Storage

Storage

1. Secondary

   • Optical
     • Uses a lens and a light beam to read and write data onto a disk.
     • Disadvantges
       • * The storage capacity of disks is relatively small compared to other storage devices.
     • Advantages
       • *Disks are small and light making them very portable. * Disks are cheap to manufacture. * Disks are fairly durable, meaning that they are safe to store data on for long periods of time.
   • Solid state
     • Uses flash memories to store data
     • Disadvantages
       • *Expensive to manufacture. * Have a limited numbers of times that data can be written to and read from, although this number can be thousands, possibly millions.
     • Advantages
       • *Faster boot up as they don't need to 'warm up' due to having no moving parts. *Can be made to be very compact in size. * Large store capacity. * More robust than magnetic due to having no moving parts
   • Magnetic
     • Use magnets to record data on rotating metal plates
     • Advantages
       • *Large storage capacity *Fast access to read and write data * Fairly inexpensive to manufacture
     • Disadvantages
       • *Data can be lost or altered by magnetic field or mechanical problems.* Can suffer wear and tear due to moving parts

2. Primary

   • RAM
     • *Stores programs and data in currently in use. *Can be written to and read from. *Volatile. *Larger in memory capacity. *Contents lost when computer turns off
   • ROM
     • *Stores the programs needed to boot up the computer.*Can be read only from.*Non-Volatile.*Smaller in memory capacity. *Contents not lost when computer turned off