Storage

Devices

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1. Computer Data Storage
2. Types of Storage
3. Storage Device Features
4. Other Examples of Storage Device

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Storage Devices

• A storage device is used in the computers to store

the data.
• Provides one of the core functions of the modern
computer.

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Types of Storage

There are four type of storage:

• Primary Storage
• Secondary Storage
• Tertiary Storage
• Off-line Storage

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Primary Storage

• Also known as main memory.

• Main memory is directly or indirectly connected to the
central processing unit via a memory bus.
• The CPU continuously reads instructions stored
there and executes them as required.
• Example:
– RAM
– ROM
– Cache

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Primary Storage

RAM

• It is called Random Access Memory because any of the

data in RAM can be accessed just as fast as any of the
other data.
• There are two types of RAM:
– DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory)
– SRAM (Static Random Access Memory)

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Primary Storage

RAM
Static RAM Dynamic RAM
• Faster • Slower
• More expensive • Less expensive
• More power consumption • Less power consumption
• does not need to be refreshed • needs to be refreshed thousands
of times per second

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Primary Storage

ROM
• This memory is used as the computer begins
to boot up.
• Small programs called firmware are often
stored in ROM chips on hardware devices
(like a BIOS chip), and they contain
instructions the computer can use in
performing some of the most basic
operations required to operate hardware
devices.
• ROM memory cannot be easily or
quickly overwritten or modified.
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Primary Storage

Cache

• Cache is a high-speed access area that can be either a

reserved section of main memory or a storage device.
• Most computers today come with L3 cache or L2 cache,
while older computers included only L1 cache.

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Secondary Storage

• It is not directly accessible by the CPU.

• Computer usually uses its input/output channels to access
secondary storage and transfers the desired data using
intermediate area in primary storage.
• Example:
– Hard disk

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Secondary Storage

Hard Disk
• The hard disk drive is the main, and usually largest, data
storage device in a computer.
• It can store anywhere from 160 gigabytes to 2
terabytes.
• Hard disk speed is the speed at which content can be
read and written on a hard disk.
• A hard disk unit comes with a set rotation speed
varying from 4500 to 7200 rpm.
• Disk access time is measured in milliseconds.

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Secondary Storage

Hard Disk

Internal Hard disk External Hard disk

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Secondary Storage

Hard Disk

Internal Hard disk External Hard disk

Portability No Yes
Price Less expensive More expensive
Speed Fast Slow
Size Big Small

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Tertiary Storage

• Typically it involves a robotic mechanism which will

mount (insert) and dismount removable mass storage
media into a storage device.
• It is a comprehensive computer storage system that is
usually very slow, so it is usually used to archive data that
is not accessed frequently.
• This is primarily useful for extraordinarily large data
stores, accessed without human operators.

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Tertiary Storage

• Examples:
– Magnetic Tape

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Tertiary Storage
Tertiary Storage

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Tertiary Storage

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Tertiary Storage

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Off-line Storage

• Also known as disconnected storage.

• Is a computer data storage on a medium or a device that
is not under the control of a processing unit.
• It must be inserted or connected by a human
operator before a computer can access it again.

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Off-line Storage

• Also known as disconnected or removable

storage.
• Is a computer data storage on a medium or a device that
is not under the control of a processing unit.
• It must be inserted or connected by a human
operator before a computer can access it again.

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Off-line Storage

• Examples:
– Floppy Disk
– Zip diskette
– USB Flash drive
– Memory card

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Off-line Storage

Floppy Disk

• A soft magnetic disk.

• Floppy disks are portable.
• Floppy disks are slower to access than hard disks and
have less storage capacity, but they are much less
expensive.
• Can store data up to 1.44MB.
• Two common sizes: 5 ¼” and 3 ½”.

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Off-line Storage

Floppy Disk

5 ¼ inch Floppy Disk 3 ½ inch Floppy Disk

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Off-line Storage

Zip Diskette

• Hardware data storage device

developed by Iomega that functions
like a Standard 1.44" floppy drive.
• Capable to hold up to 100 MB of
data or 250 MB of data on new
drives.
• Now it less popular as users needed
larger storage capabilities.

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Off-line Storage

USB Flash Drive

• A small, portable flash memory

card that plugs into a computer’s
USB port and functions as a
portable hard drive.
• Flash drives are available in sizes
such as 256MB, 512MB, 1GB,
5GB, and 16GB and are an easy
way to transfer and store
information.

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Off-line Storage

Memory Card

• An electronic flash memory storage disk commonly used

in consumer electronic devices such as digital cameras,
MP3 players, mobile phones, and other small portable
devices.
• Memory cards are usually read by connecting the device
containing the card to your computer, or by using a USB
card reader.

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Off-line Storage

Memory Card

Secure Digital card (SD) MiniSD Compact Flash Memory Stick

MultiMedia card XD-Picture card Memory card reader

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Storage Device Features

• Volatility
• Accessibility
• Mutability
• Addressability

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Volatility

• Two types of volatility:

– Volatile Memory
– Non-Volatile Memory

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Volatility

Volatile Memory

• Requires constant power to maintain the stored

information.
• The fastest memory technologies.
• All contents are erased when the system's power is
turned off or interrupted.
• It has been more popularly known as temporary
memory.

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Volatility

Non-Volatile Memory

• Will retain the stored information even if it is not

constantly supplied with electric power.
• Non volatile memory is the device which keeps the data
even when the current is off.
• It is suitable for long-term storage of information.

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Accessibility

• Refers to reading or writing data records

• Two types of accessibility:
– Random access
– Sequential access

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Accessibility

Random Access

• Any location in storage can be accessed at any moment

in approximately the same amount of time.
• Such characteristic is well suited for primary and
secondary storage.

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Accessibility

Sequential Access

• The accessing of pieces of information will be in a serial

order, one after the other; therefore the time to access a
particular piece of information depends upon which piece
of information was last accessed.
• Such characteristic is typical of off-line storage.

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Mutability

• Allows information to be overwritten at any time.

• A computer without some amount of read/write storage
for primary storage purposes would be useless for many
tasks.
• Three types of mutability:
– Read/write storage or mutable storage
– Read only storage
– Slow write, fast read storage

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Mutability

Read/Write Storage or Mutable Storage

• Allows information to be overwritten at any time.

• A computer without some amount of read/write storage
for primary storage purposes would be useless for many
tasks.

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Mutability

Read Only Storage

• Retains the information stored at the time of manufacture,

and write once storage (WORM) allows the
information to be written only once at some point after
manufacture.
• These are called immutable storage.

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Mutability

Slow Write, Fast Read Storage

• Read/write storage which allows information to be

overwritten multiple times, but with the write operation
being much slower than the read operation.

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Addressability

• Three types of addressability

– Location-addressable
– File addressable
– Content-addressable

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Addressability

Location-addressable

• Each individually accessible unit of information in

storage is selected with its numerical memory address.

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Addressability

File addressable

• Information is divided into files of variable length, and a

particular file is selected with human-readable directory
and file names.

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Addressability

Content-addressable

• Each individually accessible unit of information is

selected based on the basis of (part of) the contents stored
there.
• Content-addressable storage can be implemented using
software (computer program) or hardware (computer
device), with hardware being faster but more expensive
option.
• Hardware content addressable memory is often used in a
computer's CPU cache.

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Magnetic Tap
 Was early secondary-storage medium

 Relatively permanent and holds large quantities of data

 Access time slow

 Random access ~1000 times slower than disk

 Mainly used for backup, storage of infrequently-used data, transfer medium between systems

 Kept in spool and wound or rewound past read-write head

 Once data under head, transfer rates comparable to disk

 20-200GB typical storage

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