CIS 170F: Windows 7 Administration

Week 3

Using the System Utilities
Hardware Management
Hardware Component Installation

  • Components are assigned resource settings that allow them to access the system processor and memory in different ways.
  • Here are the following four main resources a hardware component might use:
    • Direct memory access (DMA) channels - A legacy method for allowing devices to commu- nicate directly with system memory instead of passing data through the processor. Typically used for sound cards.
    • Input/output (I/O) ranges - Addresses at which a device can be communicated with. A single device can have several addresses, with each address allowing access to a particular device feature or component.
    • Interrupt request (IRQ) lines - A mechanism for devices to request time from the CPU
    • Memory address ranges - Address ranges in system memory that are dedicated to the device.
  • Windows 7 no longer supports legacy Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) devices.
  • New Peripheral Component Interface (PCI) devices support plug and play, which automatically assigns resources to devices. Universal Serial Bus (USB) devices are also plug and play. Universal Serial Bus (USB) devices are also plug and play. Only settings for legacy ports such as parallel ports and serial ports may require manual conf guration of resources in Windows 7.