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Primary storage, also known as main storage or memory, is the main area in a computer in which data is stored for quick access by the computer's processor. On today's smaller computers, especially personal computers and workstations, the term random access memory (RAM) - or just memory - is used instead of primary or main storage, and the hard disk, diskette, CD, and DVD collectively describe secondary storage or auxiliary storage.

The terms main storage and auxiliary storageoriginated in the days of the mainframecomputer to distinguish the more immediately accessible data storage from storage that required input/output operations. An earlier term for main storage was core in the days when the main data storage contained ferrite cores.

2) Primary storage is sometimes used to mean storage for data that is in active use in contrast to storage that is used for backup purposes. In this usage, primary storage is mainly the secondary storage referred to in meaning 1. (It should be noted that, although these two meanings conflict, the appropriate meaning is usually apparent from the context.)RELATED GLOSSARY TERMS: hard disk, magnetoresistive head technology, yottabyte, serverless backup, byte, partition, InfiniBand, failover, RAMAC (random access method of accounting and control), Fibre Channel

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Recalling the definition of long-term memory is an example of?

Recalling the definition of long-term memory is an example of retrieving information from memory storage that was encoded, stored, and can be retrieved for an extended period.


Is virtual memory kept in secondary storage?

Yes, virtual memory uses a combination of both primary (RAM) and secondary (disk storage) memory. When the RAM is full, data is temporarily transferred to the hard drive to free up space for new operations, which is why virtual memory is sometimes referred to as "paging file" or "swap file."


Distinguish between in primary and secondary memory?

Memory can be categorized in different ways by technology or properties: primary access by the CPU or secondary (indirect) access by the CPU. This distinction is primarily based on the speed of access to the memory. volatile or non-volatile is a distinction based on technology (magnetic vs. electrical, etc.). Volatile memory requires power to maintain its stored information. Read-only memory, or read-write is a distinction based on properties of the memory. Read only memory, or "ROM", is not modifiable.


Describe the main types of primary and secondary storage?

Computer data storage, or memory, is the means through which the computer records and accesses digital data. The two types of storage are primary and secondary. Primary storage includes RAM and process registers, and secondary storage is the hard disk and flash memory.


What are some important questions to ask about memory"?

Some important questions to ask about memory include: How does memory work? What factors can affect memory? How can memory be improved or enhanced? How reliable is memory? How does memory change with age?

Related Questions

Example of primary memory?

The memory that the computer processor accesses directly is primary memory. It is wired directly to the processor. RAM is primary memory on a computer.


What does the primary memory and secondary memory consists of?

primary memory consist of RAMsecondary memory consist of ROM


IS the Internal memory only primary memory or both primary or secondary memory?

Intenal memory is only primary memory. The term secondary memory is used for External storage like hard disk etc.


What is the difference between cache-memory and primary-memory?

Cache memory is smaller and quicker, primary memory larger and slower.


Define primary memory?

primary memory is built in memory on a computer it is the main type of memory.... eg RAM ROM and HDD


Is RAM is a primary memory or secondary memory?

its primary or main memory. all the programs(active or programs currently running on the processor) including operating system reside in RAM .


Read-only memory is also referred to as main memory or primary memory?

False. The main or primary memory is the Random Access Memory that is both readable and writable.


What are examples of primary memory?

examples of primary memory are RAM, ROM, PROM, EPROM , etc.....


How is cache different from primary memory?

Cache memory is a memory that is used by CPU so that the average time to access the memory is reduced. It is a smaller and faster memory that stores copies of data which is used in frequently accessed main memory locations, On the other hand, Primary memory is the main memory of the computer. The processor can easily access, store and retrieve information from the primary memory. Primary memory has two types, Random access memory and read only memory.


Write a short note on primary memory?

Primary memory is where information is stored after it is first learned. It is also referred to as the short term memory.


What it as your computer's primary means of storage?

The primary means of storage of a computer is the RAM memory which is a volatile memory.


Does rom a primary storage?

Yes. ROM (Read Only Memory) is a primary memory. BIOS is a Read Only Memory and is directly accessed by the cpu just like RAM (Random Access Memory). So it is a primary storage.