INPUT-OUTPUT

ORGANIZATION

Slides prepared by:

Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah
Department of Computer Science and Engineering
Islamic University of Science and Technology, Awantipora
 TOPICS
• Peripheral Devices
• Input-Output Interface
• Asynchronous Data Transfer
• Modes of Transfer
• Priority Interrupt
• Direct Memory Access (DMA)
• Input-Output Processor

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 PERIPHERAL DEVICES
• Input or output devices attached to a
computer.
– Examples:
• Monitor
– Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) based
– Plasma Display Panel (PDP)
– Liquid Crystal Display (LCD)
– Light Emitting Diode (LED)
• Keyboard
• Mouse

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Peripheral Devices Cont.

• Printer
– Daisywheel printer
– Dot Matrix printer
– Inkjet printer
– Laser printer
– 3D printer
• Plotter
• Magnetic Tape
• Magnetic Disk

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Peripheral Devices Cont.

• I/O communication usually involves transfer of

alphanumeric information.
• The standard binary code for alphanumeric
characters is ASCII (American Standard Code
for Information Interchange).
• ASCII uses 7 bits to code 128 characters
– 94 printable
– 34 non-printable (for control)

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Peripheral Devices Cont.

• ASCII Code(in decimal) –

• 0 – 48
• A – 65
• a – 97

• Most computers use 8 bits (1 byte) for a

character.

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 INPUT-OUTPUT INTERFACE
• I/O interface helps in synchronizing transfer of data between CPU
and peripheral devices.
• Need of I/O Interface:

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Input-Output Interface Cont.

• Types of commands an interface can receive:

– Control Command
– Status Command
– Data Output Command
– Data Input Command

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Input-Output Interface Cont.

• Computer buses can be used to communicate with memory and

I/O in three ways:

• Method 1 is used when there is a separate I/O Processor (in

addition to Central Processing Unit)
• Method 2 is used in Isolated I/O Configuration
• Method 3 is used in Memory-mapped I/O Configuration

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
ASYNCHRONOUS DATA TRANSFER
• Asynchronous mode of data transfer is used
when the source unit and destination unit
have different clocks.
• Methods of Asynchronous Data Transfer:
I. Strobe Control
II. Handshaking

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Asynchronous Data Transfer Cont.

Methods of Asynchronous data transfer:

I. Strobe Control Method
• Employs a single control line to time each transfer.
• The strobe may be generated by either the source or
the destination unit
– Source-initiated strobe control
– Destination-initiated strobe control

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Asynchronous Data Transfer Cont.

• Disadvantage of Strobe Method.

II. Handshaking Method

• Solves the problem of strobe method by using another
control signal.
• More reliable method.
• Timeout Mechanism.
• The transfer may be initiated by either the source or
the destination.

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Asynchronous Data Transfer Cont.

Asynchronous Serial Transfer

• In serial data transfer, each bit in a message is
sent in sequence one at a time.
• Serial transmission:
– Synchronous: Two units share a common clock
frequency and bits are transmitted continuously at
the rate dictated by the clock pulses.
– Asynchronous: Binary information is sent only
when it is available and the line remains idle when
there is no information to be transmitted.
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Asynchronous Data Transfer Cont.

• Asynchronous Serial Transfer

– Special bits (start and stop bits) are inserted at both ends of the character
code.

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Asynchronous Data Transfer Cont.

• Baud Rate: It is defined as the rate at which serial information is

transmitted.
QUESTION:
10 characters per second with an 11-bit format in an asynchronous serial
transmission has a transfer rate of how many baud? What is the time for
transmission of 1 bit?
SOLUTION:
10 characters per second
 110 bits per second (as 1 character transfer takes 11 bits - 8 of
character, 1 of start and 2 of stop)
 Transfer rate = 110 baud

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Asynchronous Data Transfer Cont.

Again, 10 characters per 1 second

 1 character = 1/10 = 0.1 sec
 11 bits = 0.1 sec
 1 bit = 0.00909 sec
 Bit time = 9.09 msec

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Asynchronous Data Transfer Cont.

QUESTION:

SOLUTION:
a. 1200/8 = 150 characters per second
b. 1200/11 = 109 characters per second
c. 1200/10 = 120 characters per second

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Asynchronous Data Transfer Cont.

• Asynchronous Communication Interface:

– also called as Universal Asynchronous Receiver-
Transmitter (UART).

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
MODES OF DATA TRANSFER BETWEEN THE
CENTRAL COMPUTER AND I/O DEVICES
• Ultimate source or destination of data is
memory.
• Data transfer between the central computer
and I/O devices may be handled in three ways
(modes):
1. Programmed I/O
2. Interrupt Initiated I/O
3. Direct Memory Access (DMA)

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

• Programmed Input-Output:
– Programmed I/O operations are the result of I/O
instructions written in the computer program.
– The transfer is usually to and from a CPU register and
peripheral.
– Other instructions are needed to transfer the data to and
from CPU and memory.
– The CPU has to continuously execute a program to check
the status of interface registers.
– Keeps processor needlessly busy.
– Useful in computers that are dedicated to monitor a device
continuously.
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

• Interrupt Initiated Input-Output:

– Alternative to CPU continuously monitoring the flag.
– The interface unit informs the CPU when it is ready to
transfer data.
– When the flag is set, an interrupt is generated to inform
the CPU about it.
– The CPU
• stops the execution of the program that it was executing at that
time
• Stores the return address in memory stack
• Branches to a service routine that processes the required I/O
transfer.

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

• Types of Interrupt (based on the branch

address):
– NonVectored Interrupt
• Branch address is a fixed location in memory.
– Vectored Interrupt
• Branch address is provided by the source that
interrupts. This branch address is called interrupt
vector.
• Interrupt vector may be a direct address or an indirect
address.

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

• Priority Interrupt:
– A system that establishes a priority over the various
interrupt sources.
• Software-based system -- Polling
• Hardware-based system – Daisy Chaining
– When two devices interrupt the computer at the same
time, the computer services the device with the higher
priority first.

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

• Polling:
– Software-based method
– One common branch address for all interrupts
– The routine polls the interrupt sources in
sequence (highest priority first, 2nd highest priority
second, 3rd highest priority third and so on)
– Then branches to one of many possible service
routines.
– Disadvantage: Slow as compared to hardware
method
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

• Daisy Chaining Priority:

– Hardware-based method
– Interrupt request generation is similar to negative-logic OR operation.

PI: Priority In
PO: Priority Out
VAD: Interrupt Vector Address

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

QUESTION:

SOLUTION:
a. Size of FIFO buffer = k bytes
Bytes inserted into the buffer in 1 second = m
Bytes deleted from the buffer in 1 second = n
m>n
=> Net bytes added to the buffer in 1 second = m-n
=> To fill an empty buffer, it will take = mk n sec onds
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

b. m<n
=> Net bytes removed from the buffer in 1 second = n-m
=> To empty a full buffer, it will take = n k m sec onds

c. No.

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

• Direct Memory Access (DMA):

– Transfer of data between the memory and an input-output
device not via CPU.
– DMA is a feature of computer systems that allows certain
hardware subsystems to access main system memory
(random-access memory), independent of the CPU.
– The CPU
• initiates the transfer
• does other operations while the transfer is in progress
• and finally receives an interrupt from the DMA Controller (DMAC)
when the operation is done.

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
– The CPU initializes the DMA transfer by sending the following
information to the DMA Controller through the data bus:
1. The starting address of the memory block where data are available
(for read) or where data are to be stored (for write)
2. The word count - how many words to read or write
3. Control to specify the mode of transfer such as read or write
4. Control to start the DMA transfer

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

Steps in DMA transfer:

1. The peripheral device sends a DMA request
2. The DMAC activates the BR line, informing the CPU to relinquish the
buses
3. The CPU responds with its BG line, informing the DMAC that its
buses are disabled.
4. The DMAC then puts the current value of its address register into the
address bus, initiates the RD or WR signal and sends a DMA
acknowledge to the peripheral device.
5. One word gets transferred from peripheral device to memory or
from memory to peripheral device.
6. For each word that is transferred, the DMAC increments its address
register and decrements its word count register.
7. After the transfer is complete, the DMAC activates the Interrupt
signal, informing the CPU about completion of the transfer.
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

Modes of Operation in DMA:

I. Cycle Stealing Mode
– Only one word of data is transferred per request
– The CPU processes an instruction, then the DMA controller transfers
one data word, then again the CPU processes an instruction, then
the DMA controller transfers one data word, and so on
– Data block transfer is slow

II. Burst Mode or Block Transfer Mode

– An entire block of data is transferred in one contiguous sequence
– Renders the CPU inactive for relatively long periods of time
– Usually used for reading or writing into magnetic disk
– The CPU remains idle for long

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

III. Transparent mode or Hidden DMA Data Transfer Mode

– Most efficient mode in terms of overall system performance
– Takes the most time to transfer a block of data
– The DMA controller transfers data only when the CPU is performing
operations that do not use the system buses

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

• DMA can lead to cache coherency problems:

Cache Coherency Problem (I):
1. CPU accesses location X in the memory
2. The current value gets stored in the cache
3. Subsequent operations on X update the cached copy of X,
but not the memory version of X (assuming a write-back
cache)
4. If the cache is not flushed to the memory before the next
time the peripheral device tries to access X, the
peripheral device will receive a stale value of X

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

Cache Coherency Problem (II):

1. CPU accesses location X in the memory
2. The current value gets stored in the cache
3. DMA transfer updates value of X in memory
4. If the cached copy of X is not invalidated, the CPU will
operate on a stale value of X

Solution to Cache Coherence Problem:

 Hardware-based
 Software-based
Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
 Modes of Transfer cont.

QUESTION:
It is necessary to transfer 256 words from a magnetic disk to a
memory section starting from address 1230. The transfer is by
means of DMA. Give the initial values that the CPU must
transfer to the DMA controller.

SOLUTION:
CPU must transfer
 256 to the DMAC Word Count Register
 1230 to the DMAC Address Register
 Bits to the Control Register to specify a Write Operation.

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
INPUT-OUTPUT PROCESSOR

STUDY BY YOURSELF

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST
• For reference see your textbook:
– Mano, M. Morris. Computer system architecture.
Prentice-Hall of India, 2003.

Slides prepared by: Dr. Zubair Ahmad Shah, Dept. of CSE, IUST