Chapter 5

Data Storage Technology

2005 IS112

Chapter goals

Describe the distinguishing characteristics of

primary and secondary storage
Describe the devices used to implement primary
storage
Describe the memory allocation schemes
Compare and contrast secondary storage
technology alternatives

Goals cont.

Describe factors that determine storage device performance

Choose appropriate secondary storage technologies and devices
Explore storage devices and their technologies
Outlines characteristics common to all storage devices
Explains the technology strengths and weaknesses of primary
storage and secondary storage

Storage types

Primary storage memory or RAM

Holds instructions and data for currently executing

programs
Volatile requires electricity to maintain data

Secondary storage electromagnetic or

optical devices

Non-volatile storage devices with large capacities

Storage device components

Storage devices are comprised of

Storage medium
Read/write mechanism
Device controller interface between the storage
device and the system bus (discussed in chapter
6)

Storage device
characteristics

Speed

Speed of primary storage (RAM) directly impacts

performance of entire system
RAM extends the limited capacity of CPU registers
The CPU continually moves data and instructions
between registers and RAM
If a read/write to RAM takes more than one CPU
cycle, then CPU must wait for information
RAM is faster than secondary storage by a factor of
105 or more

Speed cont.

Speed is also an issue for secondary storage

Called access time or seek time
Access time is defined as time to complete one read
or write operation
Access time for disk or tape storage can vary
depending on location of information, therefore
access time is expressed as an average

Access times

Primary storage expressed in nanoseconds

(billionths of a second)
Secondary storage expressed in
milliseconds (thousandths of a second)

Data transfer rate

Complete measure of data access speed

consists of access time and the unit of data
transfer to/from the storage device

Access time plus how much data is transferred

Data transfer unit for primary storage is

based on word size (usually 32 bit)

Data transfer unit

Data transfer unit (amount of data moved at a

time) for secondary storage varies depending
on the device
Unit is called a block
Block size is stated in bytes
Sector is data transfer unit for magnetic and
optical devices
Common sector/block size is 512 bytes

Data transfer rate

Expressed in terms of bytes/second

Access time combined with data transfer unit

Data transfer rate describes how much data

can be transferred between devices over a
period of time

Volatility

Volatile storage device is volatile if it cannot

reliable hold data for long periods of time
Nonvolatile storage device is non-volatile if it can
reliably store data for long periods of time
Computer systems need a combination of volatile
and non-volatile storage devices

Access method

Physical structure of storage devices

read/write mechanism determines the way(s)
data can be accessed

Serial access
Random access
Parallel access

Serial access

Stores and retrieves data items in a linear or

sequential order
Slowest access method
Tape typically used for backup purposes

Random access

Also called a direct access device

Can directly access data stored on the device
All primary storage and disk storage devices
are direct access
Parallel access with multiple read/write
heads, can simultaneously access more than
one storage location

Portability

Data can be made portable by storing it on a

removable storage medium or device.

Portable devices typically have slower access

speed than permanently installed devices
and those with non-removable media.

Cost and capacity

An increase in speed, permanence or portability

generally comes at increased cost if all other factors
are held constant.

Storage Device
Characteristics

Primary storage devices

Random access memory (RAM) is a generic

term for storage device that

Microchip implementation using semiconductors

Ability to read and write with equal speed
Random access to stored bytes, words, or larger
data units

Primary Storage Devices

Critical performance characteristics

Access speed
Data transfer unit size

Must closely match CPU speed and word

size to avoid wait states

Storing Electrical Signals

Directly

Indirectly

By devices such as batteries and capacitors

Trade off between access speed and volatility
Uses energy to alter the state of a device; inverse
process regenerates equivalent electrical signal

Modern computers use memory implemented

with semiconductors (RAM and NVM)

Random Access Memory

Characteristics

Microchip implementation using

semiconductors
Ability to read and write with equal speed
Random access to stored bytes, words, or
larger data units

SRAM vs. DRAM

Static RAM implemented with transistors

Requires continuous supply of electricity to preserve data

Dynamic RAM uses transistors and capacitors

Require a fresh infusion of power thousands of times per

second.
Each refresh operation is called a refresh cycle

Random Access Memory

To bridge performance gap between memory

and microprocessors

Read-ahead memory access

Synchronous read operations
On-chip memory caches

Nonvolatile Memory

Random access memory with long-term or

permanent data retention
Usually relegated to specialized roles and
secondary storage; slower write speeds and
limited number of rewrites
Generations of devices (ROM, EPROM, and
EEPROM)

Nonvolatile Memory

Flash RAM (most common NVM)

Competitive with DRAM in capacity and read

performance
Relatively slow write speed
Limited number of write cycles

NVM technologies under development

Ferroelectric RAM
Polymer memory

SRAM vs. DRAM

Static RAM implemented with transistors

Requires continuous supply of electricity to preserve data

Dynamic RAM uses transistors and capacitors

Require a fresh infusion of power thousands of times per

second.
Each refresh operation is called a refresh cycle

Read only memory

ROM random access memory device that

can store data permanently or semipermanently
Typically used to store BIOS (basic input
output services)
Instructions stored in ROM is called firmware

Memory packaging

CPU Memory Access

Management of RAM is critical to

performance of computer
Organization, access, and management or
RAM is done by the operating system
How memory is accessed is large factor in
performance of RAM

Physical memory
organization

Main memory of any computer is a sequence of

contiguous memory cells
Addressable memory highest number storage byte
that can be represented

Determined by the number of bits used to represent an

address
If 32 bits used to represent and address, highest address is
232 = 4,294,967,296, or 4 GB

Physical memory actual memory installed, usually

less than addressable memory

Memory addressing &

allocation

Memory allocation is the assignment or reservation

of memory segments for system software,
application programs, and data
Memory allocation is the responsibility of the
operating system
Common scheme is to place OS in low memory and
applications in high memory

This can be demonstrated with C++ program

Memory allocation

Absolute vs. relative

addressing

Some programming languages (C, C++)

allow instructions that reference explicit
memory locations

BRANCH to location #
STO to location #

Absolute addressing describes memory

address operands that refer to actual physical
memory locations

Problems with absolute

addressing

If a program refers to a physical memory

address in the code, then OS loses ability to
re-arrange application locations in memory
Instead, programs use relative addressing

Relative addressing

Instructions that refer to memory use a combination

of registers to compute addresses
When OS loads application into memory, OS loads
starting point of application into one register
Instruction in application that refers to memory
location is using an offset (i.e. distance from
beginning of application)
OS adds offset to starting point to calculate physical
memory location

Segmented memory

Each application has unique

starting address

Magnetic storage

Uses magnetism to store binary information onto a

storage medium that can store magnetic information
Least expensive medium for secondary storage
Can be portable
Retains data without electricity
Over longer periods of time will eventually lose
information

Read/write in magnetic
device

Magnetic decay and leakage

Primary disadvantage is loss of data over

time

Magnetic Decay the tendency of magnetically

charges particles to lose their charge over time
Magnetic Leakage a decrease in the strength of
individual bit charges

Magnetic storage

Organization of tracks and

sectors

Optical mass storage devices

Advantages:

Higher recording density

Longer data life
Retain data for decades
Not subject to problems of magnetic decay and leakage

Optical storage

Optical storage devices store bit values as

variations in light reflection.

Storage medium is a surface of highly reflective

material.

The read mechanism consists of a low-power laser

and a photoelectric cell.

Storing binary information

Examples of optical devices

Chapter summary

A typical computer system has primary and

secondary storage devices

The critical performance characteristics of primary

storage devices are their access speed and the
number of bits that can be accessed in a single read
or write operation

Summary cont.

Programs generally are created as through they

occupied contiguous primary storage locations
starting at the first location

Magnetic storage storage devices store data bits as

magnetic charges

Optical discs store data bits as variations in light

reflection