Jargon Buster

AGU Address Generation Unit. Found in the Integer Unit, the AGUs calculate the addresses of data strings stored in system media, whether that be cache, DDR, SSD, HDDs, or any other media. ALU Arithmetic Logic Unit. This is the part of a processor that calculates arithmetic and bitwise (binary) calculations, utilizing registers to do so. Branch Found in programs, these are instructions that inform the processor to begin executing a different instruction sequence within a program. Floating Point Unit Similar to the Integer Unit (see later), the Floating Point Unit performs calculations on floating point numbers, such as multiplications, divisions, square roots, and bit-shifting. These are split into separate execution units—in this case, two that deal with multiplication and two that deal with addition, with the rest of the less common calculations being dealt with on a software library level. The FPU is also known as an Execution Unit. Integer Physical Register File Works in tandem with OoOE, withholding instructions from the execution units until they are needed. Integer Unit The housing for both the ALUs and the AGUs. Also known as an Execution Unit. Register Registers can hold both data and instructions, and are where a processor calculates a problem. For instance, an instruction set could be X+ Y = Z, whilst the data would be the X and the Y. One register would hold the instruction, a second register holds the X, a third holds the Y, and lastly the result, Z, is held in a fourth, for further successive use in other calculations—or, if it’s no longer needed, it’s then pushed to the relevant cache for later use.