Complex instruction set computing

A complex instruction set computer (CISC /ˈsɪsk/) is a computer in which single instructions can execute several low-level operations (such as a load from memory, an arithmetic operation, and a memory store) or are capable of multi-step operations or addressing modes within single instructions. The term was retroactively coined in contrast to reduced instruction set computer (RISC) and has therefore become something of an umbrella term for everything that is not RISC, from large and complex mainframe computers to simplistic microcontrollers where memory load and store operations are not separated from arithmetic instructions. A modern RISC processor can therefore be much more complex than, say, a modern microcontroller using a CISC-labeled instruction set, especially in the complexity of its electronic circuits, but also in the number of instructions or the complexity of their encoding patterns. The only typical differentiating characteristic is that most RISC designs use uniform instruction length for almost all instructions, and employ strictly separate load/store-instructions. A complex instruction set computer (CISC /ˈsɪsk/) is a computer in which single instructions can execute several low-level operations (such as a load from memory, an arithmetic operation, and a memory store) or are capable of multi-step operations or addressing modes within single instructions. The term was retroactively coined in contrast to reduced instruction set computer (RISC) and has therefore become something of an umbrella term for everything that is not RISC, from large and complex mainframe computers to simplistic microcontrollers where memory load and store operations are not separated from arithmetic instructions. A modern RISC processor can therefore be much more complex than, say, a modern microcontroller using a CISC-labeled instruction set, especially in the complexity of its electronic circuits, but also in the number of instructions or the complexity of their encoding patterns. The only typical differentiating characteristic is that most RISC designs use uniform instruction length for almost all instructions, and employ strictly separate load/store-instructions. Examples of instruction set architectures that have been retroactively labeled CISC are System/360 through z/Architecture, the PDP-11 and VAX architectures, Data General Nova and many others. Well known microprocessors and microcontrollers that have also been labeled CISC in many academic publications include the Motorola 6800, 6809 and 68000-families; the Intel 8080, iAPX432 and x86-family; the Zilog Z80, Z8 and Z8000-families; the National Semiconductor 32016 and NS320xx-line; the MOS Technology 6502-family; the Intel 8051-family; and others. Some designs have been regarded as borderline cases by some writers. For instance, the Microchip Technology PIC has been labeled RISC in some circles and CISC in others. The 6502 and 6809 have both been described as 'RISC-like', although they have complex addressing modes as well as arithmetic instructions that operate on memory, contrary to the RISC-principles. Before the RISC philosophy became prominent, many computer architects tried to bridge the so-called semantic gap, i.e., to design instruction sets that directly support high-level programming constructs such as procedure calls, loop control, and complex addressing modes, allowing data structure and array accesses to be combined into single instructions. Instructions are also typically highly encoded in order to further enhance the code density. The compact nature of such instruction sets results in smaller program sizes and fewer (slow) main memory accesses, which at the time (early 1960s and onwards) resulted in a tremendous saving on the cost of computer memory and disc storage, as well as faster execution. It also meant good programming productivity even in assembly language, as high level languages such as Fortran or Algol were not always available or appropriate. Indeed, microprocessors in this category are sometimes still programmed in assembly language for certain types of critical applications. In the 1970s, analysis of high-level languages indicated some complex machine language implementations and it was determined that new instructions could improve performance. Some instructions were added that were never intended to be used in assembly language but fit well with compiled high-level languages. Compilers were updated to take advantage of these instructions. The benefits of semantically rich instructions with compact encodings can be seen in modern processors as well, particularly in the high-performance segment where caches are a central component (as opposed to most embedded systems). This is because these fast, but complex and expensive, memories are inherently limited in size, making compact code beneficial. Of course, the fundamental reason they are needed is that main memories (i.e., dynamic RAM today) remain slow compared to a (high-performance) CPU core. While many designs achieved the aim of higher throughput at lower cost and also allowed high-level language constructs to be expressed by fewer instructions, it was observed that this was not always the case. For instance, low-end versions of complex architectures (i.e. using less hardware) could lead to situations where it was possible to improve performance by not using a complex instruction (such as a procedure call or enter instruction), but instead using a sequence of simpler instructions. One reason for this was that architects (microcode writers) sometimes 'over-designed' assembly language instructions, including features which could not be implemented efficiently on the basic hardware available. There could, for instance, be 'side effects' (above conventional flags), such as the setting of a register or memory location that was perhaps seldom used; if this was done via ordinary (non duplicated) internal buses, or even the external bus, it would demand extra cycles every time, and thus be quite inefficient.