Page 1
A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC
Fifth Edition
Chapter 1
Introducing Hardware
Page 2
2A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Functions of a Computer
Page 3
3A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Ports
Page 4
4A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Hardware Inside the Case
Page 5
5A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
The Motherboard
Page 6
6A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
The Motherboard (continued)
Page 7
7A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Types of Expansion Slots
Page 8
8A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
The Electrical System (continued)
Page 9
9A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Instructions Stored on the
MotherboardROM BIOS (most are flash ROM)
System BIOS
Startup BIOS
CMOS setup
Motherboard BIOS supports ACPI, APM, and
Plug and Play technologies
Page 10
10A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
ROM BIOS Chip
Page 11
11A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Motherboard Configuration
Settings
CMOS chip
Stores setup (configuration) information
Powered by a battery on motherboard when power
is off
Setup information can also be set by jumpers
and DIP switches
Page 12
12A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
CMOS Configuration Chip
Page 13
13A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Setting Jumpers
Page 14
14A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Using DIP Switches
Page 15
A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC
Fifth Edition
Chapter 2
How Hardware and
Software Work Together
Page 16
16A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
OS as a Middleman
Page 17
17A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
The Shell and the Kernel
Page 18
18A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Common Operating Systems
DOS
Windows 9x
Windows NT, Windows 2000, and
Windows XP
Unix
Linux
OS/2
Mac OS
Page 19
19A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Tracks, Sectors, and Clusters
Page 20
20A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Files and Directories
Page 21
21A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Partitions and Logical Drives
Page 22
22A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
How an OS Uses Device
Drivers to Manage Hardware
Device drivers provide OS with software
necessary to control devices
16-bit real-mode drivers
Supported by Windows 95/98
32-bit protected-mode drivers
Supported by Windows 95/98, Windows Me, and
Windows NT/2000/XP
Page 23
23A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
OS Tools to Examine a System
Device Manager
System Information utility
Microsoft Diagnostic Utility (MSD)
Page 24
A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC
Fifth Edition
Chapter 5
The Motherboard
Page 25
25A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Typical AT Motherboard
Page 26
26A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Typical ATX Motherboard
Page 27
27A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
CPU Heat Sinks and Cooling
Fans
Page 28
28A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Combination Heat Sink and
Cooling Fan
Page 29
29A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Hardware Configuration
Setup data stored by DIP switches
Setup data stored by jumpers
Setup data stored in CMOS memory
Page 30
30A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Setup Data Stored by DIP
Switches
Page 31
31A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
CMOS Setup Main Menu
Page 32
32A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
CMOS Setup Boot Menu
Page 33
33A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Wire Connectors
Page 34
34A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, Fifth Edition
Troubleshooting the
Motherboard and CPU
Look for clues from POST
Reports errors as beep codes
Cautiously substitute good hardware
components for those you suspect are bad.
Make Sure Power Supply is not bad!!!