Addressing modes
• The different ways that a processor can access
data are referred to as addressing modes.
or
• The different ways in which the location of an
operand is specified in an instruction are
referred to as addressing modes.
Addressing modes
• Programs are normally written in a high
level language which enables the
programmer to use constants, local and
global variables, pointers and arrays.
• When translating a high level language
program into assembly language, the
compiler must be able to implement these
constructs using the facilities provided in
the instruction set of the computer.
Generic Addressing Modes
• Immediate mode
• Register mode
• Absolute mode
• Indirect mode
• Index mode
• Relative mode
• Auto-increment mode
• Auto-decrement mode
Implementation of variables and
constants
• Variables and constants are the most simplest
and commonly used data types on every
computer.
• A variable is initialized by allocating a register
or memory location to hold its value in
assembly language.
• The addressing modes used for representing
variables are:
• Register mode
• Absolute mode
• Register mode: operand is the contents of a processor
register.
» The name of the register is specified in the instruction.
• Eg: Move R1, R2.
• This instruction copies the contents of register R2 to R1.
• Absolute mode: also known as Direct mode
» The operand is in a memory location.
» The address of the location of the operand is given explicitly as a
part of the instruction.
• Eg: Move A, 2000
• The addressing mode used for representing
constants :
• Immediate mode: operand is given explicitly in the
instruction means operand is part of the instruction itself.
• No memory reference is required to access the operand.
• Eg: Move #200,R0.
• Eg: Move 200 immediate ,R0: It places the value 200 in the
register [Link] immediate mode is used to specify the value
of source operand.
• In assembly language, the immediate subscript is
not appropriate so # symbol is used.
• It can be re-written as : Move #200,R0
• The sharp sign(#) is used in front of the value to
indicate that this value is to be used as an immediate
operand.
• Constant values are used frequently in high level
language programs.
• For eg : A= B+6, this statement contains the constant 6.
• Let us assume that A and B are declared earlier as variables
and may be accessed using absolute mode.
• The compilation of this statement can be done as follows:
• Move B, R1
• Add #6,R1
• Move R1,A
Indirection and Pointers:
• Instruction does not give the operand or its
address explicitly.
• Instead it provides information from which the
new address of the operand can be
determined.
• This address is called effective Address(EA) of
the operand.
• Indirect mode: the effective address of the operand
is the contents of a register or the main memory
location whose address is given explicitly in the
instruction.
• Indirection is denoted by placing the name of the
register or the memory address given in the
instruction in parentheses.
• Indirect mode through a general-purpose register
• Indirect mode through a memory location
Fig 2.11(a) : through a general-purpose
register
• ADD (R1), R0:
• The processor uses the value B, which is in
register R1.
• Then the processor adds this to the contents
of register R0.
• The register or memory location which
provides the address of operand is known as
pointers.
Fig 2.11(b) : through a memory
location
• ADD (A), R0
• Here processor first reads the contents of
memory location A, then requests a second
read operation using the value B as an address
to obtain the operand.
Indexing and Arrays
• Technique that allows programmer to point or
refer the data (operand) stored in sequential
memory locations one by one.
• This type of addressing mode is used in lists
and arrays.
• Index mode: effective address of the operand
is generated by adding a constant value to the
contents of a register. The register used here is
referred to as an index register.
• Symbolic representation of index mode is
• X(Ri)
Where X denotes a constant value in the instruction and
Ri is the name of the register involved.
The effective address of the operand is
EA= X +[Ri]
• To access operand,
• First go to Reg R1 (using address)-read the content from
R1 ie 1000
• Add the content 1000 with offset 20 get the result,
1000+20=1020
Relative addressing
• If we use index addressing mode using PC
instead of general purpose register, we have
relative addressing mode.
• Most commonly used to specify the target
address in branch instruction.
Auto increment mode
• The effective address of the operand is the
contents of a register specified in the
instruction.
• After accessing the operand, the contents of
this register are automatically incremented to
point to the next item in the list.
• (Ri)+
• To access successive words in a byte –addressable
memory with a 32-bit word length, the increment must
be 4.
Auto decrement mode
• The contents of the register are to be
decremented before being used as the
effective address.
• -(Ri)
