GATE CS 2025 Set 2 — Question 28

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MSQ+1 / -0EasyInstructions & Addressing ModesComputer Organization & Architecture

Computer Organization & Architecture → Instructions & Addressing Modes

Last updated 5 September 2026

Question

Which of the following is/are part of an Instruction Set Architecture of a processor?

Correct answer (D) The total number of registers Solution The Instruction Set Architecture (ISA) serves as the interface between the software and the hardware. It defines the attributes of the processor that are visible to the programmer (or compiler), such as: Instruction Set: The set of operations the processor can perform. Data Types: The formats of data (integer, floating-point, etc.). Registers: The number and type of architectural registers available to instructions. Addressing Modes: How instructions access memory. Memory Architecture: Address space, alignment, etc. Microarchitecture (or Computer Organization) refers to the specific implementation of the ISA in hardware. It includes details that are transparent to the software's correctness but affect performance, such as: Cache Memory: Size, associativity, and number of levels. Clock Frequency: The speed at which the processor runs. Pipeline: Number of stages, branch prediction, etc. Analyzing the options: (A) The size of the cache memory: Microarchitecture. (B) The clock frequency of the processor: Microarchitecture. (C) The number of cache memory levels: Microarchitecture. (D) The total number of registers: This refers to the architectural registers (e.g., 32 general-purpose registers in MIPS), which are a fundamental part of the ISA because instructions must encode register operands. Therefore, only option (D) is part of the ISA. Turn this into a strength. Explore AI-powered practice and doubt support with Success Tracker.

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Correct answer (D) The total number of registers Solution The Instruction Set Architecture (ISA) serves as the interface between the software and the hardware. It defines the attributes of the processor that are visible to the programmer (or compiler), such as: Instruction Set: The set of operations the processor can perform. Data Types: The formats of data (integer, floating-point, etc.). Registers: The number and type of architectural registers available to instructions. Addressing Modes: How instructions access memory. Memory Architecture: Address space, alignment, etc. Microarchitecture (or Computer Organization) refers to the specific implementation of the ISA in hardware. It includes details that are transparent to the software's correctness but affect performance, such as: Cache Memory: Size, associativity, and number of levels. Clock Frequency: The speed at which the processor runs. Pipeline: Number of stages, branch prediction, etc. Analyzing the options: (A) The size of the cache memory: Microarchitecture. (B) The clock frequency of the processor: Microarchitecture. (C) The number of cache memory levels: Microarchitecture. (D) The total number of registers: This refers to the architectural registers (e.g., 32 general-purpose registers in MIPS), which are a fundamental part of the ISA because instructions must encode register operands. Therefore, only option (D) is part of the ISA.

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GATE CS 2025 Set 2 — Question 28

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