30. Storage Devices
The chapter discusses the various types of storage devices essential for secondary memory in computer architecture, emphasizing the functionality and design issues associated with hard disks. It explains the importance of hard disk controllers and outlines the memory hierarchy, highlighting the differences in speed, capacity, and cost among primary and secondary memory types. Moreover, it provides insights into data organization and the read/write mechanisms of magnetic disks.
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What we have learnt
- Storage devices are crucial for providing permanent storage as primary memory is volatile and limited in capacity.
- The memory hierarchy reveals a trade-off between speed, capacity, and cost, with registers being the fastest yet most limited, and hard disks providing substantial storage at a lower cost.
- The read/write mechanisms of magnetic disks involve electromagnetic principles that allow data to be recorded and retrieved efficiently.
Key Concepts
- -- Secondary Memory
- Non-volatile storage used to store data permanently, such as hard disks and optical media.
- -- Memory Hierarchy
- A structure that categorizes memory types based on speed, capacity, and cost, ranging from fast registers to slower hard disks.
- -- Read/Write Mechanism
- The method used by storage devices to record and retrieve data, involving electromagnetic fields in magnetic disks.
- -- Hard Disk Controller
- A component that manages the reading and writing of data to and from hard disk storage.
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