Components of Computers
Computers are made up of hardware and software.
Hardware
The physical components of a computer system that can be touched and seen.
Motherboard
- A circuit board that allows data to travel to the different components in a computer.
- The motherboard is the main circuit board that connects all the components of a computer.
Central Processing Unit (CPU)
- The component of a computer that carries out and controls the computer's instructions.
- The central processing unit (CPU) is the brain of the computer. It executes instructions and performs calculations.
- It is split into three main subcomponents:
- Control unit (CU) - controls the order and processing of processes.
- Arithmetic-logic unit (ALU) - computer arithmetic and logic operations.
- Registers - temporarily store small amounts of data needed by the CPU.
Primary Memory
The component of a computer that stores data and instructions that the computer needs to run and execute instructions.
- RAM (Random Access Memory): Temporary storage for data and instructions that are currently being used by the CPU.
- ROM (Read-Only Memory): Permanent storage for essential instructions that cannot be modified. Stores the necessary data that the computer needs to boot.
- Cache: Small but extremely fast memory that stores frequently used data for fast retrieval.
Upgrading the RAM to be faster and/or feature a higher capacity results in significant improvement of the speed and amount of available running processes on a computer.
Storage
The component of a computer that stores data and instructions permanently. Usually used for storing user data.
There are two types of storage:
- Hard Disk Drive (HDD): Magnetic storage that uses spinning disks to store data. Weaker than SSD, but much cheaper and commonly has more capacity.
- Solid State Drive (SSD): Flash storage that uses memory chips to store data. Much more powerful and faster, but more expensive.
Graphics and Sound Components
The components of a computer that process and output visual and audio data.
- Graphics Processing Unit (GPU): Processes visual data and outputs it to a display device.
- Sound Card: Processes audio data and outputs it to speakers or headphones.
GPUs are actually very powerful processors (similarly to CPUs) that compute many complex calculations at the same time to allow for powerful graphic features.
Power Supply
The component of a computer that converts AC power from an outlet into DC power for the computer.
The power supply converts AC power from an outlet into DC power for the computer.
