Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
A CPU cache is a hardware cache used by the central processing unit (CPU) of a computer to reduce the average cost (time or energy) to access data from the main memory. [1] A cache is a smaller, faster memory, located closer to a processor core, which stores copies of the data from frequently used main memory locations.
To perform useful functions, processes need access to the peripherals connected to the computer, which are controlled by the kernel through device drivers. A device driver is a computer program encapsulating, monitoring and controlling a hardware device (via its Hardware/Software Interface (HSI)) on behalf of the OS. It provides the operating ...
All access of the CPU to private on-board RAM, external Multibus memory, on-board I/O and the Multibus I/O runs through the MMU, where address translation and protection are done in a uniform fashion. The MMU is implemented in hardware on the CPU board. The MMU consists of a context register, a segment map and a page map. Virtual addresses from ...
A hardware abstraction layer (HAL) is an abstraction layer, implemented in software, between the physical hardware of a computer and the software that runs on that computer. . Its function is to hide differences in hardware from most of the operating system kernel, so that most of the kernel-mode code does not need to be changed to run on systems with different hardwa
The operating system delays loading parts of the program from disk until the program attempts to use it and the page fault is generated. If the page is not loaded in memory at the time of the fault, then it is called a major or hard page fault. The page fault handler in the OS needs to find a free location: either a free page in memory, or a ...
A power-on self-test (POST) is a process performed by firmware or software routines immediately after a computer or other digital electronic device is powered on. [ 1 ] POST processes may set the initial state of the device from firmware and detect if any hardware components are non-functional.
Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T. or SMART) is a monitoring system included in computer hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs). [3] Its primary function is to detect and report various indicators of drive reliability, or how long a drive can function while anticipating imminent hardware failures. [4] [5]
APM defines five power states for the computer system: Full On: The computer is powered on, and no devices are in a power saving mode. APM Enabled: The computer is powered on, and APM is controlling device power management as needed. APM Standby: Most devices are in their low-power state, the CPU is slowed or stopped, and the system state is saved.