Systems ArchitectureDeep Dive

Deep Dive: How MAR and MDR Work Together

Part of MAR & MDRGCSE Computer Science

This deep dive covers Deep Dive: How MAR and MDR Work Together within MAR & MDR for GCSE Computer Science. Revise MAR & MDR in Systems Architecture for GCSE Computer Science with 15 exam-style questions and 10 flashcards. This topic appears less often, but it can still be a useful differentiator on mixed-topic papers. It is section 3 of 7 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.

Topic position

Section 3 of 7

Practice

15 questions

Recall

10 flashcards

Deep Dive: How MAR and MDR Work Together

The Complete Fetch Sequence

When the CPU needs data from memory, here's exactly what happens:

  1. CPU puts the memory address into the MAR
  2. MAR sends this address along the Address Bus to memory
  3. Memory finds the location and reads what's stored there
  4. The data travels back along the Data Bus to the MDR
  5. CPU can now use the data from MDR

Writing works in reverse: CPU puts address in MAR, puts data to write in MDR, sends both to memory. Memory stores the MDR contents at the MAR address.

Keep building this topic

Read this section alongside the surrounding pages in MAR & MDR. That gives you the full topic sequence instead of a single isolated revision point.

Practice Questions for MAR & MDR

What does MAR stand for?

  • A. Memory Access Register
  • B. Memory Address Register
  • C. Memory Arithmetic Register
  • D. Main Address Register
1 markfoundation

Explain the difference between the MAR and the MDR.

2 marksstandard

Quick Recall Flashcards

What does MAR hold?
The address of data to be read/written (WHERE)
What does MDR hold?
The actual data being transferred (WHAT)

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