Processor Performance

Words - Memory is divided up into equal units called words. Word lengths are usually 8, 16, 32 or 64 bits. Each word will have a separate memory address. 

Increasing word length:

·         CPU can process more data. 

·         Processor can have larger amount of memory through direct addressing. 

·         Larger instruction set.

Address bus - The width of the address bus determines the maximum possible memory addresses of the system. With an 8-bit address bus, the maximum number of memory addresses is 2ˆ8

Increasing Address bus width:

·         Increases max potential memory usage. 

·         Can address more unique memory locations.

Data bus - The data bus is bi-directional meaning data can be sent both ways along the bus. If the data bus is the same width as a computer word, data can be transferred to and from memory in a single instruction. Increasing the data bus width means move more data around per unit time

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