Chapter FIVE. Bus Architecture

Chapter Syllabus

5.1 Bus Architecture Overview

5.2 Bus Performance

5.3 PCI-Based Buses

5.4 PCI-X

5.5 Upcoming PCI Bus Technologies

5.6 USB

After studying this chapter, you should be able to do the following:

• Describe the characteristics of and differences between dynamic RAM (memory) and static RAM (cache).

• Explain how data is written to, stored in, and read from memory.

• List the technologies that can be used to improve memory performance.

• Describe memory failures and the fault-tolerant technologies used to protect memory, including the following:

  • Parity

  • Error checking and correcting (ECC)

  • Advanced ECC

• Explain the function of cache memory.

• Discuss methods that can be used to improve cache performance.

The internal computing components of a server are connected by a collection of pathways, known as buses, that differ in width and speed. This chapter explains the types of buses, how they function, and the different bus technologies commonly found in today's industry-standard servers.