COMPSCI/ECE 250D
Computer Architecture
Spring 2025

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Class Location and Hours

Class meets on TuTh 1:25–2:40pm in LSRC B101.
Recitations are held on Fridays (11 sections).

Objectives

The objective of this course is to learn how computers work, focusing on how the computer hardware executes the software.
The course focuses on: instruction sets, assembly language programming, basic digital logic design, processor design, memory system design, and input/output.
Prerequisite: CompSci 201.

Instructor, Teaching Assistants, and Answering Questions

This is a very large class, which means that students should contact other sources of information before, if necessary, contacting the professor.

*The first option for finding help is this website.
*Then check the course's Canvas announcements.
*The third option for finding help is the Ed Discussion forum. Questions there may get answered by a TA, a fellow classmate, or the professor.
*Please contact the professor only for those issues that cannot be handled by anyone else.

TAs (see office hours): If you need to contact the professor, please email him or come to his office hours:
Instructor: Dr. Rabih Younes
Duke e-mail: rabih.younes
Office hour Zoom appointments are available through a link provided on our Canvas homepage.

Textbook and Other Course Material

Textbook not required, but highly recommended; all needed material will be posted on Canvas.
Textbook: David A. Patterson and John L. Hennessy. Computer Organization and Design: The Hardware/Software Interface, 5th edition, Morgan-Kaufmann.
Please do not get the "ARM" edition or "RISC-V" edition or the "Revised Printing" -- for some reason, the publisher has created several flavors of this book.
Duke Libraries have copies of this book available.

Grading Policy

Grade distrubution: Late policy: Regrading policy: Regrade requests must be submitted no later than 5 days after the assignment grade is released.

You must attend all exams (except in case of dean's excuse or sickness with STINF). There are no make-up exams except in these situations.

Start assignments EARLY so that you don't get stuck at the end!

Grading schema (minimum %):

Misconduct

I will not tolerate academically dishonest work. This includes cheating on the homework and exams.
I will refer all suspected cases of cheating to Duke's Office of Student Conduct.
Refer to Homework #1, the Duke Community Standard, and the instructor if you have any questions about misconduct.

Tentative Schedule

Week Tue Thu Fri - Recitation
Mon 1/6 Intro/Overview Using unix machine // HW1 (RULES) DUE
Mon 1/13 C prog C prog intro to writing C prog // HW2 (UNIX) DUE
Mon 1/20 C prog from C to binary C prog: pointers and mem
Mon 1/27 from C to binary assembly // HW3 (C) DUE asm prog: examples/SPIM
Mon 2/3 assembly assembly asm prog: calling conventions
Mon 2/10 combo logic combo logic review for midterm #1
Mon 2/17 MIDTERM #1 [beg-assembly] seq logic digital design & logisim // HW4 (ASM) DUE
Mon 2/24 seq logic cpu logisim for large projects
Mon 3/3 cpu mem hierarchies // HW5 (LOGIC) DUE advanced logisim
Mon 3/10 NO CLASS (Spring Recess) NO CLASS (Spring Recess)
Mon 3/17 caches caches review for midterm #2
Mon 3/24 MIDTERM #2 [logic+cpu] vmem cache/vmem examples
Mon 3/31 vmem i/o // HW6 (CPU) DUE cache/vmem examples
Mon 4/7 i/o pipelines pipeline examples
Mon 4/14 pipelines Guest Lecture review for final // HW7 (CACHESIM) DUE
Mon 4/21 review for final
Mon 4/28 FINAL EXAM (@7pm)