Computer System Architecture
Subject Overview
Computer System Architecture covers computer organization fundamentals (Von Neumann architecture, Flynn's classification), basic computer instructions and control unit design, I/O organization and data transfer techniques, and stack/memory organization including cache mapping techniques. A 4-credit core theory paper.
Unit-wise Syllabus
4 units — click WhatsApp below to get the full notes for each
Unit 1: Computer organization fundamentals
Computer organization/design/architecture, stored program concept, Von Neumann architecture, Flynn's classification (SISD/SIMD/MIMD), register transfer language, micro-operations (logic, shift, arithmetic), common bus system and data movement
Unit 2: Instructions and control unit
Instruction types (memory/I/O/register reference), instruction cycle, instruction formats, interrupt and interrupt cycle, hardwired and micro-programmed control units, addressing modes
Unit 3: I/O organization
I/O interface unit, port types, I/O bus, isolated vs memory-mapped I/O, programmed I/O, interrupt-initiated I/O, DMA controller and IOP, synchronous and asynchronous data transfer, strobe and handshaking
Unit 4: Stack and memory organization
Memory and register stack, memory hierarchy, RAM/ROM chips, logical/physical addresses, associative memory, cache memory initialization/writing/locality of reference/hit ratio, replacement algorithms (LRU, FIFO), direct/associative/set-associative mapping, Harvard architecture, mobile device architectures