What function does the CPU perform in a personal computer?

Answer 1

CPU stands for central processing unit. Overall a personal computer can be divided into the following major parts from point of view of functions performed:

1. Input devices (keyboard, mouse)
2. Output devices (monitor which displays the output or results of work being done on the computer)
3. CPU (central processing unit, which is the brain of the computer which does all the processing and calculations on data inputs and provides output on screen or printer)
4. Storage devices (memories, hard disk which store data).

Many times in common language the CPU term is used for the computer box unit which contains motherboard, processor, hard disk, CD/DVD and floppy drives. This is the box to which we connect monitor, keyboard, mouse and printer through cables. In technical terms the term CPU is used only for the processor, which fits on the motherboard.

Central Processing Unit (CPU), in computer science, microscopic circuitry that serves as the main information processor in a computer. A CPU is generally a single microprocessor made from a wafer of semiconducting material, usually silicon, with millions of electrical components on its surface. On a higher level, the CPU is actually a number of interconnected processing units that are each responsible for one aspect of the CPU's function. Standard CPUs contain processing units that interpret and implement software instructions, perform calculations and comparisons, make logical decisions (determining if a statement is true or false based on the rules of Boolean algebra), temporarily store information for use by another of the CPU's processing units, keep track of the current step in the execution of the program, and allow the CPU to communicate with the rest of the computer.

A CPU is similar to a calculator, only much more powerful. The main function of the CPU is to perform arithmetic and logical operations on data taken from memory or on information entered through some device, such as a keyboard, scanner, or joystick. The CPU is controlled by a list of software instructions, called a computer program. Software instructions entering the CPU originate in some form of memory storage device such as a hard disk, floppy disk, CD-ROM, or magnetic tape. These instructions then pass into the computer's main random access memory (RAM), where each instruction is given a unique address, or memory location. The CPU can access specific pieces of data in RAM by specifying the address of the data that it wants.

As a program is executed, data flow from RAM through an interface unit of wires called the bus, which connects the CPU to RAM. The data are then decoded by a processing unit called the instruction decoder that interprets and implements software instructions. From the instruction decoder the data pass to the arithmetic/logic unit (ALU), which performs calculations and comparisons. Data may be stored by the ALU in temporary memory locations called registers where it may be retrieved quickly. The ALU performs specific operations such as addition, multiplication, and conditional tests on the data in its registers, sending the resulting data back to RAM or storing it in another register for further use. During this process, a unit called the program counter keeps track of each successive instruction to make sure that the program instructions are followed by the CPU in the correct order.

Answer 2

The central processing unit (CPU) is in charge of or decides whatever goes on in the computer because of whatever the output devices ,input devices, hardware and RAM does the processor is always in charge and decides what goes on

Answer 3

The central processing unit (CPU) is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, and is the primary element carrying out the computer's functions.