The Motherboard

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Chapter 4

• The Motherboard

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You Will Learn

• About the types of motherboards
• About components on the motherboard
• A basic procedure for building a computer
• How to install a motherboard
• How to troubleshoot a motherboard

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Purpose of Motherboard

• Houses the CPU and allows all devices to
  communicate with it and with each other

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Types of Motherboards
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ATX and AT Motherboards
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Main Components on a Motherboard

• CPU and chip set
• System clock
• ROM BIOS
• CMOS configuration chip and its battery
• RAM
• RAM cache (optional)

• System bus with expansion slots
• Jumpers and DIP switches
• Ports that are directly on the board
• Power supply connections

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The Motherboard
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The Motherboard
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Components Determined by Motherboard Selection

• Types and speeds of CPU
• Chip set on the board (already installed)
• Memory cache and size
• Types/number of expansion slots ISA, PCI, AGP
• Type of memory, including what kind and how much
  of SRAM and DRAM (SIMMs, DIMMs, or RIMMs)
• Maximum amount of memory you can install
  incremental amounts by which you can upgrade

continued
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Components Determined by Motherboard Selection

• Type of case you can use
• ROM BIOS (already installed)
• Type of keyboard connector
• Presence/absence of proprietary video and/or
  proprietary local bus slots
• Presence/absence of IDE adapters and SCSI
  controller
• Presence/absence of COM ports, IPT ports, and
  mouse port

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When Selecting a Motherboard

• Is it designed so that long expansion cards dont
  get in the way of CPU or other devices?
• Does it support CPU you plan to use?
• What type of BIOS does it use?
• What bus speeds and type memory does it support
  how much memory can it hold?
• Does it use many embedded devices?

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When Selecting a Motherboard

• Does it fit the case?
• Does it support your legacy cards?
• What is the warranty?
• How extensive and user-friendly is the
  documentation?
• How much support does manufacturer supply?

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Motherboard Manufacturers
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The System Clock

• Keeps beat for motherboard activities
• Frequency measured in megahertz (MHz)

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CPU and Chip Set

• CPU (central processing unit)
• Most important component
• Chip set
• Controls memory cache, external buses, and some
  peripherals

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Attributes Used to Rate CPUs

• Speed (in MHz)
• Efficiency of programming code
• Number of transistors
• Number of registers
• Word size
• Data path size

• Maximum number of memory addresses
• Size of internal cache
• Multiprocessing abilities
• Special functionality

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Relating CPU Attributes to Bus Architecture

• Data path size
• Determined by width of bus data path, or number
  of parallel wires in bus data path
• Number of memory addresses
• Determined by number of traces, or wires, on the
  bus that are used for memory addresses

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Earlier Intel CPUs
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Voltages Used by Intel CPUs
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CPU Terminology

• Bus speed
• Frequency or speed at which data moves on a bus
• Only the fastest bus connects directly to the CPU
  (motherboard bus, system bus, host bus, memory
  bus, or front side bus)
• Processor speed
• Speed at which CPU operates internally
• The multiplier
• System bus speed x multiplier processor speed

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Memory Cache

• Small amount of RAM that is faster than rest of
  RAM does not need refreshing can hold data as
  long as power is available
• Internal cache, primary cache, or Level 1 cache
• Memory cache included on CPU microchip itself
• External cache, secondary cache, or Level 2 cache
• Outside CPU microchip
• Usually 128K, 256K, 512K, or 1 MB

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Memory Cache
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Pentium CPUs
continued
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Pentium CPUs
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The Pentium III CPU
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The Pentium 4 CPU
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Early Pentium Competitors
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Competitors of Advanced Pentiums
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The Cyrix III
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The AMC Athlon
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Intel Itanium The Next-Generation Processor
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CPUs That Use RISC Technology

• CPUs can use either RISC (Reduced Instruction Set
  Computing) or CISC (complex instruction set
  computing) technology or a combination of the two
• Itanium uses a new technology called EPIC
  (explicitly parallel instruction computing)

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RISC Chips

• Have small number of operating instructions to
  perform
• Are much faster when few complex calculations are
  required
• Ideal for video or telecommunications
  applications
• Easier and cheaper to manufacture

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CPU Heat Sinks and Cooling Fans
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CPU Heat Sinks and Cooling Fans
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CPU From Factors

• SEP (Single Edge Processor)
• SECC (Single Edge Contact Cartridge)
• SECC2 (Single Edge Contact Cartridge, version 2)
• PPGA (Plastic Pin Grid Array)
• FC-PGA (Flip Chip Pin Grid Array)

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CPU Slots and Sockets

• Physical connections used to connect CPU to
  motherboard
• Most commonly used Socket 7, Socket 370, slot 1,
  Slot A, and slot 2
• Pin grid array (PGA) sockets
• Staggered pin grid array (SPGA)
• Low insertion force (LIF) sockets
• Zero insertion force (ZIF) sockets

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CPU Slots and Sockets
continued
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CPU Slots and Sockets
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PGA and SPGA Designs
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CPU Slots and Sockets
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Intel Chip Sets
continued
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Accelerated Hub Architecture
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Chip Set Manufacturers

• Intel Corporation
• Silicon Integrated Systems Corp. (SiS)
• ALI, Inc.
• Standard Microsystems Corp.
• United Microelectronics Corp.
• VIA Technologies, Inc. combined with AMD, Inc.
• VLSI Technology, Inc.

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ROM BIOS

• One ROM chip on motherboard contains BIOS
• BIOS manages startup process (startup BIOS) and
  basic I/O functions (system BIOS)
• Most devices are not supported by system BIOS,
  but by device drivers
• Flash ROM (erasable programmable read-only memory
  or EEPROM) allows you to upgrade system BIOS
  without having to replace ROM chip

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BIOS Manufacturers
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RAM (Random Access Memory)

• Exists on motherboard as a SIMM, DIMM, or RIMM
  installed in memory sockets on the board
• Two types
• Dynamic RAM (DRAM)
• Holds data for very short time
• Slower must be refreshed
• Static RAM (SRAM)
• Holds data until power is turned off

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Buses and Expansion Slots

• Bus
• Path on motherboard that carries electrical
  power, control signals, memory addresses, and
  data to different components on the board
• Can be 16, 32, 64, or more bits wide
• Well-known buses 16-bit ISA, 32-bit MCA and
  EISA, and two local busesVESA and PCI
• Expansion slots
• Can be located on motherboard sometimes stacked
  vertically in the case on a second board

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Bus Evolution
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Why So Many Buses

• Speeds of different hardware components evolve at
  different rates a single speed for all computers
  is no longer practical
• New buses are invented to accommodate
  characteristics of a new devices

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What a Bus Carries

• Electrical power
• Control signals
• Memory addresses
• Data

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On-Board Ports

• Keyboard port
• Mouse port

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Relationship of CPU Speed to Bus Speed

• Overall performance is better when multiplier is
  small
• To change speed of a computer
• Change speed of system bus
• Change multiplier that determines speed of CPU

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How CPU and Bus Speeds Are Controlled
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Hardware Configuration

• Tells CPU what hardware components are present
  and how they can interface with the CPU
• How much memory is available
• Which power management features are present
• Whether disk drives, hard drives, modems, serial
  ports are connected
• Provided on motherboard in three ways
• DIP switches
• Jumpers
• CMOS

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Setup Data Stored by DIP Switches
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Setup Data Stored by Jumpers
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Setup Data Stored by Jumpers
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Setup Data on a CMOS Chip

• Also called real-time clock/nonvolatile RAM
  (RTC/NVRAM) chip
• Retains data even when computer is turned off
• Requires very little electricity to hold data
• Setup cannot be changed unintentionally

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Changing CMOS
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Changing CMOS
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Changing CMOS
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Changing CMOS
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Changing CMOS
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Types of CMOS Batteries

• 3.6V lithium battery with a four-pin connector
  connects with a Velcro strip
• 4.5V alkaline battery with a four-pin connector
  connects with a Velcro strip
• 3.6V barrel-style battery with a two-pin
  connector soldered on
• 3V lithium coin-cell battery (most common)

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Battery Power to the CMOS Chip
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Coin-Cell CMOS Battery
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CMOS

• Setting startup passwords in CMOS
• Categories of CMOS settings
• Standard CMOS setup
• Advanced CMOS setup (aka BIOS Features setup)
• Advanced Chip Set setup
• Power Menu (aka Power Management)
• IDE HDD Auto-Detect
• Hardware Device Settings (jumperless MBs only)

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Protecting Documentation and Configuration
Settings

• Keep written record of CMOS settings, records of
  hardware and software installed, and network
  settings
• Keep well-labeled documentation in a safe place
• Saving and restoring CMOS settings using a
  third-party utility software

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Building a Computer

• Verify that you have all parts you plan to
  install
• Prepare computer case
• Install drives
• Determine proper configuration settings for
  motherboard
• Set jumpers or switches on motherboard
• Install CPU and CPU cooler
• Install RAM
• Install motherboard and attach cabling

continued
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Building a Computer

• Install video card
• Plug computer into power source and attach
  monitor and keyboard
• Boot system and enter CMOS setup
• Make sure settings are set to the default
• If booting from a floppy disk, insert a bootable
  setup disk
• Observe POST
• Prepare hard drive for the OS

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Building a Computer

• Reboot the system and run ScanDisk on drive C
• Connect mouse
• Install the OS from CD or floppy
• Change boot order in CMOS
• Check for conflicts with system resources
• Install any other expansion cards, and/or drives
• Verify that all is operating properly and make
  any final OS and/or CMOS adjustments

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Installing a Motherboard

• Prepare motherboard to go into the case
• Set jumpers
• Add CPU, fan, and heat sink
• Install motherboard

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Adding CPU, Fan, and Heat Sink
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Adding CPU, Fan, and Heat Sink
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Adding CPU, Fan, and Heat Sink
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Adding CPU, Fan, and Heat Sink
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Adding CPU, Fan, and Heat Sink
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Installing the Motherboardin the Case

• Install faceplate
• Install standoffs
• Place motherboard inside case and use screws to
  attach it to the case
• Connect power cord from power supply to P1 power
  connection on motherboard
• Connect wire leads from front panel of case to
  motherboard (reset switch, HDD LED, speaker,
  power LED, remote switch)

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Installing the Faceplate
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Installing the Faceplate
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Standoffs and Screwholes
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Wire Lead Connectors
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Wire Lead Connectors
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Completing the Installation

• Install drives and other components
• Turn on system and make sure everything is
  connected properly
• Create rescue desk of settings

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Troubleshooting the Motherboard

• Use clues POST can give you (beep codes)
• If fan is running, reseat or replace CPU, BIOS,
  or RAM install a DIMM in a different slot
• Disassemble computer and reseat cable, adapter
  cards, socketed chips, and SIMMS, DIMMs, or RIMMs

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Troubleshooting the Motherboard

• Check jumpers, DIP switches, and CMOS settings
• Look for physical damage on motherboard
• If battery is dead/dying, it may cause problems
• Reduce system to its essentials
• Exchange motherboard

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Chapter Summary

• Types of motherboards
• Motherboard components
• Relationship of CPU speed to bus speed
• Hardware configuration

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Chapter Summary

• Protecting documentation and configuration
  settings
• Introduction to building a computer
• Installing a motherboard
• Troubleshooting the motherboard