Computer Hardware

Basics
Bharat Yadav
62385
 Input Devices
 An input device is any
peripheral (piece of computer
hardware equipment) used to
provide data and control signals
to an information processing
system (such as a computer)
 WebCam
 Keyboard
 Mouse
 Camera
 Scanner
 PDA
 Barcode Reader
Output Devices

 An output device is any piece of

computer hardware equipment used to
communicate the results of data
processing carried out by an
information processing system (such as
a computer) to the outside world.
Communication Devices
System Units

 A system unit, also known as a

base unit, is the main body of a
desktop computer, typically
consisting of an enclosure
containing the motherboard,
power supply, cooling fans,
internal disk drives, memory
modules and expansion cards
that are plugged into the
motherboard, such as video and
network cards.
 Motherboard
 The main circuit board of a
microcomputer. The motherboard
contains the connectors for
attaching additional boards.
 Typically, the motherboard
contains the CPU, BIOS, memory,
mass storage interfaces, USB
ports, expansion slots, and all the
controllers required to control
standard peripheral devices, such
as the display screen, keyboard,
and disk drive.
 Collectively, all these chips that
reside on the motherboard are
known as the motherboard's
chipset.
System Clock

 The system clock determines the

clock speed of the computer which
is the speed at which a
microprocessor executes
instructions.
 Every computer contains an internal
clock that regulates the rate at
which instructions are executed and
synchronizes all the various
computer components
Primary Storage

 Primary storage, presently known as memory, is the only one directly accessible to
the CPU. The CPU continuously reads instructions stored there and executes them
as required.
 All computers have primary storage. ROM (read-only memory): Computers almost
always contain a small amount of read-only memory that holds instructions for
starting up the computer. Unlike RAM, ROM cannot be written to RAM (random
access memory), a type of computer memory that can be accessed randomly; that
is, any byte of memory can be accessed without touching the preceding bytes.
 RAM is the most common type of memory found in computers and other devices,
such as printers.
 The BIOS is boot firmware, designed to be the first code run by a PC when
powered on. The initial function of the BIOS is to identify, test, and initialize
system devices such as the video display card, hard disk, and other hardware.
Primary Storage Rom Ram BIOS
 Secondary Storage
 Secondary storage is not directly
accessible by the CPU. The computer
must transfer the desired data into
primary storage before it can use it.
 Secondary storage does not lose the data
when the device is powered down—it is
non-volatile. It is typically also much less
expensive and can hold than primary
storage.
 Consequently, modern computer systems
typically have an order of magnitude
more secondary storage than primary
storage and data is kept for a longer time
there.
 In modern computers, hard disks are
usually used as secondary storage. Some
other examples of secondary storage
technologies are: flash memory (e.g. USB
sticks or keys), floppy disks, magnetic
tape, paper tape, punch cards,
standalone RAM disks, and Zip drives
CPU
 Abbreviation for central
processing unit, and pronounced
as separate letters.
 The CPU is the brains of the
computer. Sometimes referred to
simply as the central processor,
but more commonly called
processor, the CPU is where most
calculations take place.
 In terms of computing power, the
CPU is the most important
element of a computer system.
BUS
 A collection of wires through which data is
transmitted from one part of a computer to
another.
 You can think of a bus as a highway on which
data travels within a computer.
 When used in reference to personal computers,
the term bus usually refers to internal bus.
 This is a bus that connects all the internal
computer components to the CPU and main
memory.
 There's also an expansion bus that enables
expansion boards to access the CPU and memory.
Examples include PCI and PCI express for
expansion boards and SATA for hard drives.
External Connectors

 A bus that connects a computer to peripheral devices. The most

commonly used external bus is the Universal Serial Bus (USB) but
there is also Thunderbolt, Firewire and eSATA (External SATA).
Expansion Cards

 An expansion card (also

expansion board, adapter
card or accessory card) in
computing is a printed circuit
board that can be inserted
into an expansion slot of a
computer motherboard to add
additional functionality to a
computer system. Examples
include video cards, sound
cards, network cards, TV
tuner cards.