Are the memory controller and RAM controller the same?

[chrstrbrts]

Hi,

What I mean is, after the MMU translates the virtual address into the physical address, it gets handed off to the memory controller.

Then, the memory controller decides whether the physical address maps to a RAM location or a peripheral (I assume that the BIOS programs these chips pre-boot).

After the memory controller determines the address is in RAM, the address is handed over to the RAM controller to be fetched.

Is this thinking accurate?

Or are the memory controller and RAM controller the same piece of hardware?

Thanks.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Most people would say yes. from a programmers perspective, you're probably only worrying about the CPU memory controller.

But modern dimms have their own little "brains" to handle things like ECC (if it's supported) and so on. Not sure what those are called, exactly, but the term "ram controller" might be appropriate.

 

[chrstrbrts]

I don't think So...
When the memory controller is not on-die, the same CPU may be installed on a new motherboard, with an updated northbridge. The integration of the memory controller onto the die of the microprocessor is not a new concept.

So you're saying that the memory controller and RAM controller are not the same?

Even if a RAM chip didn't have ECC capabilities, it seems that some kind of logic associated directly with the RAM assembly would be required to fetch the data at the requested address, yes?