FIT (Unit – 2) Sphoorthy Degree College

Unit – II
Memory:
 Computer memory is the storage area in computer. It is used to store data and instructions.
 In a computer system, memory stores different types of data, such as audio, video, text, images,
etc. This data can be retrieved when ever required. All these are stored in the form of Bits( Binary
Digits i.e 0 or 1).
 The computer memory is measured in the form of bits.

NOTE: the following table don’t write in exam

 Following are the units of measurement for storage:
0 or 1 Bit
8 Bits 1 Byte
1024 bytes 1 KB (Kilo Byte)
1024 KB 1MB (Mega Byte)
1024 MB 1GB (Giga Byte)
1024 GB 1 TB (Tera Byte)
1024 TB 1PB (Peta Byte)
1024 PB 1EB (Exa Byte)
1024 EB 1 ZB (Zetta Byte)
1024 ZB 1 YB (Yotta Byte)

 Computer Memory is classified into 2 types.

1. Primary memory (or) main memory
2. Secondary memory (or) auxiliary memory

Memory

Primary memory Secondary memory

(Main memory) (Auxiliary memory)

 It is also known as Main memory. It stores the instructions and data that the computer is
currently using.
 The primary memory is a semi conductor memory.
 It has limited capacity.
 It is volatile memory. That means the data stored in the primary memory is temporary. The data
in primary memory is lost when power is switched off.
 CPU can access the primary memory directly.
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 It is faster than secondary memory.
 A computer cannot run without primary memory.
 Main memory is further classified into 2 types. They are
1. RAM – Random Access Memory
2. ROM – Read Only Memory

Primary

RAM ROM

1. RAM:
 RAM stands for random Access Memory.
 RAM is used to store the currently executed data and programs, that means it can store
temporarily:
a) Input data given by input devices
b) The data which is under process (Intermediary results )
c) Output (results) after processing, before sent to output devices.
 RAM is also called as “ volatile memory”, that means when computer is turned off, that
data stored in RAM are lost.
 The data can be read from RAM and also can be written into it. So it is also known as
“Read/Write memory”. All data stored in computer memory can be read or accessed
randomly at any time.
 When we open a program or file, it's loaded into RAM and accessed by the CPU.
 The computer speed depends on the capacity of RAM.
 RAM is 2 types:
i SRAM – Static RAM
ii DRAM – Dynamic RAM

RAM

SRAM DRAM

i. Static RAM:
 SRAM retains the stored information only as long as the power supply is on. It is
costlier and consumes more power.
 Static RAM is much faster than DRAM..

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ii. Dynamic RAM:
 It requires continuously refreshed to retain the data.
 As it is less expensive, most computers use DRAM.
 It consumes less power.
 Dynamic RAM is slower than SRAM.
2. ROM:
 ROM stands for Read Only Memory.
 In ROM the information can only be read and it is not possible to write.
 The contents are written into ROM at the time of manufacturing the chip.
 ROM contains some important instructions or program that are required to start or boot a
computer.
 The information stored in ROM is not lost when the power is off, so it is called as “non
volatile memory”.
 There are 3 types of ROM:
i PROM – Programmable Read Only Memory
ii EPROM – Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory
iii EEPROM – Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory

ROM

PROM EPROM EEPROM

(i) PROM:
 It is the empty PROM chip in which the PROM programmer can write the desired
content or program only once.
 The instructions on the PROM chip are executed at the time of starting the computer.
 Once the chip has been programmed the recorded information cannot be changed.
(ii) EPROM:
 In the EPROM chip, the stored data can be erased and re-programmed only once.
 The information on the EPROM chip can be erased by exposing the chip under UV light
for some time. Again the new information can be stored on EPROM chip.
(iii) EEPROM:
 The EEPROM is programmed and erased electrically. It is possible to erase and
reprogram many times on the chip. But the process of reprogramming is slow.

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Cache memory:
 It is a very high speed semiconductor memory. It is much faster than primary memory (RAM).
 The cache memory is placed between the CPU and the main memory (primary memory ). It is
shown in the following figure.

CPU Cache Memory Main Memory

 Cache memory can increase the speed of a computer upto15%

 It is used to hold the data and programs which are most frequently used by CPU. These data
and programs are transferred from disk to cache memory by operating system. CPU directly
can access the data and programs from cache memory also.
 It is much costlier than primary memory.
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Secondary Storage:
 Secondary memory is also known as auxiliary memory or external memory or backup storage.
 The storage capacity of primary memory is limited and when the computer is turnoff, the data
stored in primary memory (RAM) is lost. So to store the data permanently secondary storage
device is used.
 Secondary storage is non-volatile memory and that is stored externally to the computer.
 The information stored in the secondary memory is transferred to the primary memory for
processing .
 Secondary memory has large storage capacity than primary memory. It can store softwares,
packages, application programs etc
 Secondary memory can also function as backup storage
 If the computer crashes by accident, we can restore the data from the backup
 Secondary memory can be accessed in two ways.
1) Sequential access
2) Random access or direct access
1) Sequential access :
 In sequential access method, the data stored and retrieved in sequence i.e. to read the data in
a particular point on the media, we have to go through all preceding points.
 The data stored at the last location cannot be accessed until all preceding locations in
sequence have been accessed
 Magnetic tapes are the examples for sequential access
2) Random access :

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 Random access is also called as direct access because any location can be accessed randomly in
the memory.
Ex; magnetic disks and optical disks

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Secondary storage devices:

 The secondary storage devices can be classified into
1) Magnetic tapes
2) Magnetic disks
3) Optical disks
1) Magnetic tapes :
 Magnetic tape is a plastic ribbon of half inch width that is coated one side with magnetized
material
 Magnetic tape is a sequential access storage device.
 The tape ribbon is stored in reels of 50 to 2000 feet.
 The tape is divided into vertical columns called frames and horizontal rows called tracks.

 The information is recorded on the tape in the form of small invisible spots. Each track has one
read/write head, which allows data to be recorded and read as a sequence of characters.
Advantages :
i) Magnetic tapes store large amount of data
ii) Magnetic tapes are cheaper compared to other storage devices
iii) magnetic tapes are portable, i.e. magnetic tapes are convenient for carrying
information from one place to other.
Limitations :

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i) magnetic tapes are sequential access device. Hence the data recorded on the tape
cannot be accessed directly. They can be retrieved serially only.
ii) uncontrolled temperature levels, humidity levels or dust cause the tape reading
errors. So they must be stored in a dust free environment.
2) Magnetic disks:
 Magnetic disks are most popular random access storage devices.
 Magnetic disk is a thin ,circular metal plate coated on both sides with a magnetic material.
The disc is used on both sides.
 The disk surface is divided into number of concentric circles called tracks.
 Each track is again divided into number of sectors.
 The tracks and sectors are the logical areas on the disk
 Tracks and sectors are shown in the following figure

 The information is recorded on the tracks and sectors in the form of invisible magnetic
spots
 Magnetic disks can be classified into two
1. floppy disks
2. Hard disks.
1. Floppy disks:
 floppy disks are commonly used as secondary storage in PC
 These are made of synthetic plastic material and these are flexible. Hence they are
called floppies
 Floppies are cheaper and easy to handle
 These are portable
 It is a random access disk and can be used for both input and output operations
 These can be damaged easily
 The various sizes of floppy are 3 1/2 11 OR 5 1/411
2. Hard disk:
 It is used to store data permanently.

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 Hard disk is a magnetic disk on which we can store data like files, images, videos, audios
etc.
 It is much faster in reading and writing.
 It has large storage capacity than floppy disk.
 Hard disks are available in different capacities. The storage capacity of hard disk is
measured in GB ( giga byte ) or TB (Tera Byte)
 A Hard disk consists of one or more circular disks called platters, which are mounted on
a common spindle.
NOTE: (Don’t draw following diagram in exam)

 Each surface of a platter is coated with magnetic material on both sides. So data can be
stored on both surfaces.
 These disk platters are placed one after other, without touching each other. This disk
pack is placed in a metal container with read/write head.
 The data is recorded on the surface of the rotating disk by these read/write heads.
3) Optical disks:
 It has large storage capacity than floppy disk
 Only one surface of an optical disk is used to store data.
 Optical Disk uses laser beam technology to read and write data.
 Optical discs are flat, circular discs made of plastic or a similar material with a reflective
surface.

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 In optical disks, the data is contained in a single track that spirals from the center of the
disk to its circumference.

 The optical disks are classified into

i) CD-ROM ii) CD-R iii) CD-RW iv) DVD
i) CD-ROM : it stands for compact disk read only memory
 CD-ROM are hard, plastic, silver color platters and used to read only pre recorded
information.
 The manufacturer writes data on CD-ROM, so it is not possible to rewrite any
information on the CD-ROM
Ex: audio CD, game CD, software CD etc
ii) CD-R : it stands for compact disk recordable
 In this the user can write the information only once
 We cannot erase the information from it
iii) CD-RW: it stands for compact disk rewritable
 In this, the user can write a number of times and can also erase the information
from it
iv) DVD: it stands for digital video disk or digital versatile disk and in this, the storage
capacity is more than CD.
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Zip Drive:
 A Zip drive is a data storage device developed by Iomega Corporation.
 A Zip drive was popular removable storage device in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
 Zip drive looked similar to floppy disk but these were slightly larger than floppy disks and
thicker and had stronger plastic case.
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 It functions like a floppy disk, but has higher storage capacity than floppy disks.
 Zip drive was used to store and backup large amount of data, which was not possible with
ordinary floppy disks. These had a storage capacity of 100 MB, 250MB and 750MB.
 Zip drive also used magnetic storage technique. The magnetic coating used in Zip drive was
higher quality than used in floppy disks.
Limitations:
1. Zip disks were expensive in comparison to floppy disks.
2. They need a separate Zip drive to be used.
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Flash drive:
 It is also known as a USB flash drive.
 It is connected to a computer using a USB port.
 It uses flash memory to store and transfer the data.
 It allows the users to store and transfer data like audio, videos, images, etc. from one
computer to another computer.
 A flash drive is a small and portable data storage device that uses flash memory for data
storage.
 Flash drives are widely used for data backup and storing data.
 The storage capacities of flash drives are ranging from giga bytes (GB) to terabytes (TB).
 USB flash drives are removable and rewritable.
 These are durable and reliable.
 Ex: pen drive
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Cartridge tape:
 Cartridge tapes are a specific type of magnetic tape storage.
 It is a magnetic tape wound onto a reel, which is enclosed in a protective plastic cartridge.
 Cartridge tapes are primarily used for data storage and backup purposes.
 Cartridge tapes are a subset of magnetic tapes, characterized by their enclosed design and
suitability for data storage.
 Both magnetic tapes and cartridge tapes provide sequential access to data
 These are also used to store large amount of data.
 These are portable, i.e. they are convenient for carrying information from one place to other.

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