Register is a term used in the field of computer engineering referring to a high speed storage element inside of a computer architecture. It is typically used to either store data temporarily, or to carry out an instruction or sequence of instructions. Registers can also be used to store flags which are used for branching operations.
Registers are typically composed of either combinational logic, or flip-flops. The registers are capable of storing a certain number of bits, depending on their design. The number of bits stored in a register is typically referred to as its “width”. Registers may also come in different varieties and with different names, depending on their purpose and functionality. Some of the more common types of registers are accumulators, index registers, linear address registers, data registers, and flag registers.
Accumulators are registers which are used to store the result of an operation, or a number temporarily while a number is being added or multiplied, for example. Index registers are used to store both a base address, and an offset used to find data within a memory system. Linear address registers are used by memory management units as a way to keep track of translated addresses, or locations in physical memory. Data registers are typically used when manipulating data within a program, and flag registers are used in conditional operations.
Register are an important part of computer architectures, as they provide the order and control for computation operations. Registers serve as the temporary storage locations for data, and their speed and width limitations make them essential for keeping track of critical information in a computer system.
