In the world of computer science and engineering, computer architecture is one of the most fundamental subjects. Whether you’re preparing for a job interview at a tech giant, an academic position, or simply brushing up your skills, mastering Computer Architecture Interview Questions is critical.
In this article, we cover important concepts, sample questions, and detailed answers to help you get interview-ready.
📌 People Also Ask
👉 What are the basic concepts of computer architecture?
Computer architecture involves the design and organization of computer systems, including the CPU, memory hierarchy, input/output systems, and the instruction set architecture (ISA).
👉 What are the 3 categories of computer architecture?
- System Design: Hardware components like CPU, GPU, memory controllers.
- Instruction Set Architecture (ISA): Interface between software and hardware.
- Microarchitecture: Internal implementation details of a processor.
👉 What are the 4 types of computer architecture?
- Von Neumann Architecture
- Harvard Architecture
- Instruction Set Architecture (ISA)
- Microarchitecture
👉 Why is computer architecture important?
It impacts system performance, power efficiency, scalability, and the user experience in both hardware and software applications.
✨ Top Computer Architecture Interview Questions and Answers
1. What is Computer Architecture?
Computer architecture refers to the design, structure, and behavior of a computer system, including its hardware and instruction set.
2. What is the difference between Computer Architecture and Computer Organization?
- Architecture: Attributes visible to the programmer (instruction sets, addressing modes).
- Organization: How features are implemented (control signals, memory types).
3. What is Von Neumann Architecture?
It’s a computer design model that uses a single storage structure to hold both instructions and data.
4. What is Harvard Architecture?
A model where the storage and signal pathways for instructions and data are separate, leading to faster execution.
5. What is an Instruction Set Architecture (ISA)?
It is the part of the processor that is visible to the programmer, such as instructions, data types, and addressing modes.
6. What is pipelining in Computer Architecture?
Pipelining is a technique where multiple instruction phases are overlapped to improve performance.
7. What are hazards in pipelining?
- Data Hazard
- Structural Hazard
- Control Hazard
8. What is a cache memory?
A smaller, faster memory located close to the CPU to store frequently accessed data.
9. What is cache mapping?
- Direct Mapping
- Associative Mapping
- Set-Associative Mapping
10. What is virtual memory?
An abstraction where secondary memory can be addressed like main memory to enable larger address spaces.
11. What is memory hierarchy?
Organizing memory into levels (registers, cache, RAM, disk) based on access time and size.
12. What is RISC and CISC architecture?
- RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer): Fewer instructions for faster performance.
- CISC (Complex Instruction Set Computer): More complex instructions to minimize the number of instructions per program.
13. What is a bus in Computer Architecture?
A communication pathway connecting two or more devices for data transfer.
14. What is Endianness?
Order of bytes stored for multi-byte data types.
- Big Endian: Most significant byte stored first.
- Little Endian: Least significant byte stored first.
15. What is a register?
A small, fast storage location within the CPU used to hold data temporarily.
16. What is ALU?
Arithmetic Logic Unit – a digital circuit used to perform arithmetic and logic operations.
17. What is a Control Unit?
It manages the execution of instructions by directing the coordinated operations of the ALU, registers, and memory.
18. What is a microprocessor?
An integrated circuit that contains all functions of a CPU of a computer.
19. What are interrupts?
Signals that inform the CPU that an event needs immediate attention.
20. What is Direct Memory Access (DMA)?
A method where peripherals transfer data directly to/from memory without CPU involvement.
21. What is a multicore processor?
A single computing component with two or more independent processing units (cores).
22. What is Moore’s Law?
The observation that the number of transistors in a dense integrated circuit doubles about every two years.
23. What is superscalar architecture?
CPU design that allows multiple instructions to be executed in parallel during a single clock cycle.
24. What is speculative execution?
A performance optimization where tasks are performed before it’s known if they are needed.
25. What are SIMD and MIMD?
- SIMD: Single Instruction Multiple Data
- MIMD: Multiple Instruction Multiple Data
26. What is instruction-level parallelism (ILP)?
Executing multiple instructions simultaneously to improve performance.
27. What is a TLB (Translation Lookaside Buffer)?
A cache that stores recent translations of virtual memory to physical memory addresses.
28. What is branch prediction?
A technique to improve flow in the instruction pipeline by guessing the outcomes of conditional operations.
29. What is a microcode?
A layer of hardware-level instructions that implement higher-level machine code instructions.
30. What is clock skew?
The timing difference between clock signals arriving at different parts of a circuit.
31. What is parallel computing?
Performing multiple calculations simultaneously using multiple processors.
32. Explain Flynn’s classification.
Categories for computer architectures:
- SISD
- SIMD
- MISD
- MIMD
33. What is load-store architecture?
A CPU design where operations are performed only between registers and memory is accessed separately.
34. What is a stack machine?
A computer that uses a stack for its primary memory access.
35. Explain multicore vs multiprocessor.
- Multicore: Multiple cores in one CPU.
- Multiprocessor: Multiple CPUs.
36. What is speculative branching?
Predicting the path of a branch and executing instructions ahead of time.
37. What is branch delay slot?
An instruction that is executed after a branch instruction but before the branch target is taken.
38. Explain out-of-order execution.
Instructions are executed based on resource availability, not necessarily program order.
39. What is bus arbitration?
Determining which device gets control of the bus when multiple devices request it.
40. What is a co-processor?
A specialized processing unit used to supplement the functions of the primary processor.
41. What are hazards in instruction pipelines?
- Data dependency
- Structural conflict
- Branching
42. What is memory latency?
The delay between a memory request and the delivery of the data.
43. What is instruction fetch?
Retrieving an instruction from memory into the CPU for execution.
44. What is cycle stealing?
DMA controller momentarily borrows the CPU bus for direct memory access.
45. What is speculative load?
Fetching data from memory speculatively before ensuring the instruction will need it.
📈 Final Words
Mastering these Computer Architecture Interview Questions is key to success in technical interviews.
By understanding the fundamentals, types, hazards, and performance optimizations, you’ll be well-prepared to handle even the trickiest architecture-based interview questions.
✅ Keep practicing, stay consistent, and visualize systems internally for better answers.
✅ With a strong grip on computer architecture, you are paving your way toward roles like System Designer, Embedded Engineer, or Chip Architect!