Central Processing Unit

The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is that component of a computer that carries out the computations. The CPU is sometimes called an MPU or Main Processor Unit).

 A processor characteristically contains an arithmetic logic unit  or ALU, control unit including processor flags, status register or flag register, internal buses, and sometimes special function units. The customary special function unit is a floating point unit for floating point arithmetic. The arithmetic and logic functions along with shift and rotate functions are performed by ALUs.

When computers have more than one processor, it is called multi-processing. CISC, RISC, DSP and Hybrid are amongst major kinds of digital processors. CISC stands for Complex Instruction Set Computer. Minicomputers and Mainframe computers were CISC processors, with manufacturers jostling to offer the most useful instruction sets. Several of the first two generations of microprocessors were based on CISC processors.

RISC or Reduced Instruction Set Computer came about as a result of IT research that showed that a small, well-designed instruction set running compiled programs at high speed could perform more computing work than a CISC running the same programs.

DSP stands for Digital Signal Processing and these processors are used mainly in dedicated devices, such as digital cameras, graphics cards, modems and other specialty devices. In contrast Hybrid processors mingle elements of two or three of the major classes of processors.

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