Chapter FOUR. Memory and Cache

Chapter Syllabus

4.1 Memory and Cache

4.2 How Memory Works

4.3 Improving Memory Performance

4.4 Memory Failures and Fault-Tolerant Memory

4.5 Advanced Memory Protection

4.6 Cache

4.7 Improving Cache Performance

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 to improve cache performance.

This chapter explains the differences between memory and cache, and how both work. It also covers some of the technical innovations that have increased memory and cache performance and their fault-tolerant capabilities.