The register that holds the address of the next instruction to be executed is:
Correct answer: B. Program Counter (PC)
- A. Instruction Register (IR)
- B. Program Counter (PC)
- C. Memory Address Register (MAR)
- D. Memory Buffer Register (MBR)
Explanation
This register is a special-purpose CPU register that stores the memory address of the next instruction to be fetched from memory. The PC is incremented by the CPU after each instruction is fetched, so it always points to the next instruction in the program sequence.Explanation of wrong options:Instruction Register (IR): The IR stores the instruction itself, not the address of the next instruction.Memory Address Register (MAR): The MAR stores the address of data to be transferred, not the address of the next instruction.Memory Buffer Register (MBR): The MBR stores the data being transferred, not the address of the next instruction
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Hardware includes the physical components of a computer, such as the CPU, motherboard, registers, memory, storage devices and peripheral equipment. Software covers system software, application software, utilities, drivers and firmware, with attention to how the operating system manages hardware and how software differs from the physical equipment it controls.
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