Difference between revisions of "Secondary storage"
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| − | '''Secondary storage''' refers to all forms of data storage other than [[main memory]]; data in secondary storage generally had to be brought into main memory before it can be operated upon. | + | '''Secondary storage''' refers to all forms of data storage other than [[main memory]]. Unlike main memory, the data on it was not directly accessible to the [[Central Processing Unit|CPU]]; data in secondary storage generally had to be brought into main memory before it can be operated upon. |
Over time there have been many forms of secondary storage: [[magnetic tape]] is one of the oldest, and is still in use today. [[Disk]]s are almost as old, and again, still in use (although the rise of solid state mass storage such as [[SD memory cards]] may make them obsolete). | Over time there have been many forms of secondary storage: [[magnetic tape]] is one of the oldest, and is still in use today. [[Disk]]s are almost as old, and again, still in use (although the rise of solid state mass storage such as [[SD memory cards]] may make them obsolete). | ||
| − | There are a number of types which are now obsolete: [[punched cards]], [[paper tape]], etc. | + | There are a number of other types which are now obsolete: [[punched cards]], [[paper tape]], etc; these often were a bridge to prior non-electronic information-processing technologies (e.g. paper tape was used in [[teletype]]s). |
Revision as of 16:22, 24 September 2017
Secondary storage refers to all forms of data storage other than main memory. Unlike main memory, the data on it was not directly accessible to the CPU; data in secondary storage generally had to be brought into main memory before it can be operated upon.
Over time there have been many forms of secondary storage: magnetic tape is one of the oldest, and is still in use today. Disks are almost as old, and again, still in use (although the rise of solid state mass storage such as SD memory cards may make them obsolete).
There are a number of other types which are now obsolete: punched cards, paper tape, etc; these often were a bridge to prior non-electronic information-processing technologies (e.g. paper tape was used in teletypes).
