Computer Hardware

Kindly discuss on the following:

1. Identify the essential hardware components of a computer.

- 1. Motherboard

Think of the motherboard as the backbone of nearly any technological device. It holds
all the major components of the computer, including the hard drive, processor, memory
and peripheral ports like the USB. Most motherboards in computers, and to some extent
laptops, are called expandable. This means that you can replace components as long
as they are compatible. For example, you can take out a hard drive and replace it with
another that has more storage capacity.

If you can’t take parts out, you may see the term mainboard used. This term is usually
applied to devices like TVs, washing machines, refrigerators, and so on.

2. Networking cards

Networking cards, or network interfacing cards, may be separate cards or integrated

into the motherboard. Their purpose is to provide a way for your computer to connect to
the network and Internet.

Many new computers will have the network card integrated into the motherboard, along
with other components. If you own a laptop, you can connect to Wi-Fi networks through
a Wi-Fi card which is usually close to the outer edges of the device. Most desktops don’t
have this card, but you can purchase them if you want to be able to connect to Wi-Fi.

3. Graphics card

A graphics or video card can come in two varieties – integrated or expansion. An

integrated video card is connected directly to the motherboard and is usually found as a
part of the processor. An expansion video card is a separate card that is connected to
another part of the motherboard called an expansion port. The job of the video card is to
create the graphics and images that can be shown on a monitor. Without one of these,
we would not be able to visualize the data, and computers would be useless.

4. Processor

The processor – also known as a Central Processing Unit or CPU – is the brain of the
computer. Its job is to carry out the instructions of computer programs that are stored in
the computer’s memory.
The speed of a processor is measured in MHz or Megahertz. This measurement
indicates how fast a processor can read electrical pulses. For example, a 100MHz
processor can read 100,000,000 pulses of light in one second. As a reference, most mid
to high-range computers have processors with speeds around 3.0GHz.

5. Hard drive

The hard drive is where programs and files are stored. More traditional drives are called
Hard Disk Drives (HDD) and are comprised of a series of magnetized disks which store
the data. These disks spin under a magnetic arm which can read and write data.

Newer hard drives are called Solid-state Drives (SSD) and use electrical circuits to store
data. These are much faster than traditional HDDs and are starting to be found in more
and more computers.

6. USB ports

The Universal Serial Bus, or USB, is a standard that covers a certain type of cable,
connectors and communication. It is a standard way for computer components like mice,
keyboards, phones, etc. to be connected to the computer. Nearly everything that is not
a physical part of the motherboard or internal computer is connected using a USB
connection.

The cool thing about the USB is not only does it allow you to use your computer as a
communication device, but it also allows the connected device to draw electrical power
from the computer, essentially transforming your computer into an electrical outlet.
That’s why you can charge your phone, or run an external hard drive simply by plugging
it into your computer’s USB port. This standard has become so popular that many
computers now come with multiple ports – some with as many as eight!

7. Monitor ports

Computers are great, but without monitors, they would be largely useless for everyday
use. Monitors come in many sizes and varieties. Newer monitors can connect to your
computer through HDMI or VGA ports. HDMI – High-Definition Multimedia Interface – is
a newer format that can display high-definition images, while VGA – Video Graphics
Array – is typically found in older monitors.
2. List key peripherals attached to most computers.

- Common Peripherals

Input

Keyboard

Computer mouse

Graphic tablet

Touchscreen

Barcode reader

Image scanner

Microphone

Webcam

Game controller

Light pen

Scanner

Digital camera

Output

Computer display

Printer

Projector

Speaker
Storage devices

Floppy disk drive

Flash drive

Disk drive

Smartphone or Tablet computer storage interface

CD/DVD drive

Input/Output

Modem

Network interface controller (NIC)

3. Describe the four basic operations of the central processing unit (CPU).

- The CPU processes instructions it receives in the process of decoding data. In

processing this data, the CPU performs four basic steps:

Fetch: Each instruction is stored in memory and has its own address. The processor
takes this address number from the program counter, which is responsible for tracking
which instructions the CPU should execute next.

Decode: All programs to be executed are translated to into Assembly instructions.

Assembly code must be decoded into binary instructions, which are understandable to
your CPU. This step is called decoding.

Execute: While executing instructions the CPU can do one of three things: Do
calculations with its ALU, move data from one memory location to another, or jump to a
different address.

Store: The CPU must give feedback after executing an instruction, and the output data
is written to the memory.
4. Explain how power is measured for computers.

-Supercomputers can process complex calculations very quickly.

As it turns out, that's the secret behind computing power. It all comes down to how fast
a machine can perform an operation. Everything a computer does breaks down into
math. Your computer's processor interprets any command you execute as a series of
math problems. Faster processors can handle more calculations per second than
slower ones, and they're also better at handling really tough calculations.

Within your computer's CPU is an electronic clock. The clock's job is to create a series
of electrical pulses at regular intervals. This allows the computer to synchronize all its
components and it determines the speed at which the computer can pull data from its
memory and perform calculations.

5. Describe common computer input, output, and storage devices.

- Input, used to interact with, or send data to the computer (mouse, keyboards, etc.)

Output, which provides output to the user from the computer (monitors, printers, etc.)

Storage, which stores data processed by the computer (hard drives, flash drives, etc.)

6. List the names for six types of computers and describe how they are different.

1. Supercomputer

-A supercomputer is a computer with a high level of performance as compared to a

general-purpose computer. The performance of a supercomputer is commonly
measured in floating-point operations per second (FLOPS) instead of million instructions
per second (MIPS).

2. Mainframe

- Mainframe (coloquially, "big iron") computers are similar to supercomputers in many

aspects, the main difference between them is the fact that a supercomputer use all its
raw power to focus on very few tasks, while a mainframe purpose is to perform
thousands or millions of operations concurrently. Due to its nature, mainframes are
often employed by large organizations for bulk data processing, such as census,
industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning and transaction
processing.
3. Server Computer

- A server is a central computer that contains collections of data and programs. Also
called a network server, this system allows all connected users to share and store
electronic data and applications. Two important types of servers are file servers and
application servers.

4. Workstation Computer

- Workstations are high-end, expensive computers that are made for more complex
procedures and are intended for one user at a time. Some of the complex procedures
consist of science, math and engineering calculations and are useful for computer
design and manufacturing. Workstations are sometimes improperly named for
marketing reasons. Real workstations are not usually sold in retail, but this is starting to
change; Apple's Mac Pro would be considered a workstation.

5. Personal Computer or PC

- PC is an abbreviation for a Personal Computer, it is also known as a Microcomputer.

Its physical characteristics and low cost are appealing and useful for its users. The
capabilities of a personal computer have changed greatly since the introduction of
electronic computers. By the early 1970s, people in academic or research institutions
had the opportunity for single-person use of a computer system in interactive mode for
extended durations, although these systems would still have been too expensive to be
owned by a single individual.

6. Microcontroller

- Microcontrollers are mini computers that enable the user to store data and execute
simple commands and tasks. These single circuit devices have minimal memory and
program length but are normally designed to be very good at performing a niche task.
Many such systems are known as embedded systems. The computer in your car, for
example is an embedded system. A common microcontroller that one might come
across is called Arduino.

7. Describe computer network hardware devices and their functions.

- Networking hardware, also known as network equipment or computer networking

devices, are electronic devices which are required for communication and interaction
between devices on a computer network. Specifically, they mediate data transmission in
a computer network.[1] Units which are the last receiver or generate data are called
hosts or data terminal equipment.
Types of network devices

Here is the common network device list:

Hub- Hubs connect multiple computer networking devices together. A hub also acts as
a repeater in that it amplifies signals that deteriorate after traveling long distances over
connecting cables. A hub is the simplest in the family of network connecting devices
because it connects LAN components with identical protocols.

Switch- Switches generally have a more intelligent role than hubs. A switch is a
multiport device that improves network efficiency. The switch maintains limited routing
information about nodes in the internal network, and it allows connections to systems
like hubs or routers. Strands of LANs are usually connected using switches. Generally,
switches can read the hardware addresses of incoming packets to transmit them to the
appropriate destination.

Router- Routers help transmit packets to their destinations by charting a path through
the sea of interconnected networking devices using different network topologies.
Routers are intelligent devices, and they store information about the networks they’re
connected to. Most routers can be configured to operate as packet-filtering firewalls and
use access control lists (ACLs). Routers, in conjunction with a channel service unit/data
service unit (CSU/DSU), are also used to translate from LAN framing to WAN framing.
This is needed because LANs and WANs use different network protocols. Such routers
are known as border routers. They serve as the outside connection of a LAN to a WAN,
and they operate at the border of your network.

Bridge- Bridges are used to connect two or more hosts or network segments together.
The basic role of bridges in network architecture is storing and forwarding frames
between the different segments that the bridge connects. They use hardware Media
Access Control (MAC) addresses for transferring frames. By looking at the MAC
address of the devices connected to each segment, bridges can forward the data or
block it from crossing. Bridges can also be used to connect two physical LANs into a
larger logical LAN.

Gateway- Gateways normally work at the Transport and Session layers of the OSI
model. At the Transport layer and above, there are numerous protocols and standards
from different vendors; gateways are used to deal with them. Gateways provide
translation between networking technologies such as Open System Interconnection
(OSI) and Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). Because of this,
gateways connect two or more autonomous networks, each with its own routing
algorithms, protocols, topology, domain name service, and network administration
procedures and policies.

Modem- Modems (modulators-demodulators) are used to transmit digital signals over

analog telephone lines. Thus, digital signals are converted by the modem into analog
signals of different frequencies and transmitted to a modem at the receiving location.
The receiving modem performs the reverse transformation and provides a digital output
to a device connected to a modem, usually a computer. The digital data is usually
transferred to or from the modem over a serial line through an industry standard
interface, RS-232. Many telephone companies offer DSL services, and many cable
operators use modems as end terminals for identification and recognition of home and
personal users. Modems work on both the Physical and Data Link layers.

Repeater- A repeater is an electronic device that amplifies the signal it receives. You
can think of repeater as a device which receives a signal and retransmits it at a higher
level or higher power so that the signal can cover longer distances, more than 100
meters for standard LAN cables. Repeaters work on the Physical layer.

Access Point- While an access point (AP) can technically involve either a wired or
wireless connection, it commonly means a wireless device. An AP works at the second
OSI layer, the Data Link layer, and it can operate either as a bridge connecting a
standard wired network to wireless devices or as a router passing data transmissions
from one access point to another.

REFERENCES:

https://www.hireanitexpert.com/7-essential-hardware-components/

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/informationliteracy/chapter/computer-devices/

https://turbofuture.com/computers/What-are-the-basic-functions-of-a-CPU

https://computer.howstuffworks.com/computing-power.htm

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/informationliteracy/chapter/computer-devices/

https://en.m.wikiversity.org/wiki/Types_of_computers

https://blog.netwrix.com/2019/01/08/network-devices-explained/