Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Hard disks store and organize files using all the following, except
A. tracks.
B. sectors.
C. cylinders.
D. paths.
2. An internal hard disk
A. provides a variable amount of storage
B. provides a fixed amount of storage
C. is easily portable
D. is generally slow
3. Which of the following is not a utility to ensure backup and adequate performance of an
internal hard disk?
A. Backup
B. Disk Cleanup
C. Disk Defragmenter
D. Internet Explorer
4. The hard disk's disk surface is scratched and some or all of the data is destroyed when there
is a
A. head crash.
B. cylinder crash.
C. track crash.
D. sector crash.
5. Which of the following is not an example of secondary storage?
A. External hard drives
B. RAID
C. RAM
D. Flash drives
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
6. An external hard disk
A. is heavy
B. is hard to remove
C. has a typical capacity of 20 to 100 MB
D. usually connects to a USB port
7. Storage that retains its data after the power is turned off is referred to as
A. volatile storage.
B. sequential storage.
C. direct storage.
D. nonvolatile storage.
8. The process of accessing information from secondary storage devices is referred to as
A. backing up.
B. restoring.
C. writing.
D. reading.
9. The ____ indicates how much data a particular storage medium can hold.
A. access
B. capacity
C. memory
D. storage
10. Which of the following measures the amount of time required by the storage device to
retrieve data and programs?
A. Nonvolatile media
B. Capacity
C. Access speed
D. RAM
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
11. One way to improve the storage capacity of a hard disk is to
A. format often.
B. use file compression.
C. increase memory.
D. use Linux.
12. This process improves system performance by acting as a temporary high-speed holding
area between a secondary storage device and the CPU.
A. Data compression
B. Data access
C. Disk caching
D. RAID
13. Which of the following statements on RAIDs is incorrect?
A. provide expanded storage capability
B. have a fast access speed
C. are highly reliable
D. are composed on one high-capacity hard disk drive
14. Three ways to improve the performance of a hard disk include
A. disk caching, RAID, and file expansion.
B. file compression, disk caching, and file encryption.
C. disk caching, RAID, and file compression.
D. RAID, file compression and disk expansion.
15. Which of these is not an example of solid state storage?
A. DVDs
B. SSDs
C. Flash memory cards
D. USB drives
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
16. An iPod uses which of these technologies?
A. Optical drive
B. Solid state drive
C. Flash memory
D. Flash drive
17. Optical discs
A. can hold up to 10 gigabytes of data.
B. use magnetic charges to represent 1s and 0s.
C. typically use a single track that spirals toward the center of the disk.
D. have had little impact on storage.
18. A CD-RW disc
A. can be written to only once.
B. can be erased and rewritten.
C. holds more data than a DVD.
D. is an example of solid state storage.
19. All of the following are true of DVD-ROM drives except
A. they are also known as erasable optical discs.
B. they can provide over two hours of high-quality video and sound comparable to that found
in motion picture theatres.
C. they are a type of optical disc.
D. DVD-ROM stands for "digital versatile disc–read only memory".
20. The standard for high definition optical discs is
A. DVD-RAM.
B. HD DVD.
C. Blu-ray.
D. HD CD.
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
21. These discs have a capacity of 25 to 50 gigabytes.
A. HD DVD
B. CD
C. DVD
D. Blu-Ray
22. Which of the following is not a type of secondary storage?
A. Memory
B. Hard disks
C. Optical discs
D. Solid-state storage
23. The two approaches to external storages are
A. solid state access and optical access.
B. sequential access and direct access.
C. sequential access and solid state access.
D. volatile access and nonvolatile access.
24. Which of the following is not meant to store highly personalized or sensitive
information?
A. Online storage services
B. Flash drive
C. Magnetic tape
D. Internet hard drive
25. Which of these is not a mass storage device?
A. RAID system
B. File server
C. Optical disc
D. Tape library
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
True / False Questions
26. Media are the actual physical material that holds data and programs.
True False
27. The process of saving information to a secondary storage device is referred to as
embedding.
True False
28. Secondary storage provides temporary or volatile storage.
True False
29. Hard disks use tracks, sectors, and cylinders to store files.
True False
30. A smoke particle, fingerprint, dust, or human hair could cause a hard disk head crash.
True False
31. A hard crash occurs typically on an optical disk when it makes contact with particles on
its surface.
True False
32. External hard disks are used primarily to complement an internal hard disk.
True False
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
33. External hard disks use different technology than internal hard disks.
True False
34. Disk caching improves hard-disk performance by compressing files.
True False
35. Disk caching uses a combination of hardware and software.
True False
36. RAID connects several inexpensive hard-disk drives to one another.
True False
37. File compression is only available on hard disk drives.
True False
38. CD-ROMs are often used to archive data and to record music downloaded from the
Internet.
True False
39. DVDs have replaced CDs as the standard optical disc.
True False
40. Almost all microcomputers today have at least one hard-disk drive, and one optical drive,
with USB ports that can support portable solid state drives.
True False
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
41. The two approaches to internal storage are sequential access and direct access.
True False
42. Magnetic tape stores data and programs by altering the electromagnetic charges on a
recording surface.
True False
43. Tapes provide fast direct access. Disks provide slower sequential access.
True False
44. Mass storage devices are primary storage devices designed to store large amounts of data
for an organization.
True False
45. File servers are appropriate devices to use in an enterprise storage system.
True False
Fill in the Blank Questions
46. _____ speed is the measure of the amount of time required by a storage device to retrieve
data and programs.
________________________________________
47. Tracks are divided into invisible wedge-shaped sections called _____.
________________________________________
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
48. Disk _____ improves hard-disk performance by anticipating data needs.
________________________________________
49. A(n) _____ hard disk is typically connected to a USB or FireWire port.
________________________________________
50. A _____ occurs when a read/write head makes contact with the hard disk's surface or with
particles on its surface.
________________________________________
51. You can compress and decompress files using specialized utilities such as _____.
________________________________________
52. File _____expands compressed files.
________________________________________
53. Due to its expanded storage capability, fast access speed, and high reliability, _____ is
often used by Internet servers and large organizations.
________________________________________
54. USB drives are also known as _____ drives.
________________________________________
55. _____ memory cards are a form of a solid-state storage device widely used in GPS
navigation systems.
________________________________________
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
56. CD-ROM is an example of a(n) _____ type of storage medium.
________________________________________
57. DVD + R and DVD-R both stand for DVD _____.
________________________________________
58. An internal hard disk uses _____ access to retrieve data.
________________________________________
59. DVD stands for digital versatile disc or digital _____ disc.
________________________________________
60. The hi def standard for optical discs is the _____ Disc.
________________________________________
61. The three basic storage options are hard disc, _____, and solid-state storage.
________________________________________
62. With _____ storage services, access speed is slower because all information must travel
across the Internet.
________________________________________
63. In the past, magnetic _____ were used to back up data on mainframes.
________________________________________
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
64. Large organizations store their data through a strategy called a(n) _____.
________________________________________
Essay Questions
65. Discuss the importance and uses of secondary storage devices.
66. List and explain some of the important characteristics of secondary storage.
67. What causes a head crash to occur?
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
68. Describe a RAID.
69. What is solid state storage? Give examples.
70. Briefly discuss the differences between CD, DVD, and Blu-ray discs.
71. Explain the advantages and the disadvantages of using an online storage service.
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage
72. Contrast sequential access with direct access.
73. Describe some of the mass storage devices that are included in the enterprise storage
system.
74. What is a storage area network?
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
Multiple Choice Questions
1. (p. 221) Hard disks store and organize files using all the following, except
A. tracks.
B. sectors.
C. cylinders.
D. paths.
Hard disks store and organize files using tracks, sectors, and cylinders.
Difficulty: Hard
2. (p. 222) An internal hard disk
A. provides a variable amount of storage
B. provides a fixed amount of storage
C. is easily portable
D. is generally slow
Internal hard disks provide fast access; however, they have a fixed amount of storage and
cannot be easily removed from the system cabinet.
Difficulty: Medium
3. (p. 222) Which of the following is not a utility to ensure backup and adequate performance of
an internal hard disk?
A. Backup
B. Disk Cleanup
C. Disk Defragmenter
D. Internet Explorer
To ensure adequate performance of your internal hard disk, you should perform routine
maintenance and periodically make backup copies of all important files. For hard-disk
maintenance and backup procedures you can use the following: the Windows utilities Backup,
Disk Cleanup, and Disk Defragmenter.
Difficulty: Medium
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
4. (p. 221) The hard disk's disk surface is scratched and some or all of the data is destroyed when
there is a
A. head crash.
B. cylinder crash.
C. track crash.
D. sector crash.
A head crash occurs when a read/write head makes contact with the hard disk's surface or
with particles on its surface, and some or all of the data is destroyed.
Difficulty: Hard
5. (p. 220) Which of the following is not an example of secondary storage?
A. External hard drives
B. RAID
C. RAM
D. Flash drives
RAM provides only temporary or volatile storage. Secondary storage provides permanent or
nonvolatile storage.
Difficulty: Easy
6. (p. 222) An external hard disk
A. is heavy
B. is hard to remove
C. has a typical capacity of 20 to 100 MB
D. usually connects to a USB port
External hard disks typically connect to a USB or FireWire port on the system unit, are easily
removed, and effectively provide an unlimited amount of storage.
Difficulty: Hard
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
7. (p. 220) Storage that retains its data after the power is turned off is referred to as
A. volatile storage.
B. sequential storage.
C. direct storage.
D. nonvolatile storage.
Secondary storage is nonvolatile storage as it does not lose the data when the power is turned
off.
Difficulty: Easy
8. (p. 220) The process of accessing information from secondary storage devices is referred to as
A. backing up.
B. restoring.
C. writing.
D. reading.
Reading is the process of accessing information from secondary storage.
Difficulty: Easy
9. (p. 220) The ____ indicates how much data a particular storage medium can hold.
A. access
B. capacity
C. memory
D. storage
Capacity measures how much a particular storage medium can hold.
Difficulty: Easy
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
10. (p. 221) Which of the following measures the amount of time required by the storage device
to retrieve data and programs?
A. Nonvolatile media
B. Capacity
C. Access speed
D. RAM
Access speed measures the amount of time required by the storage device to retrieve data.
Difficulty: Medium
11. (p. 223) One way to improve the storage capacity of a hard disk is to
A. format often.
B. use file compression.
C. increase memory.
D. use Linux.
File compression increases storage capacity by reducing the amount of space required to store
data and programs.
Difficulty: Medium
12. (p. 223) This process improves system performance by acting as a temporary high-speed
holding area between a secondary storage device and the CPU.
A. Data compression
B. Data access
C. Disk caching
D. RAID
Disk caching is the process of storing frequently used data from a disk into memory.
Difficulty: Medium
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
13. (p. 223) Which of the following statements on RAIDs is incorrect?
A. provide expanded storage capability
B. have a fast access speed
C. are highly reliable
D. are composed on one high-capacity hard disk drive
RAIDs improve performance by expanding external storage, improving access speed, and
providing reliable storage through several inexpensive hard-disk drives connected to one
another.
Difficulty: Medium
14. (p. 223) Three ways to improve the performance of a hard disk include
A. disk caching, RAID, and file expansion.
B. file compression, disk caching, and file encryption.
C. disk caching, RAID, and file compression.
D. RAID, file compression and disk expansion.
Three ways to improve the performance of hard disks are disk caching, RAID, and file
compression/decompression.
Difficulty: Medium
15. (p. 224, 225) Which of these is not an example of solid state storage?
A. DVDs
B. SSDs
C. Flash memory cards
D. USB drives
Solid state drives (SSDs), Flash memory cards, and USB drives (flash drives) are all examples
of solid state storage devices.
Difficulty: Easy
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
16. (p. 225) An iPod uses which of these technologies?
A. Optical drive
B. Solid state drive
C. Flash memory
D. Flash drive
Flash memory is used in digital media players like the iPod to store and play music and video
files.
Difficulty: Hard
17. (p. 227) Optical discs
A. can hold up to 10 gigabytes of data.
B. use magnetic charges to represent 1s and 0s.
C. typically use a single track that spirals toward the center of the disk.
D. have had little impact on storage.
Unlike the concentric tracks and wedge-shaped sectors used for hard disks, however, optical
discs typically use a single track that spirals toward the center of the disk.
Difficulty: Hard
18. (p. 227) A CD-RW disc
A. can be written to only once.
B. can be erased and rewritten.
C. holds more data than a DVD.
D. is an example of solid state storage.
CD-RW stands for compact disc rewritable. They are also known as erasable optical discs.
Difficulty: Medium
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
19. (p. 227) All of the following are true of DVD-ROM drives except
A. they are also known as erasable optical discs.
B. they can provide over two hours of high-quality video and sound comparable to that found
in motion picture theatres.
C. they are a type of optical disc.
D. DVD-ROM stands for "digital versatile disc–read only memory".
DVD-ROM are not erasable.
Difficulty: Hard
20. (p. 230) The standard for high definition optical discs is
A. DVD-RAM.
B. HD DVD.
C. Blu-ray.
D. HD CD.
The hi def standard is Blu-ray.
Difficulty: Medium
21. (p. 230) These discs have a capacity of 25 to 50 gigabytes.
A. HD DVD
B. CD
C. DVD
D. Blu-Ray
Blu-ray discs have a capacity of 25 to 50 gigabytes, more than 10 times the capacity of a
standard single-layer DVD.
Difficulty: Hard
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
22. (p. 231) Which of the following is not a type of secondary storage?
A. Memory
B. Hard disks
C. Optical discs
D. Solid-state storage
There are three basic secondary storage options. They are hard disks, optical discs and solidstate storage.
Difficulty: Easy
23. (p. 232) The two approaches to external storages are
A. solid state access and optical access.
B. sequential access and direct access.
C. sequential access and solid state access.
D. volatile access and nonvolatile access.
The two approaches to external storage are sequential access and direct access.
Difficulty: Hard
24. (p. 231) Which of the following is not meant to store highly personalized or sensitive
information?
A. Online storage services
B. Flash drive
C. Magnetic tape
D. Internet hard drive
Because of certain limitations, online storage services are typically used as a specialized
secondary storage device and not for storing highly personalized or sensitive information.
Difficulty: Easy
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
25. (p. 233) Which of these is not a mass storage device?
A. RAID system
B. File server
C. Optical disc
D. Tape library
Mass storage devices include file servers, network attached storage, RAID systems, tape
library, and organizational online storage.
Difficulty: Medium
True / False Questions
26. (p. 220) Media are the actual physical material that holds data and programs.
TRUE
Difficulty: Easy
27. (p. 220) The process of saving information to a secondary storage device is referred to as
embedding.
FALSE
Difficulty: Easy
28. (p. 220) Secondary storage provides temporary or volatile storage.
FALSE
Difficulty: Medium
29. (p. 212) Hard disks use tracks, sectors, and cylinders to store files.
TRUE
Difficulty: Easy
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
30. (p. 221) A smoke particle, fingerprint, dust, or human hair could cause a hard disk head
crash.
TRUE
Difficulty: Medium
31. (p. 221) A hard crash occurs typically on an optical disk when it makes contact with particles
on its surface.
FALSE
Difficulty: Medium
32. (p. 223) External hard disks are used primarily to complement an internal hard disk.
TRUE
Difficulty: Easy
33. (p. 223) External hard disks use different technology than internal hard disks.
FALSE
Difficulty: Easy
34. (p. 223) Disk caching improves hard-disk performance by compressing files.
FALSE
Difficulty: Medium
35. (p. 223) Disk caching uses a combination of hardware and software.
TRUE
Difficulty: Medium
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
36. (p. 223) RAID connects several inexpensive hard-disk drives to one another.
TRUE
Difficulty: Medium
37. (p. 223) File compression is only available on hard disk drives.
FALSE
Difficulty: Easy
38. (p. 227) CD-ROMs are often used to archive data and to record music downloaded from the
Internet.
FALSE
Difficulty: Hard
39. (p. 227) DVDs have replaced CDs as the standard optical disc.
TRUE
Difficulty: Easy
40. (p. 231) Almost all microcomputers today have at least one hard-disk drive, and one optical
drive, with USB ports that can support portable solid state drives.
TRUE
Difficulty: Medium
41. (p. 232) The two approaches to internal storage are sequential access and direct access.
FALSE
Difficulty: Hard
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
42. (p. 232) Magnetic tape stores data and programs by altering the electromagnetic charges on a
recording surface.
TRUE
Difficulty: Easy
43. (p. 232) Tapes provide fast direct access. Disks provide slower sequential access.
FALSE
Difficulty: Hard
44. (p. 233) Mass storage devices are primary storage devices designed to store large amounts of
data for an organization.
FALSE
Difficulty: Medium
45. (p. 233) File servers are appropriate devices to use in an enterprise storage system.
TRUE
Difficulty: Medium
Fill in the Blank Questions
46. (p. 221) _____ speed is the measure of the amount of time required by a storage device to
retrieve data and programs.
Access
Access speed measures the amount of time required by the storage device to retrieve data and
programs.
Difficulty: Easy
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
47. (p. 221) Tracks are divided into invisible wedge-shaped sections called _____.
sectors
Tracks are rings of concentric circles without visible grooves. Each track is divided into
invisible wedge-shaped sections called sectors.
Difficulty: Easy
48. (p. 223) Disk _____ improves hard-disk performance by anticipating data needs.
caching
Disk caching improves hard-disk performance by anticipating data needs.
Difficulty: Medium
49. (p. 222) A(n) _____ hard disk is typically connected to a USB or FireWire port.
external
External hard disks typically connect to a USB or FireWire port on the system unit.
Difficulty: Medium
50. (p. 221) A _____ occurs when a read/write head makes contact with the hard disk's surface
or with particles on its surface.
head crash
A head crash is a disaster for a hard disk. The disk surface is scratched and some or all of the
data is destroyed.
Difficulty: Medium
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
51. (p. 223) You can compress and decompress files using specialized utilities such as _____.
WinZip
You can compress and decompress files using specialized utilities such as WinZip.
Difficulty: Medium
52. (p. 223) File _____expands compressed files.
decompression
File decompression expands compressed files.
Difficulty: Medium
53. (p. 223) Due to its expanded storage capability, fast access speed, and high reliability, _____
is often used by Internet servers and large organizations.
RAID
RAID is often used by Internet servers and large organizations.
Difficulty: Hard
54. (p. 225) USB drives are also known as _____ drives.
flash
USB drives, or flash drives, are so compact they can be transported on a key ring.
Difficulty: Easy
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
55. (p. 224) _____ memory cards are a form of a solid-state storage device widely used in GPS
navigation systems.
Flash
Flash memory cards are widely used in portable devices such as mobile phones and GPS
navigation systems.
Difficulty: Medium
56. (p. 227) CD-ROM is an example of a(n) _____ type of storage medium.
optical
Optical discs come in many different sizes. The two most common are CD and DVD.
Difficulty: Hard
57. (p. 230) DVD + R and DVD-R both stand for DVD _____.
recordable
DVD+R and DVD-R are two competing write-once DVD formats. Both stand for DVD
recordable.
Difficulty: Medium
58. (p. 232) An internal hard disk uses _____ access to retrieve data.
direct
Disks provide fast direct access.
Difficulty: Medium
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
59. (p. 227) DVD stands for digital versatile disc or digital _____ disc.
video
DVD stands for digital versatile disc or digital video disc.
Difficulty: Easy
60. (p. 230) The hi def standard for optical discs is the _____ Disc.
Blu-ray
The hi def standard is Blue-ray Disc.
Difficulty: Easy
61. (p. 231) The three basic storage options are hard disc, _____, and solid-state storage.
optical disc
The three basic storage options for a typical microcomputer user are hard disk, optical disk,
and solid-state storage.
Difficulty: Medium
62. (p. 231) With _____ storage services, access speed is slower because all information must
travel across the Internet.
online
Online storage services provide users with storage space that can be accessed from a Web
site.
Difficulty: Easy
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
63. (p. 232) In the past, magnetic _____ were used to back up data on mainframes.
tape reels
At one time, mainframe computers used magnetic tape reels exclusively.
Difficulty: Medium
64. (p. 233) Large organizations store their data through a strategy called a(n) _____.
enterprise storage system
Most large organizations have established a strategy called an enterprise storage system to
promote efficient and safe use of data across the networks within their organizations.
Difficulty: Easy
Essay Questions
65. (p. 220) Discuss the importance and uses of secondary storage devices.
Secondary storage devices are used to save, to back up, and even to transport files consisting
of data or programs from one location or computer to another.
Difficulty: Medium
66. (p. 220) List and explain some of the important characteristics of secondary storage.
Some important characteristics of secondary storage include (1) Media which are the actual
physical material that holds the data and programs, (2) Capacity which measures how much a
particular storage medium can hold, (3) Storage devices which are the hardware that reads
data and programs from storage media. Most also write to storage media and (4) Access speed
which measures the amount of time required by the storage device to retrieve data and
programs.
Difficulty: Hard
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
67. (p. 221, 222) What causes a head crash to occur?
A head crash occurs when a read/write head makes contact with the hard disk's surface or
with particles on its surface. A head crash is a disaster for a hard disk. The disk surface is
scratched and some or all of the data is destroyed. At one time, head crashes were
commonplace.
Difficulty: Easy
68. (p. 223) Describe a RAID.
RAID, or redundant array of inexpensive disks, improves performance by expanding external
storage, improving access speed, and providing reliable storage. In a RAID, several
inexpensive hard-disk drives are connected to one another. The connected hard-disk drives are
related or grouped together, and the computer system interacts with the RAID system as
though it were a single large-capacity drive.
Difficulty: Hard
69. (p. 224, 225) What is solid state storage? Give examples.
Solid state storage devices have no moving parts. Data and information are stored and
retrieved electronically directly from these devices much as they would be from conventional
computer memory. Solid-state drives (SDDs) are similar to hard disk drives, but they use
solid-state memory instead of magnetic discs to store data. Flash memory cards are small
solid-state storage devices used in portable devices like mobile phones and GPS navigation
systems. They are also used to store images from digital cameras and then to transfer the
images to a personal computer. USB drives, or flash drives, are so compact they can be
transported on a key ring. These drives connect to a computer's USB port to transfer files.
Difficulty: Hard
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
70. (p. 229, 230) Briefly discuss the differences between CD, DVD, and Blu-ray discs.
CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray are all optical disc formats. All three come in read only, write once,
and rewritable versions. CDs have the smallest capacity (650 MB to 1 GB), followed by
DVDs (4.7 GB to 17 GB), with Blu-ray having the largest capacity (25 to 50 GB). Although
Blu-ray media are the same size as CDs and DVDs, the discs require special drives. Most Bluray drives can also read CDs and DVDs as well.
Difficulty: Medium
71. (p. 231) Explain the advantages and the disadvantages of using an online storage service.
An online storage service costs less than other types of secondary storage and provides the
flexibility to access information from any location using the Internet. However, because all
information must travel over the Internet, access speed is slower and users are dependent on
the availability and security procedures of the service site.
Difficulty: Easy
72. (p. 232) Contrast sequential access with direct access.
Sequential storage stores data one record after another. Magnetic tapes are an example of
storage that must be accessed sequentially. In order to search for a specific record you must
search sequentially until the record is found. Direct access media allow records to be retrieved
in random order. CDs and hard drives provide direct access.
Difficulty: Hard
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Chapter 008 Secondary Storage Key
73. (p. 233) Describe some of the mass storage devices that are included in the enterprise storage
system.
File servers are dedicated computers with very large storage capacities that provide users
access to fast storage and retrieval of data. Network attached storage (NAS) is similar to a file
server except it is simpler and less expensive. RAID systems enhance organizational security
by constantly duplicating files moving across the organization's networks. Tape libraries
provide automatic access to data archived on a large collection or library of tapes.
Organizational online storage utilizes a high-speed Internet connection to a dedicated remote
organizational online storage site.
Difficulty: Medium
74. (p. 234) What is a storage area network?
A storage area network (SAN) is an architecture to link remote computer storage devices,
such as enterprise storage systems, to computers such that the devices are as available as
locally attached drives. In a SAN system, the user's computer provides the file system for
storing data, but the SAN provides the disk space. The key to a SAN is a high-speed network,
connecting individual computers to mass storage devices.
Difficulty: Medium
8-33