Interrupts

• Interrupt

  A signal sent from a device or from software to a microprocessor to temporarily stop what it is doing
• Causes of interrupts

  • Timing signal
  • I/O process
  • Hardware fault like a paper jam
  • User interaction
  • Software errors
• Interrupts

  • Allow computers to multitask or have several windows open without carrying things out simultaneously
  • Can be achieved using a buffer which is a temporary memory storage area
• Interrupt service

  1. Save contents of PC and other registers

  2. Interrupt service routine loads the start address

  3. Interrupted task is continued
• All of this increases processing power and speed of a computer