What is the L3 cache?
I don't know what the L3 cache is. Can someone help me out?
Are you sure you're allowed to use the internet? A quick google or wiki and there are dictionaries, glossary, etc etc....
2 replies
Memory caching is a technique for speeding up a computer by keeping some instructions and data close-at-hand in a memory that is faster than main memory. The basic idea has been around for a while.
In the late 1960's researchers at IBM and elsewhere did some very interesting studies on computer memory. They were up against the wall for performance of the memories of the day (magnetic cores and plated wire). 512K of plated-wire memory took up about six six-foot racks of equipment.
They found that if you added a small cache memory that was faster than main store, the effective speed of the machine increased dramatically. The cache memory did not have to be very large to have a dramatic impact, provided you could keep it loaded with the stuff that would be needed soon.
Three or four generations of computer technology later, computer architects are in a very similar bind. They have found that the first level of caching gives a large improvement, and that an additional level gives a smaller but substantial improvement. And if you then decide to go to a third level, that also gives some improvement, but it is a diminishing return.
The reason this can be considered and tried is that today they can put all the supporting logic on a bit of silicon, instead of an additional 6 foot rack of equipment.
What is the L3 cache?