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Set Associative Cache

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Please help with the following computer science problems. Provide step by step calculations.

Suppose that a computer using a set-associative cache has 2^16 words of main memory and a cache of 32 blocks, where each cache block contains 8 words.

A. If this cache is a 2-way set-associative, what is the format of a memory address as seen by the cache? That is, what are the sizes of the tag, set and word fields?

B. If this cache is a 4-way set-associative, what is the format of a memory address as seen by the cache?

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Solution Summary

This solution briefly explains in about 185 words, how the size of different fields of a memory address format are determined. All calculations and formulas pertaining to the cache sets are provided.

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Size of main memory = 2^16 words
Size of cache block = 8 or 2^3 words
Number of cache blocks (Nc) = 32 or 2^5

Since nothing is given about the size of memory address, we infer it from size of main memory as 16 bits.

A. If this cache is a 2-way set-associative, what is the format ...

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