Cisc & Risc Lec 5aa
Cisc & Risc Lec 5aa
Cisc & Risc Lec 5aa
CISC vs RISC
There is no single way to classify ISAs, but one of the more traditional ways is by the complexity
of the instruction set. CISC (Complex Instruction Set Computer) architecture is an older ISA
classification, although there are some significant implementations of it still in common use.
CISC tends to use fewer lines of assembly code, each performing multiple steps in multiple clock
cycles, making it easier to compile higher-level languages.
In contrast, RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer) architecture uses more basic instructions
that are executed independently to complete a task. Although the RISC approach uses more
lines of code, the operations generally execute in the same number of clock cycles as they do in
CISC instructions, with the added advantage of needing fewer dedicated registers. The
individual low-level instructions inherent in RISC are also more conducive to pipelining.
The hardware part of the Intel is named as Complex Instruction Set Computer (CISC), and Apple
hardware is Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC).
Modern ISAs
Intel has retained CISC architecture in its x86 chips, but it's important to note that changes in
hardware implementations over the years have made the line between CISC and RISC less clear.
Many chips exhibit features of both approaches. ARM (Advanced RISC Machine) processors are
ubiquitous in mobile devices, and MIPS (Microprocessor without Interlocked Pipeline Stages)
processors are RISC chips often used in embedded systems like video game consoles.
Addressing Modes
One aspect of ISAs that set them apart from each other is the number and type of addressing
modes. The addressing mode is the manner in which a code instruction identifies the operand.
There are three main classes of addressing:
Register and memory addressing have many sub-types, each with their own syntax. These
types include direct (also called literal), indirect, pc-relative, base, indexed, displacement
(also called offset), and scaled modes, plus various combinations of these.
Characteristics of RISC
Characteristics of CISC
RISC CISC
1. RISC stands for Reduced Instruction Set 1. CISC stands for Complex Instruction Set
Computer. Computer.
2. CSIC processor has complex instructions that
2. RISC processors have simple instructions taking take up multiple clocks for execution. The average
about one clock cycle. The average clock cycle per clock cycle per instruction (CPI) is in the range of 2
instruction (CPI) is 1.5 and 15.
3. Performance is optimized with more focus on 3. Performance is optimized with more focus on
software hardware.
4. It has no memory unit and uses separate 4. It has a memory unit to implement complex
hardware to implement instructions.. instructions.
5. It has a hard-wired unit of programming. 5. It has a microprogramming unit.
6. The instruction set is reduced i.e. it has only 6. The instruction set has a variety of different
a few instructions in the instruction set. Many of instructions that can be used for complex
these instructions are very primitive. operations.
7. Instructions have Varying formats (16-64 bits for 7. Instructions have fixed (32-bit) format
each instruction).
8. Complex addressing modes are synthesized 8. CISC already supports complex addressing
using the software. modes
9. Multiple register sets are present 9. Only has a single register set
10. RISC processors are highly pipelined 10. They are normally not pipelined or less
pipelined
11. The complexity of RISC lies with the compiler 11. The complexity lies in the microprogram
that executes the program
12. Execution time is very less 12. Execution time is very high
13. Code expansion can be a problem 13. Code expansion is not a problem
14. The decoding of instructions is simple. 14. Decoding of instructions is complex
15. It does not require external memory for
calculations 15. It requires external memory for calculations
16. The most common RISC microprocessors are 16. Examples of CISC processors are the
Alpha, ARC, ARM, AVR, MIPS, PA-RISC, PIC, Power System/360, VAX, PDP-11, Motorola 68000 family,
Architecture, and SPARC. AMD, and Intel x86 CPUs.
17. RISC architecture is used in high-end 17. CISC architecture is used in low-end
applications such as video processing, applications such as security systems, home
telecommunications, and image processing. automation, etc.
18. Unified cache for instructions and data. 18. Separate data and instruction cache.