CPU

The processor itself consists of 3 main components:

 Arithmetic-logic unit (ALU)

in which all arithmetic and logic operations are carried out

 Control unit
coordinates the activities taking place in the CPU, memory and peripherals

 System clock
generates clock pulses to step the control unit through its operation

Also

 Registers
special storage locations to hold information temporarily
 CPU Registers

Arithmetic Current R0 General purpose

logic unit Instruction registers
Register (CIR) R1

R2

R3
Program Status Register
Counter (SR) R4
(PC)
R5

Control Memory Memory Data The MDR is

Unit Address Register sometimes known as
Register (MAR) (MDR) the memory buffer
register (MBR)

External bus

Main Memory
 CPU Registers

 Program Counter (PC)

holds address of next instruction to be executed. It is also known as Sequence
Control Register (SCR)

 General Purpose Registers

used for performing arithmetic functions. Some computers have only one, the
Accumulator; others have up to 16 general purpose registers

 Current Instruction Register (CIR)

contains both the operator and the operand of the current instruction

Contd.
 CPU Registers Contd.

 Memory Address Register (MAR)

holds the address of the memory location which data will be read or written
from

 Memory Data Register (MDR)

used to temporarily store data read from or written to memory

 Status Register (SR)

contains bits that are set or cleared based on the result of an instruction.
Status registers (also known as Program Status Words or PSWs) also contain
information about interrupts
 The Fetch-Execute Cycle

No No

Any Any Transfer

instructions Yes Fetch next Decode Execute interrupts to Yes control to
Start to execute? instruction instruction instruction be interrupt
processed? handling
program
 Processor Performance

Depends on:

 Clock speed

 Word size

 Bus size
- Data bus
- Address bus

 Control bus

 Architecture