What is the Difference between Cache and RAM?

[tharden3]

I google it, but got the definition of both, not the relationship between the two. I kind of got the feeling that RAM was what your open applications load into, and Cache is temporary information stored from whats going on in those apps.

-Are they two different components? Or does Cache work inside of RAM?

-Are they on two different pieces of hardware?

-Any examples of Cache at work?

[RedSon]

A CPU cache is a cache used by the central processing unit of a computer to reduce the average time to access RAM. The cache is a smaller, faster memory which stores copies of the data from the most frequently used main memory (RAM) locations. As long as most memory accesses are to cached memory locations, the average latency of memory accesses will be closer to the cache latency than to the latency of main memory (RAM).

When the processor needs to read from or write to a location in main memory (RAM), it first checks whether a copy of that data is in the cache. If so, the processor immediately reads from or writes to the cache, which is much faster than reading from or writing to main memory.

Most modern desktop and server CPUs have at least three independent caches: an instruction cache to speed up executable instruction fetch, a data cache to speed up data fetch and store, and a translation lookaside buffer used to speed up virtual-to-physical address translation for both executable instructions and data.

(Thank you wikipedia!)

[AmberJain]

The cache is a smaller, faster ........

.........and costlier too ;).






I know that OP never wanted to know this, still I couldnot resist the urge to post :)

AmbrNewlearner

[tharden3]

Thanks for the help.

[Curtis Rutland]

(Thank you wikipedia!)

Just when I was getting impressed :(

[RedSon]

I could have done that easily myself but then it would have taken me longer than I wanted to. Copy and paste is a major time saver!

[Curtis Rutland]

Oh, OK, so you're just lazy. I get it.

;)

[RedSon]

The hallmark of a good programmer :P