Memory Introduction

What is memory?
 Memory is made up of semi-conductor switches. The

position of the switch (open or closed) is used to represent
the binary numbers 0 or 1.
 A single unit of memory is called a BIT and can store 0 or 1.
 Two BITS together allow 4 different binary numbers to be
stored: 00 , 01 , 10 or 11.
 Eight BITS can store 256 different numbers:
00000000 through to 11111111
Slide 1
© GCSE Computing
What is ROM and RAM?
RAM – Random Access Memory
 The contents of RAM can be altered so a computer can
both read from and write to memory addresses in RAM.
 RAM is described as volatile meaning that if the power is
switched off or the battery removed then the contents will
be lost.
ROM - Read only Memory
 The contents of ROM cannot be altered so a computer
can only read from memory addresses in ROM.
 ROM is described as non-volatile meaning that if the
power is switched off or the battery removed then the
contents are not lost. Slide 2
© GCSE Computing
Why is ROM needed in a computer?
ROM is needed for devices where programs or data must not

be lost when the power is turned off or batteries are
removed etc.
Embedded computers such as those in
microprocessor controlled devices use
ROM to store the software to control the
hardware, as well as data such as
cooking/washing times etc.
A typical computer uses special ROM called the BIOS (Basic
Input/Output System) which permanently stores the software
needed to access computer hardware such as the hard drive
and then load an operating system into RAM and start to
execute it.
Slide 3
© GCSE Computing
Why is RAM needed in a computer?
 When a personal computer is in use the following are copied
into RAM from the backing storage:
 The Operating System (OS)
 All the other programs that are running
 Any data files that are in use.
 RAM is needed for this task because it would be far too
slow for the CPU to directly access this data from the
secondary storage.
 New files or changes made to files while the computer
system is in use need to be saved before is switched off.
This is done by copying the data from RAM to the secondary
storage.
Slide 4
© GCSE Computing
How is memory accessed
 Memory is linked to the CPU by two different types of

BUS, the address bus and the data bus (a BUS is a set of
very thin parallel wires that transmit binary data).
 The ADDRESS BUS identifies the location of the data (a
bit like a house number/postcode does).
 The DATA BUS is then used to transfer the contents of the
memory address (the data) between the memory location
and the CPU (and visa-versa with RAM).
MEMORY MEMORY CONTENTS
ADDRESS
1 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0
1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0
Slide 5
1 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
© GCSE Computing
How does the amount of RAM affect
performance?
 When a computer is running, the operating system, all the
other running programs plus any files in use are all
stored in RAM.
 This is because secondary storage (such as a hard drive)
would be far too slow for the CPU.
 If there is insufficient RAM then the CPU has to constantly
transfer blocks of data between RAM and virtual memory.
 This will significantly slow the rate that the computer can
process instructions and data.
 SUMMARY: The more RAM installed in a personal

computer, the higher the performance.
Slide 6
© GCSE Computing
What is virtual memory
 Because there is only a limited amount of RAM in a computer it is possible for it to run low if too
many programs are running at one time OR too many large files have been loaded.
 However, at any one time only some blocks of the data in RAM are actively being used by the CPU
so it is possible for the OS to copy blocks of inactive data from RAM to the hard drive and copy
active blocks of data into RAM to be accessed by the CPU.
 To the CPU, it therefore appears that all the programs are running from RAM and each program
behaves as if it had as much RAM as it needed, hence the term virtual memory.
 This solution is a very cheap but does have its limitations.
 Because the hard drive is so much slower than RAM, this swapping of inactive and active data blocks will
cause a slight delay as the computer switches tasks.
 If a computer is very low on RAM or accessing many different areas of memory then it will slow down
dramatically because too much time will be spent swapping blocks of data between real and virtual
memory.
 The area of the hard disk that acts as the virtual memory is called a page file and the size can set using
the Operating System. It is usually set to be around twice the size of the RAM.
 SUMMARY: Virtual memory is memory that uses secondary storage but to a program it appears as
if the whole program is loaded and running from RAM.
Slide 7
© GCSE Computing
What is cache memory?
 Cache memory is a small amount of very
fast memory that is built into the
CPU. Blocks of instructions and data that
are in use by the CPU are copied from
RAM into cache memory, along with the
associated memory addresses.
 If the CPU needs to access a memory
address it first checks the cache memory to
see if there is a match. If there is then it
access the contents of the cache version.
Summary:
A CPU with a larger cache memory and more levels of cache memory will
have a higher performance than one without cache memory.
Slide 8
© GCSE Computing
What is flash memory?
 Flash memory is a special type of RAM that, unlike normal RAM, is non-volatile (it
does not need a power supply to preserve the memory contents). Flash memory
cannot however replace RAM in a computer as the read/write speeds are too
slow.
 Flash memory can be described as a
solid state storage device because
the contents are non-volatile and there
are no moving parts. Typical storage
sizes range from 1GB to 16GB and higher.
 Examples of flash memory in use:
 Compact Flash™ and Secure Digital™ (SD) memory cards in digital cameras.
 Mini and Micro SD cards in smart phones.
 Memory cards for video game consoles.
 USB memory sticks.
 SUMMARY: Flash memory combines the permanence of ROM with the flexibility
of RAM, but not the speed.
Slide 9
© GCSE Computing
How are changes in memory technologies leading to innovative
computer designs?
SUMMARY: Memory technology has developed significantly over the years. Changes
include:
 Greater storage density; (the number of bits per chip has increased from almost 1 kilobit (Kb)
to 2 gigabit (GB) per chip) meaning computer systems, in particular portable ones, can be
much smaller.
 Faster read/write times; allowing increases in the performance of computer systems,
although these speed increases still lag behind the advances in processor speeds.
 Less power consumption; allowing mains computers to consume less electricity and
portable computing devices to last longer on battery power or use smaller batteries and be
even more portable.
 Lower costs per gigabit; making it affordable to install significant amounts of RAM in quite
basic computer systems.
 Flash memory capacity has risen to the point where solid state storage becomes a realistic
alternative to the hard drive in smaller systems. This means that a computer can start
operating far more quickly when it is started up as the data can be copied into RAM so much
faster.
 Cache memory built into the CPU has made data transfer between the processor and RAM
Slide
far more efficient, allowing significant increases in performance at a reasonable
10 cost.
© GCSE Computing

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Memory Introduction

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What is memory?

 Memory is made up of semi-conductor switches. The

ROM is needed for devices where programs or data must not

 Memory is linked to the CPU by two different types of

 SUMMARY: The more RAM installed in a personal

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