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Here is a list of hardware components which are in most PCs and a summary of what they do:

Motherboard

This is the main framework of a PC. This is where all the hardware components are connected to. It also supplies power from the PSU to most of the components.

Graphics Card/Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)

This processes graphics. Graphics are anything you see on your monitor. The more detailed the images are, the more graphics RAM the graphics card needs. The more pictures the graphics card has to deal with simultaneously(frames per second (FSP)) , the faster the graphics card’s processor has to be. New games usually have very detailed images and a high FPS rate, so very powerful graphics cards are needed to play them, as well as a fast processor.

CPU (Central Processing Unit)

The CPU is a very important component, because without it nothing can happen. The CPU tells all the hardware components what to do. The CPU deals with every thing the computer does and processes it in the right way. The CPU deals with: pictures, videos, commands, sounds, networking and just about anything you use your PC for. The speed of a CPU is measured in MHz and GHz. 1000 MHz is 1GHz. The higher the processing speed, the faster a PC is.

PSU (Power Supply Unit)

A PSU supplies power to the whole PC. When you plug the power lead into a PC, you are actually plugging the power lead into the PSU. The main thing a PSU supplies power to is the motherboard, so that the motherboard can supply power to the components plugged into it. But for bigger more powerful components such as advanced graphics card’s and CD-ROM drives, power is supplied directly from the PSU. The more components you have that are very powerful, the higher the voltage of the PSU you need.

Sound Card/Audio Card

The sound or audio card deals with all the sound. The sound card is where you plug in headphones or speakers. The sound card also deals with your microphone. It’s job is to convert files into audio format to be listened, or convert audio from a microphone into a file.

RAM (Random Access Memory)

RAM is what a PC uses to temporarily store commands or files that are needed at the time. Ram is very quick because it is solid state memory. RAM is needed to do anything from simple to complex tasks. High capacity RAM is needed to play advanced video games and to play high resolution video. The higher the capacity of RAM, the more information your PC can deal with.

USB Bus

The USB bus is where all the USB ports are connected and read.

CD-ROM/DVD-ROM Drive/Burner

The CD-ROM/DVD-ROM drive reads disc’s such as Cd’s and DVDs, which contains files. If the drive is also a CD/DVD burner, it can write files onto a disc.

Hard Drive

The Hard Drive stores files, such as: photos, videos, games, music, and documents. Hard Drives usually have a high capacity of around 100GB-400GB. The files stay on the Hard Drive for as long as you keep them, so turning off your PC doesn’t get rid of the files like RAM memory.

Fans

Components in a PC get quite hot after a while of using them. That is why fans are needed to cool down the PC and prevent it from overheating and getting broken. The PC normally has a fan for the whole system. The CPU and powerful graphics cards usually have their own fans, because they get extremely hot while in use.