Architecture
Register File
An array of registers with multiple read and write ports, forming the processor's fast storage.
Detailed Explanation
Register files provide operands to the execution unit and store results. A typical register file has two read ports (for two operands) and one write port. RISC architectures have 32 general-purpose registers; more ports support superscalar execution.
Register file timing is critical—reads must complete within a clock cycle. Large register files may require pipelining. Register renaming in out-of-order processors maps architectural registers to a larger physical register file.