{"id":101136,"date":"2020-10-30T09:40:00","date_gmt":"2020-10-30T06:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/what-is-a-cpu-and-what-does-it-do\/"},"modified":"2020-10-30T09:40:00","modified_gmt":"2020-10-30T06:40:00","slug":"what-is-a-cpu-and-what-does-it-do","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/what-is-a-cpu-and-what-does-it-do\/","title":{"rendered":"#What Is a CPU, and What Does It Do?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4096b8d96d6\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4096b8d96d6\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/what-is-a-cpu-and-what-does-it-do\/#1s_and_0s\" >1\u2019s and 0\u2019s<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/what-is-a-cpu-and-what-does-it-do\/#The_Basics_of_the_CPU\" >The Basics of the CPU<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/what-is-a-cpu-and-what-does-it-do\/#Cores_Caches_and_Graphics\" >Cores, Caches, and Graphics<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/what-is-a-cpu-and-what-does-it-do\/#The_CPU_on_the_Motherboard\" >The CPU on the Motherboard<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p><strong>&#8220;#What Is a CPU, and What Does It Do?&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<div>\n<figure id=\"attachment_695792\" style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-695792 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/xcpu.jpg.pagespeed.gp+jp+jw+pj+ws+js+rj+rp+rw+ri+cp+md.ic.yA4jsoS3X3.jpg\" alt=\"A CPU being inserted into a CPU socket on a motherboard.\" width=\"650\" height=\"300\" data-crediturl=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-illustration\/technology-background-central-computer-processors-cpu-437211229\" data-credittext=\"Iaroslav Neliubov\/Shutterstock\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-illustration\/technology-background-central-computer-processors-cpu-437211229\">Iaroslav Neliubov\/Shutterstock<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The most important part of your computer, if you had to choose just one, would be the central processing unit (CPU). It\u2019s the primary hub (or \u201cbrain\u201d), and it processes the instructions that come from programs, the operating system, or other components in your PC.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"1s_and_0s\"><\/span>1\u2019s and 0\u2019s<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Thanks to more powerful CPUs, we\u2019ve jumped from barely being able to display an image on a computer screen to Netflix, video chat, streaming, and increasingly lifelike video <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a>s.<\/p>\n<p>The CPU is a wonder of engineering, but, at its core, it still relies on the basic concept of interpreting binary signals (1\u2019s and 0\u2019s). The difference now is that, instead of reading punch cards or processing instructions with sets of vacuum tubes, modern CPUs use tiny transistors to create TikTok videos or fill out numbers on a spreadsheet.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Basics_of_the_CPU\"><\/span>The Basics of the CPU<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_443801\" style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-443801 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/xIntelCore.png.pagespeed.gp+jp+jw+pj+ws+js+rj+rp+rw+ri+cp+md.ic.Ple3dydwqB.png\" alt=\"The Intel Core i3, i5, and i7 logos.\" width=\"650\" height=\"300\" data-credittext=\"Intel\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\">Intel<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>CPU manufacturing is complicated. The important point is that each CPU has silicon (either one piece or several) that houses billions of microscopic transistors.<\/p>\n<p>As we alluded to earlier, these transistors use a <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/watch-movies-tv-seriess\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"8\" title=\"Watch Movies &amp; TV Series\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">series<\/a> of electrical signals (current \u201con\u201d and current \u201coff\u201d) to represent machine binary code, made up of 1\u2019s and 0\u2019s. Because there are so many of these transistors, CPUs can do increasingly complex tasks at greater speeds than before.<\/p>\n<p>The transistor count doesn\u2019t necessarily mean a CPU will be faster. However, it\u2019s still a fundamental reason the phone you carry in your pocket has far more computing power than,\u00a0perhaps, the entire planet did when <a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/pulse\/smartphone-today-has-more-computing-power-than-nasas-1960-offermann\/\">we first went to the moon<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Before we head further up the conceptual ladder of CPUs, let\u2019s talk about how a CPU carries out instructions based on machine code, called the \u201cinstruction set.\u201d CPUs from different companies can have different instruction sets, but not always.<\/p>\n<p>Most Windows PCs and current Mac processors, for example, use the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/X86-64\">x86-64 instruction set,<\/a> regardless of whether they\u2019re an Intel or AMD CPU. Macs debuting in late 2020, however, will have\u00a0ARM-based CPUs, which use a different instruction set. There are also a small number of Windows 10 PCs using ARM processors.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED:<\/strong> <strong><em>What is Binary, and Why Do Computers Use It?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Cores_Caches_and_Graphics\"><\/span>Cores, Caches, and Graphics<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_694872\" style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-694872 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/xIntelSilicon.png.pagespeed.gp+jp+jw+pj+ws+js+rj+rp+rw+ri+cp+md.ic.si-mDc8P1_.jpg\" alt=\"A diagram of Intel Silicon, with the cores and other sections of the CPU labeled.\" width=\"650\" height=\"300\" data-credittext=\"Intel\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\">Intel<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Now, let\u2019s look at the silicon itself. The diagram above is from an Intel white paper published in 2014 about the company\u2019s CPU architecture for the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ark.intel.com\/content\/www\/us\/en\/ark\/products\/75124\/intel-core-i7-4770s-processor-8m-cache-up-to-3-90-ghz.html\">Core i7-4770S<\/a>. This is just an example of what one processor looks like\u2014other processors have different layouts.<\/p>\n<p>We can see this is a four-core processor. There was a time when a CPU only had a single core. Now that we have multiple cores, they process instructions much faster. Cores can also have something called hyper-threading or simultaneous multi-threading (SMT), which makes one core seem like two to the PC. This, as you might imagine, helps speed up processing times even more.<\/p>\n<p>The cores in this diagram are sharing something called the L3 cache. This is a form of onboard memory inside the CPU. CPUs also have L1 and L2 caches contained in each core, as well as registers, which are a form of low-level memory. If you want to understand the differences between registers, caches, and system RAM, check out <a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/softwareengineering.stackexchange.com\/questions\/209760\/what-are-cpu-registers\">this answer on StackExchange<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The CPU shown above also contains the system agent, memory controller, and other parts of the silicon that manage information coming into, and going out of, the CPU.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, there\u2019s the processor\u2019s onboard graphics, which generate all those wonderful visual elements you see on your screen. Not all CPUs contain their own graphics capabilities. AMD Zen desktop CPUs, for example, require a discrete graphics card to display anything on-screen. Some Intel Core desktop CPUs also don\u2019t include onboard graphics.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_CPU_on_the_Motherboard\"><\/span>The CPU on the Motherboard<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_675703\" style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-675703 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/xintel-core-i7-cpu.jpg.pagespeed.gp+jp+jw+pj+ws+js+rj+rp+rw+ri+cp+md.ic.EYtS-fv87q.jpg\" alt=\"A CPU in its motherboard socket without a cooler mounted on top.\" width=\"650\" height=\"300\" data-crediturl=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/kobe-hyogo-japan-october-26-2019-1575478906\" data-credittext=\"yishii\/Shutterstock\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/kobe-hyogo-japan-october-26-2019-1575478906\">yishii\/Shutterstock<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Now that we\u2019ve looked at what\u2019s going on underneath the hood of a CPU, let\u2019s look at how it integrates with the rest of your PC. The CPU sits in what\u2019s called a socket on your PC\u2019s motherboard.<\/p>\n<p>Once it\u2019s seated in the socket, other parts of the computer can connect to the CPU through something called \u201cbuses.\u201d RAM, for example, connects to the CPU through its own bus, while many PC components use a specific type of bus, called a \u201cPCIe.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Each CPU has a set of \u201cPCIe lanes\u201d it can use. AMD\u2019s Zen 2 CPUs, for example, have 24 lanes that connect directly to the CPU. These lanes are then divvied up by motherboard manufacturers with guidance from AMD.<\/p>\n<p>For example, 16 lanes are typically used for an x16 graphics card slot. Then, there are four lanes for storage, such as one fast storage device, like an M.2 SSD. Alternatively, these four lanes can also be split. Two lanes could be used for the M.2 SSD, and two for a slower SATA drive, like a hard drive or 2.5-inch SSD.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s 20 lanes, with the other four reserved for the chipset, which is the communications center and traffic controller for the motherboard. The chipset then has its own set of bus connections, enabling even more components to be added to a PC. As you might expect, the higher-performing components have a more direct connection to the CPU.<\/p>\n<p>As you can see, the CPU does most of the instruction processing, and sometimes, even the graphics work (if it\u2019s built for that). The CPU isn\u2019t the only way to process instructions, however. Other components, such as the graphics card, have their own onboard processing capabilities. The GPU also uses its own processing capabilities to work with the CPU and run games or carry out other graphics-intensive tasks.<\/p>\n<p>The big difference is component processors are built with specific tasks in mind. The CPU, however, is a <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a>-purpose device capable of doing whatever computing task it\u2019s asked to do. That\u2019s why the CPU reigns supreme inside your PC, and the rest of the system relies on it to function.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n setTimeout(function(){\n  !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n  {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n  n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n  if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n  n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n  t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n  s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s) } (window, document,'script',\n  'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n   fbq('init', '335401813750447');\n   fbq('track', 'PageView');\n  },3000);\n<\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/694869\/what-is-a-cpu-and-what-does-it-do\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#What Is a CPU, and What Does It Do?&#8221; Iaroslav Neliubov\/Shutterstock The most important part of your computer, if you had to choose just one, would be the central processing unit (CPU). It\u2019s the primary hub (or \u201cbrain\u201d), and it processes the instructions that come from programs, the operating system, or other components in your&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":101137,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/thumbcache\/2\/200\/c1b8afa3ea199a7299264f8bc30a977d\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/cpu.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-101136","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101136","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101136"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101136\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101137"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}