Physical memory

Physical memory

Physical memory usually refers to the actual RAM installed in a computer. However, the term can also have more specific meanings depending on the context. A physical address is a reference to a location in this RAM, but in some cases, it may also refer to an abstraction used by the operating system, which treats memory as a contiguous block, even if the physical layout is non-contiguous. The mapping between virtual addresses and physical addresses is handled by the Memory Management Unit (MMU) and memory controller, which ensure that memory is accessed correctly and efficiently.