1. What happens inside a CPU?

2. CPUs have a make and model, much like cars – such as Intel Core i7 or AMD RX-8350 Black Edition. Think Honda Civic SE or Ford F250 Superduty.
There are only TWO CPU manufacturers – AMD and Intel

3. Although the CPU is often referred to as the brain of a computer is actually is more like a very powerful calculator. It can add, subtract, multiply and divide and move billions of numbers per second – it is the SPEED at which a CPU operates that makes it seem intelligent.

4. The grand-daddy of the CPUs is the Intel 8088 invented in the late 1970s. It defined the idea of a microprocessor and had the same basic parts used in even the most advances CPUs today.

5. EDB – External Data Bus:
The communication method between the INSIDE of the CPU and the OUTSIDE of the CPU.

6. Inside the CPU there are registers.
Registers are like work tables that store internal commands and data
All CPUs have a large number of registers

7. Instructions for what to put in the registers is called Machine Language.
Machine language provides a “code book” for what is being given to the CPU and what is supposed to be done with that information.

8. Clock wire – (CLK):
A charge on the clock wire (CLK) tells the CPU there is a piece of information for the CPU to process. Clock Cycle:
A single charge to the clock wire is a clock cycle. The CPU requires a minimum of TWO clock cycles to act on a command.

9. Clock Speed:
The MAXIMUM number of clock cycles a CPU can process in a given period of time.
For example:
INTEL® CORE™ i PROCESSOR
Has a 3.20 GHz processor

10. 1 hertz (1 Hz) = 1 cycle per second
1 megahertz (1 MHz) = 1 million cycles per second
1 gigahertz (1 GHz) = 1 billion cycles per second
A CPU’s clock speed is it’s MAX speed. NOT the speed it MUST run.

11. System Crystal:
Determines the speed at which a CPU operates. It is a quartz oscillator. It is a metronome for the CPU.
Every CPU has a slightly different clock speed because the silicon that makes up the CPU varies in the number of flaws it has.

12. Actual speed is based on benchmark tests.
Benchmark -  the act of running a computer program, a set of programs, or other operations, in order to assess the relative performance of an object, normally by running a number of standard tests and trials against it

13. Multi-Core: a single CPU with two or more independent actual processing units (called "cores"), which are units that read and execute program instructions.
Dual-Core: TWO processors
Quad-Core: FOUR processors
Octa-Core: EIGHT processors
Multi-Core: Two or more processors

14. Real Speed is measured in gigahertz (GHz)
Maximum Clock Cycle speed over a specific amount of time (one second).
Actual Speed is a combination of:
Clock Speed
CPU Architecture
Bus Speed
Bus Width
L1 Cache Size
L2 Cache Size
L3 Cache Size
OS Capabilities

15. Bus: is a communication system that transfers data between components inside a computer, or between computers. 

16. EDB – External Data Bus:
The communication method between the INSIDE of the CPU and the OUTSIDE of the CPU.

17. IDB – Internal Data Bus:
A bus that operates only within the internal circuitry of the CPU, communicating among the internal caches of memory that are part of the CPU chip's design. This bus is typically rather quick and is independent of the rest of the computer's operations.

18. L1 Cache: (Level 1 cache) A memory bank built into the CPU chip
L1 Cache:  (Level 1 cache) A memory bank built into the CPU chip. Also known as the "primary cache," an L1 cache is the fastest memory in the computer and closest to the processor. 
L2 Cache: (Level 2 cache) A memory bank built into the CPU chip, packaged within the same module or built on the motherboard. The L2 cache feeds the L1 cache, which feeds the processor. L2 memory is slower than L1 memory.

19. L3 cache: (Level 3 cache) A memory bank built onto the motherboard or within the CPU module. TheL3 cache feeds the L2 cache, and its memory is typically slower than the L2 memory, but faster than main memory. The L3 cache feeds the L2 cache, which feeds the L1 cache, which feeds the processor.

21. CPU Die: a rectangular pattern on a wafer that contains circuitry to perform a specific function.

22. Hyper-Threading Technology (HTT): - INTEL
Simultaneous Multi-Threading (SMT) – AMD
Threading is:
A high-performance computing technique that simulates some degree of overlap in executing two independent sets of instructions.
A microprocessor's "core" processor can execute two (rather than one) concurrent streams or threads of instructions sent by the operating system.

23. Having two streams of execution units to work on allows more work to be done by the processor during each clock cycle
The Operating System MUST know how to manage threading in order for the CPU to take advantage of it. Most modern Operating Systems –Windows XP and later understand Multithreading

24. Virtualization:
to create a virtual version of a device or resource, such as a server, storage device, network or even an operating system where the framework divides the resource into one or more execution environments.
Making this happen using software doesn’t work great. Having virtualization run at the hardware level works much better.

25. Virtualization Models – of course each of the CPU manufacturers have their own name for it.
Intel Virtualization Technology (VT)
AMD Virtualization (AMD-V)

26. 32 Bit Vs. 64 Bit CPU
Data “width”
Data path, integer size, memory addresses
Registers, address bus, data bus
Larger buses move more data
64 bit data bus can move twice as much as a 32 bit data bus (even if the processor is 32 bits)
Bus size may not necessarily match the CPU architecture

27. Integrated GPU (Graphics Processing Unit)
Graphics processing can be integrated onto the CPU.
Graphics rending uses a lot of processing, so if you want
“high end” graphics, it’s still best to get a dedicated GPU.
(Gaming & Video editing)

28. CPU Security:
NX bit - No-eXecute bit
Intel – XD bit (eXecute Disable
AMD – Enhanced Virus Protection
Tells memory where it can execute code or store data
Prevents malware/viruses from executing
OS must be aware of the NX bit – Windows calls it the Data Execution Prevention - DEP