Storage Devices

Storage Devices

            Storage devices are devices, which used for the recording or storing of information and data. These devices often play the role of holding information, processing, or both. Devices that are used to hold information are referred to as the recording medium while the devices that process the information may have access to separate removable or portable recording medium or may have access to permanent components, which are used, for storage and retrieval of data. Recording of data can be done through utilization of various forms of energy. The most notable of these are the phonographic recording of acoustic vibration, electromagnetic energy modulation through the magnetic tapes and the optical dishes. Storage devices have four main features, volatility, accessibility, mutability, and addressability.

In computing, there are four different types of storage. These are the primary storage, the secondary storage, the tertiary storage, and the offline storage. The primary storage is the main memory of the computer and is often directly connected to the central processing unit through memory bus. The CPU reads the instructions on these storage devices and executes as the situation may require. The main examples of these are the RAM, ROM, and Cache. RAM or the random access memory is further divided into Dynamic RAM and the static RAM and is often relied for storage of Operating system and application programs. ROM is the second in the category and the computers use it to initiate the boot. Cache is the high-speed access area, which is a storage device of the reserved section of the memory.

Secondary storage is not accessible to the CPU as compared to the primary forms of storage. However, computers often rely on its input/output channels in a bid to access the secondary storage and for initiating transfers of the desired data through the intermediate area of the computers primary storage. The main examples of these……………………….