Using the parts of the CPU displayed on the previous page, we will trace the steps that an instruction goes through in the CPU. First, the instruction pointer tells the instruction fetch where in the memory the instruction is. The fetch takes the instruction and gives it to the decoder, which determines the steps that are necessary to fulfill the instructions. The information is then sent to the ALU, which performs the instructions that need to be performed. This includes adding, subtracting, or manipulating the data further. Finally, the instructions are sent out into the computer where they are needed.

This process continues whenever a CPU needs to do anything with any information, but it happens at an extremely fast pace. To make sure that everything happens at the right time, a clock generator is used to regulate the flow of data. The pulses that the clock generator sends are measured in the amount of pulses per second, or Hz. Today's computers have clocks that pulse millions of times per second, or MHz.; If two CPUs have every part that is the same, and the clocks were different speeds, the faster-clocked CPU would perform tasks faster. Since CPUs are not all the same, the efficiency of the CPU parts matter just as much, if not more, than the speed of the clock generator.

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