A status register, flag register, or condition code register is a collection of status flag bits for a processor. An example is the FLAGS register of the x86 architecture or flags in a program status word (PSW) register. The status register is a hardware register that contains information about the state of the processor. Individual bits are implicitly or explicitly read and/or written by the machine code instructions executing on the processor. The status register lets an instruction take action contingent on the outcome of a previous instruction.