracking which instructions the
CPU should execute next.
2. Decode: All programs to be executed are translated to into Assembly instructions. Assembly code
must be decoded into binary instructions, which are understandable to your CPU. This step is called
decoding.
3. Execute: While executing instructions the CPU can do one of three things: Do calculations with its
ALU, move data from one memory location to another, or jump to a different address.

4. Store: The CPU must give feedback after executing an instruction, and the output data is written
to the memory.

BLOCK DIAGRAM OF A COMPUTER

Legends:
Data Flow
Control Flow