Secondary storage

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Quick Questions

Shade in the A or B circle for each question.

1. Which statement about secondary storage is correct?

A It keeps its data when the power is switched off

B It loses its data when the power is switched off

2. How does the CPU use data held on secondary storage?

A The CPU reads and runs it directly from the hard drive

B The data is copied into RAM first, then the CPU uses it

3. Which one is directly accessed by the CPU?

A Secondary storage (HDD)

B Primary storage (RAM)

4. Compared with RAM, secondary storage is usually...

A Larger in capacity and cheaper per byte

B Smaller in capacity and more expensive per byte

5. Which list contains the three types of secondary storage?

A Magnetic, optical, solid-state

B Magnetic, volatile, solid-state

Match the Pairs

Draw a line connecting each item on the left to its match on the right.

Left column		Right column
1secondary storage		Aload game.exe: secondary storage -> RAM -> CPU
2magnetic, optical, solid-state		BNon-volatile storage that the CPU cannot access directly and that keeps data permanently, even when the power is off
3The CPU cannot read secondary storage directly, so a program must be copied into RAM before it can run		CRAM = 8 GB (volatile) \| SSD = 1 TB (non-volatile)
4Secondary storage is larger and cheaper per byte than RAM, so it suits keeping lots of data permanently		DThe three types of secondary storage
5The CPU reads files straight from the hard drive to run a program		EThe CPU does not access secondary storage directly. The program must first be copied into RAM.
6Secondary storage is volatile, so files are lost when the computer is switched off		FSecondary storage is non-volatile, so it keeps data when the power is off. It is RAM that is volatile.

Definitions

secondary storage

Fill in the Blanks

Complete each line of code by filling in the missing parts.

secondary storage is ____________ memory

copy data from secondary storage to ___

types: magnetic, optical, ___________

CPU accesses secondary storage __________

Per byte, secondary is _______ than RAM

Spot the Error

Shade in the letter of the line that contains an error.

Question 1

A volatile = True

B if volatile:

C print('Data lost at off')

D else:

E print('Data is kept')

Question 2

A LOAD file FROM secondary

B COPY file INTO ROM

C CPU PROCESSES file FROM RAM

Question 3

A ram_gb = 8

B ssd_gb = 4

C if ssd_gb > ram_gb:

D print('Storage larger')

Question 4

A ram_cost = 3.00

B disk_cost = 0.05

C if disk_cost > ram_cost:

D print('Disk is cheaper')

Question 5

A mag = 'HDD'

B opt = 'DVD'

C ssd = 'RAM'

D print(mag, opt, ssd)

Answer Key

Secondary storage

Section A: Quick Questions

A — It keeps its data when the power is switched off

B — The data is copied into RAM first, then the CPU uses it

B — Primary storage (RAM)

A — Larger in capacity and cheaper per byte

A — Magnetic, optical, solid-state

Section B: Match the Pairs

secondary storage → Non-volatile storage that the CPU cannot access directly and that keeps data permanently, even when the power is off

magnetic, optical, solid-state → The three types of secondary storage

The CPU cannot read secondary storage directly, so a program must be copied into RAM before it can run → load game.exe: secondary storage -> RAM -> CPU

Secondary storage is larger and cheaper per byte than RAM, so it suits keeping lots of data permanently → RAM = 8 GB (volatile) | SSD = 1 TB (non-volatile)

The CPU reads files straight from the hard drive to run a program → The CPU does not access secondary storage directly. The program must first be copied into RAM.

Secondary storage is volatile, so files are lost when the computer is switched off → Secondary storage is non-volatile, so it keeps data when the power is off. It is RAM that is volatile.

Section C: Definitions

secondary storage — Non-volatile storage the CPU cannot access directly. It keeps data permanently, even when power is off. Data is copied to RAM before use. Types: magnetic, optical, solid-state.

Section D: Fill in the Blanks

secondary storage is non-volatile memory

copy data from secondary storage to RAM

types: magnetic, optical, solid-state

CPU accesses secondary storage indirectly

Per byte, secondary is cheaper than RAM

Section E: Spot the Error

A — Secondary storage is non-volatile, so volatile should be False. It keeps its data when the power is off.

B — Data must be copied into RAM before the CPU can use it. ROM is read only and is not where programs are loaded.

B — Secondary storage is much larger than RAM, so the SSD value should be bigger than 8 (e.g. 512). With 4, the condition is False and the message never prints.

C — Secondary storage is cheaper per byte than RAM, so the test should be disk_cost < ram_cost.

C — The three types of secondary storage are magnetic, optical and solid-state. An SSD is solid-state storage. RAM is primary storage, so the value should be 'SSD'.