Chapter 4

 Primary storage device

 RAM and its types
 ROM and its types
 Cache memory
 Secondary storage device
 Hard disc
 Flash disc
 Optical disc
 Memory/SD card
 Uses
of secondary storage devices
 Memory Hierarchy

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 It is a device that stores digital data used by
computers. Storing information is important because
they can be used later when required.
 “Computer memory is any physical device capable of
storing information temporarily or permanently.”
 According to the nature of storage, Computer memory
can be divided into two main types.
 Primary Memory
 Secondary Memory Or Auxiliary Memory
Note: Any storage unit of a computer system is characterized
and evaluated based on following properties-storage
capacity, access time, volatile and random access.

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 Primary memory is the main memory of computer. It
is used to store data and instructions during the
processing of data.
 Primary memory is of two kinds—Random Access
Memory (RAM) and Read Only Memory (ROM).
 RAM is volatile. It stores data when the computer is
on. The information stored in RAM gets erased when
the computer is turned off. RAM provides temporary
storage for data and instructions.

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 ROM is non-volatile memory, but is a read
only memory. The storage in ROM is
permanent in nature, and is used for storing
standard processing programs that
permanently reside in the computer. ROM
comes programmed by the manufacturer.

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 Primary memory is the memory that can be directly
accessed by the CPU.

 Different types of primary memories are RAM (Random

access Memory), ROM (Read-only Memory), PROM
(Programmable Read-only Memory), EPROM (Erasable
Programmable Read-only Memory), and EEPROM
(Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-only Memory).

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 The secondary memory stores data and
instructions permanently. The information can be
stored in secondary memory for a long time (years),
and is generally permanent in nature unless erased
by the user.
 It is a non-volatile memory.
 It provides back-up storage for data and
instructions. Hard disk drive, floppy drive and
optical disk drives are some examples of storage
devices.

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 The data and instructions that are currently not
being used by CPU, but may be required later for
processing, are stored in secondary memory.
 Secondary memory has a high storage capacity
than the primary memory.
 Secondarymemory is also cheaper than the
primary memory.

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Primary memory Secondary memory
The primary devices are semiconductor These devices are magnetic and optical
memories. memories.

It is categorized as a volatile and It is always non volatile memory.

nonvolatile memories. Example RAM is
the volatile memory and ROM is the non
volatile memory.

It is composed of programs and data that It is capable to use amount of

are presently being used by the information.
microprocessor.

It is more effective and fast to interact with It is slow in interacting with the
the microprocessor microprocessor as compared with the
primary memory.

It is also known as main memory. It is also known as additional memory

or back memory.

They are also called as internal memory It is also called external memory

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RAM
 It stands for Random Access Memory.
 It is also called read/right or volatile memory because
its content is lost when the computer is Turned off.
 It is also called the main memory, internal memory or
primary memory.
 It is stores data and program while they are being
used and also requires power supply to maintain its
integrity.
 It is also defined as a type of computer memory that
can be accessed.

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 Static Ram
 Dynamic Ram

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SRAM-it is referred to as static Random Access
Memory.
 SRAM (static RAM) is random access memory (RAM)
that retains data bits in its memory as long as power is
being supplied.
 Static RAM’s are costlier and consume more power.
 They have higher speed than D-RAMs.
 In static RAM, a flip-flop holds each bit of
information.

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 Dynamic random access memory (DRAM) is a type
of memory that is typically used for data or
program Storage.
 DRAM is a common type of random access memory
(RAM) used in personal computers (PCs), workstations
and servers.
 Random access allows the PC processor to access any
part of the memory directly rather than having to
proceed sequentially from a starting place.

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 Loses its stored information in a very short time (for
milli sec.) Even when power supply is on.
 D-RAM are cheaper & lower.
 It has dynamic memory cell, represents a single bit of
data and this hold by the capacitor.
 Refresh operation is required thousands of times per
second in order to maintain the information.

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NVRAM
 It stands for non volatile Random Access Memory.
 It is a type of Random Access Memory that retains its
information even when the power is turned off.
 It is an integrated circuit and is able to obtain the power to
keep it running from the CMOS battery installed in a
motherboard.
 It keeps track of various system parameters such as serial
number, Ethernet MAC(media access control) address, date
of manufacture etc.
 It is a type of non volatile memory and offers Random
Access.

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SDRAM (synchronous DRAM)
 It is a variation of dynamic RAM in which the
memory speed is synchronized with the clock pulse of
the CPU.
 The synchronization enables it to pipeline read and
write request.
 Pipelining enable this memory to accept command at
the same time as it is processing the Other command.

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Video RAM
 It is a special type of Ram which is used on video
cards.
 It is accessed by the two different devices
simultaneously that is it is Dual-ported. This means it
enables the data to be read from the video RAM and at
the same time data is written to the video RAM.

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 ROM stands for Random Access Memory.
 Its non volatile memory i.e. the information stored in
it is not lost even if the power supply goes off. The
ROM is sustained by a small long-life battery in your
computer.
 ROM is "built-in" computer memory containing data
that normally can only be read, not written to. ROM
contains the programming that allows your computer
to be "booted up"
 It’s used for the permanent storage of information.
 Information can not be written into a ROM by the
users/programmers but by the manufactures

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The Other types of ROM are
 PROM : It’s programmable ROM. Its contents are
decided by the user. The user can store permanent
programs, data etc in a PROM. The data is fed into it
using a PROM programs.
 EPROM : An EPROM is an erasable PROM. The stored
data in EPROM’s can be erased by exposing it to UV
light for about 20 min. It’s not easy to erase it because
the EPROM IC has to be removed from the computer
and exposed to UV light. EPROM’s are cheap and
reliable.

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 EEPROM (Electrically Erasable PROM) : The chip can
be erased & reprogrammed on the board easily byte
by byte. It can be erased with in a few milliseconds.
There is a limit on the number of times the EEPROM’s
can be reprogrammed, i.e.; usually around 10,000
times.
 Flash Memory : Its an electrically erasable &
programmable permanent type memory. It uses one
transistor memory all resulting in high packing
density, low power consumption, lower cost & higher
reliability. Its used in all power, digital cameras, MP3
players etc.

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Cache Memory
 Cache memory is a small-sized type of volatile computer
memory that provides high-speed data access to a
processor and stores frequently used computer programs,
applications and data.
 It is the fastest memory in a computer, and is typically
integrated onto the motherboard and directly embedded in
the processor.
 It is a small, fast and expensive memory placed between
the main memory and the processor(CPU).
 The Cache Memory is attached for storing the input which
is given by the user and which is necessary for the CPU to
Perform a Task. But the Capacity of the Cache Memory is
too low in compare to Memory and Hard Disk.

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Cache Memory

 The need for the cache memory is due to the mismatch

between the speeds of the main memory and the CPU.
 It is a semiconductor memory and consists of static RAM.
It is a special and very high speed memory used to increase
the speed of processing by making current program and data
available to the CPU at a rapid rate.
 It stores programs and data which are to be currently
executed by the CPU.
 It is used to reduce the average access time for programs
and data, which are normally stored in the main memory.


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As the CPU processes data, it looks first in the
cache memory and if it finds the data there, it
does not have to do the more time-consuming
reading of data from larger main memory .

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Features Of Cache Memory
It is very small in size but expensive.
It increases the storing capacity of a main memory and
increase the speed of a processor.
Cache Hit-if the processor sense address of the desired data
to cache, and if the data is available then the event is called-
Cache Hit-
Cache Miss-when the processor send address is not present
in cache the event is called Cache Miss. After Cache Miss,
data of the main memory is copied to cache for the cache hit.
Cache Ratio-the performance of cache is measured in
cache ratio. Its value is 0.9 or more.

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Difference between RAM and ROM

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 A secondary storage device refers to any non-volatile
storage device that is internal or external to the
computer. It can be any storage device beyond the
primary storage that enables permanent data storage.
A secondary storage device is also known as an
auxiliary storage device or external storage.

 Examples of secondary storage device are hard disk

drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs), that
protect data for disaster recovery or long-term
retention. Optical media, backup tapes and remote
archives are common secondary storage technologies.

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Optical Disk
 Optical disks are another kind of direct access disks used to
record data. These types of disks are mostly used for
distribution of applications, movies and education
materials. CDs and DVDs are grouped in this type of disks.
 It is an electronic data storage medium that can be written
to Android using a low powered laser beam. It is a
preferred medium for music, software programs because it
is compact, lightweight, durable and digital. It provides a
minimum of 650 megabytes of data storage.
Other optical devices are-
 Compact disc
 DVD(digital video/versatile disc)
 Blu Ray

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CD ROM
 It is an optical disc that is used to store programs, text,
and graphics digitally.
 It stands for compact disc read only memory. It is
made from polycarbonate and is covered with high
refractive ammonium.
 Its diameter is about 12 centimeter and thickness
about 1 millimeter.
 It has a storage capacity of 650 MB. Laser beam is
used to read data from CD ROM.

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 Information in the CD ROM is stored in a spiral tracks
which have pits and lands to store information.
 Information is read from it by simply allowing laser
beam to fall on pit and land
 The light gets reflected back to the photo diode.
 The amount of change in light is converted into
electrical signal.

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DVD
 It stands for Digital versatile disc.
 It is the new optical disc Technology and used for
distribution of multimedia and feature length movies.
Its storage capacity is at least 15 times greater than
CD ROM. It is also called super density disc(SD).
It is available in to format-video format and DVD
ROM format.
The DVD-video format is used for movies and DVD
ROM format is used to store photographs videos etc.

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Blu Ray
 It is an optical disc format design to display high
definition video and store large amount of data.
 It is a successor to DVD.
 Its name comes from the fact that a blue laser reads
from and writes to the disc rather than red laser of DVD
players.
 Single sided Blu Ray can store the information up to
27 GB and dual layer can store up to 50 GB.
 It have the capability for storing high quality video
recording.

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Flash Drive

 These disks operate like the common hard disk. But

have less storage space, consumes less power and data
can be accessed quickly.
 Its ease of usage makes acceptable, however it is
susceptible to virus attack and failure.
 It is the plug and play portable storage device that
uses flash memory and is lightweight enough to
attach to any key ring.
 Flash drives are also called as thumb drives, pen
drives, or simply USB drives. Storage capacity of pen
drives varies from few megabytes to several gigabyte.

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Memory card/SD card

 It is also called a flash memory card or a storage card.

It is a small storage medium used to store data such as
text, pictures, audio, and did you for use on small or
portable remote computing devices.
 This type of memory cards are used in digital cameras,
handheld and mobile computers and other
electronics.
 The offer high record quality, power free storage.

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Hard disk
 A hard disk drive (sometimes abbreviated as Hard drive, HD,
or HDD) is a non-volatile memory hardware device that
permanently stores and retrieves data on a computer.
 A hard drive is a secondary storage device that consists of one or
more platters to which data is written using a magnetic head, all
inside of an air-sealed casing.
 Hard disc stores data on platters with magnetic surface. A single
hard disc usually consists of several platters. each platters
require 2 read write head one for each side.
 All the read write head are attached to a single access arm so that
they cannot move independently. Each platters have the same
number of tracks. Hard disc unit comes with rotational speed
starting from 4500 rotation per minute. Its access time is
measured in milliseconds.

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 Many people use them for different purposes, as they
are very versatile.
 They are used for backing up data like music,
pictures, videos and other items of value.
 Have the feature of the USB port which helps the
people to carry data to any place with portability.
 When we connect a secondary storage device to our
network, we can set specific permissions for anyone
on our network to connect to it and share the files .

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 The hierarchical arrangement of the storage in a computer
architecture is called the memory hierarchy.
 The memory hierarchy system consist of all storage devices
employed in a computer system from the slow but high capacity
of auxiliary memory to a relatively faster main memory.
 Each higher level of the hierarchy has the properties
of higher bandwidth, smaller size, and lower access time then
the lower level.
 Faster memory technology is more expensive.
 Memories with the less cost have very less access time.
 The main objective of using memory hierarchy is to obtain the
highest possible average access speed while minimizing the total
cost of the entire memory system.

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 Slow and
Cheapest

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Computer memory can be classified in the below given
hierarchy:
 Internal register: Internal register in a CPU is used for
holding variables and temporary results.
 Internal registers have a very small storage; however
they can be accessed instantly. Accessing data from
the internal register is the fastest way to access
memory.
 Cache: Cache is used by the CPU for memory which is
being accessed over and over again. Instead of pulling
it every time from the main memory, it is put in cache
for fast access. It is also a smaller memory, however,
larger than internal register.

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Main memory or RAM (Random Access Memory):
 It is a type of the computer memory. The main memory is
reasonably fast, with access speed around 100 nanoseconds.
 It also offers larger capacity at a lower cost. It is volatile in
nature. It is accessed slowly as compared to cache.
Auxiliary memory
 Secondary storage refers to nonvolatile data storage units that
are external to the computer system. Hard drives and solid
state drives are examples of secondary storage. They offer
very large storage capacity in the order of terabytes at very
low cost.
 Therefore, database servers typically have an array of
secondary storage devices with data stored distributed and
redundantly across these devices.

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 Hard disk: A hard disk is a hardware component in a
computer. Data is kept permanently in this memory.
Memory from hard disk is not directly accessed by the CPU,
hence it is slower. As compared with RAM, hard disk is
cheaper per bit.
 There are basically two types of the Hard disk.
•PATA (Parallel Advanced Technology Attachment)
• SATA (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment).

 Magnetic tape: Magnetic tape memory is usually used for

backing up large data. When the system needs to access a
tape, it is first mounted to access the data. When the data is
accessed, it is then unmounted. The memory access time is
slower in magnetic tape and it usually takes few minutes to
access a tape.

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