Motherboards and expansion cards

Unit objective: Identify motherboard components and

install expansion cards

Topic A

Topic A: Safety procedures Topic B: Motherboards Topic C: BIOS settings Topic D: Expansion cards

Electrostatic discharge (ESD)

Buildup of charges Static dangers Discharge voltages

– 3000+ volts to feel– 8000+ volts to see spark– 35,000 volts on a dry day on carpet– 30 volts can damage electronics

Preventing static buildup

Don’t shuffle your feet Increase the humidity: 50-60% Keep yourself grounded Wear cotton, not synthetics Remove carpeting Use air ionization system

Preventing static discharge

Equalize charge differences safely– Unplug the equipment– Touch the metal chassis or power supply

Keep yourself and equipment connected together– Wrist straps and antistatic mats– Static-safe bags

Goal is to be at a charge potential that’s equal with the device you’re servicing (not with ground)

Service on a properly grounded bench

Antistatic (ESD) wrist straps

Inside the case

Typical internal components Opening the case Front cover

Office hazards: floor surfaces

Floors should be level and dry Carpets should be secured to the floor Cables and power cords should not

cross walkways Use antistatic mats to protect

equipment from static electricity

Office hazards: fire safety

Keep papers orderly – In metal file cabinet when possible

Keep combustibles away from coffee pots, hot plates, personal heaters

Keep working smoke detectors in all areas of building

Keep fire extinguishers readily available for each type of equipment you have

Fire extinguisher classes

Extinguishers list appropriate uses– Newer ones use a picture– Older ones use color-coded shapes

Four classes– A: Ordinary combustibles – B: Flammable liquids – C: Electrical equipment – D: Flammable metals

Fire extinguisher types

Dry chemicals Halon Water CO2

Office hazards: electrical safety

Don’t overload electrical circuits Label breakers in electrical box Use surge protectors and UPS Don’t string together power strips Don’t run electrical cords or network

cables across walkways Encase cords in a cord protector Provide good ventilation for equipment Secure cords out of the way

– Can use cable ties, but don’t cinch tightly

Office hazards: air quality

Use fans to keep air as clear as possible

Don’t smoke around computers Clean computer

fans periodically Place working

carbon monoxide detectors around building

Physical hazards

Use care when lifting and moving heavy or bulky equipment

When lifting, take a balanced stance Lift with leg muscles, not arms and back Keep back straight Grip with entire hand Bring equipment close to your body Keep the CRT screen towards body Make sure you can see where you’re going Restrain neckties, loose clothing, jewelry,

and long haircontinued

Physical hazards, continued

Heat:– Laptop burns– Internal components

Electrical hazards Use care when working with any electrical

equipment– Turn it off and unplug it, unless you don’t have

an ESD strap Inspect equipment wiring for defects Don’t use damaged or frayed electrical

cords Remove metal jewelry, watches, and rings

before working on equipment Do not allow any liquid near equipment Identify electrical ratings of equipment DON’T OPEN CRT unless specially trained

Laser printer and copier toner

Toner– Mixture of plastic resin, iron powder, and

carbon black– Particles are 10 microns or smaller– Can irritate respiratory tract – Can cause allergic skin reaction

Use facemask and gloves Clean up spills with special vacuum Recycle cartridges Replaceable ozone filters

Incident reporting

Company should have written policy– Handling accidents– Reporting incidents

Proper documentation required for OSHA, workmen’s comp claims, and insurance

Computer equipment disposal

Disposing of electronics– Hazardous materials

Disposing of used toner and ink cartridges

Disposing of computer equipment– Reusing equipment– Methods of disposal

Topic B

Topic A: Safety procedures Topic B: Motherboards Topic C: BIOS settings Topic D: Expansion cards

A motherboard

Back panel connectors

Socket 478 connector

3 DIMM banks

ATX power supply

2 IDE ports

Chipset

Chipset

Floppy drive port

CMOS battery

BIOS

AGP slot

CD-in connector (white line)

4 PCI slots

Motherboards

Components reviewCPU

Expansion slots

AGP graphics adapter slot

Hard drive interface connectors

Floppy drive interface connector

Optical drive interface connector

Power connector

Memory slots

PS/2 mouse and keyboard ports

USB port

IEEE 1394 / FireWire port

Serial port

Parallel port

CMOS battery

Network interface

Video connectors

Fan connectors

Jumpers

Daughter board

A circuit board Connects to another circuit board to

provide or assist with its functions Most often used with video cards

Form factor

Size and shape of a motherboard Dictates power supply and case Describes physical layout of

components Common form factors

– ATX (9.6”x12”)– Mini-ATX (8.2”x11.2”)– Micro-ATX (9.6”x9.6”)– Mini-ITX (6.7”x6.7”)– Nano-ITX (4.7”x4.7”)– Pico-IXT (3.9”x2.8”)

Computer bus

Communication pathway Defined by

– How many bits it transmits at one time– Signaling technique– Data transfer speed

Three types– Address – Transmits memory addresses– Data – Transfers data– Expansion (I/O) – Expansion cards

continued

Computer bus, continued

Address and data buses enable: – Basic CPU operation – Interactions with memory

Expansion bus– Communication pathway for non-core

components to interact with the CPU, memory, and other core components

– Adapter cards add functionality

Audio/Modem Riser

Provides audio and modem support Moved analog input/output functions

off the motherboard and onto an external card

An AMR-compatible motherboard includes no other analog I/O functions

Not subject to FCC certification testing

Communications and Networking Riser

An expansion of the AMR slot idea Supports specialized modems, audio

cards, and network cards Normally located near edge of

motherboard A motherboard has either an AMR slot

or a CNR slot, not both

PCI bus

32-bit or 64-bit bus 33 or 66 MHz clock speed 133-533 MBps maximum data transfer rate Up to 8 functions on a single card Up to 5 cards/slots per system Requires PnP

PCI bus slots

PCI adapter

PCI-X standard

Developed to address several shortcomings in the PCI standard

Increases bandwidth for high-performance components, running at 133 MHz and transferring up to a theoretical maximum of 1.06 Gpbs

PCI-X has been replaced in newer systems with the PCIe standard

PCIe

Newer standard Uses serial communication Lanes

– 2.5 Gbps in each direction using 8b/10b encoding (0.25 GBps)

– x1 (by one), x2, x4, x8, x12, x16, and x32 bus widths

Links – bidirectional switched lanes Can up-plug (e.g., x1 card in x16 slot) Can’t down-plug (not officially)

PCI Express slots and PCI

from top to bottom: ×4 ,

×16, ×1 ×16 32-bit

PCI slot bottom

Mini PCI

Added to the PCI standard to create expansion devices for laptops

32-bit standard that runs at 33 MHz Wireless adapters, hard drive

controllers, sound cards, and Bluetooth adapters

OCZ Mini PCI-Express Solid State Drives are the affordable flash-based storage option to significantly increase the capacity for the latest generation of netbooks

AGP bus standard Standards – 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 64-bit, Ultra, Pro,

Ultra II Technically a port, not a bus Provides direct connection between video

adapter and CPU Original performance benefit was accessing

and using main system memory– Direct Memory Execute (DIME)

Modern AGP cards use onboard memory, except in laptops

Multiple-monitor support Being phased out for PCIe

AGP adapter

Note the hook

AGP characteristics

Speeds referred to as #x Speed “pumped” to a multiple of

standard speed AGP 3.0 8x slot transfers data 8 times

per clock cycle– 8 times faster than clock speed– Maximum speed 2.13 GBps assuming a

clock rate of 533 MHz for the PCI bus

AGP slots

Typically brown; sometimes maroon or other dark color

Separated from other bus slots to help cooling

High-end systems include multiple, independent AGP slots

Multifunction cards

PCI spec supports multifunction cards Up to 8 functions per card Five slots/cards per system Total of 40 expansion devices

Chipsets

Memory control System bus functions Audio functions Video display functions System management functions

Northbridge and Southbridge

Two most important components of a PC chipset

Northbridge controls interactions between the CPU, memory (including cache), AGP and PCIe video control circuitry, and the Southbridge

Southbridge controls interactions between buses and devices not controlled by the Northbridge

Front panel connectors

Located on front of computer Includes

– USB– Audio– Power button– Power light– Drive activity lights– Reset button

Topic C

Topic A: Safety procedures Topic B: Motherboards Topic C: BIOS settings Topic D: Expansion cards

BIOS

Basic Input/Output System A set of software instructions stored

on a chip on the motherboard Enables basic computer functions

CMOS

Area of memory that stores BIOS configuration information

Type of computer chip: complementary metal oxide semiconductor

Can maintain information when system’s power is removed

BIOS configuration settings

Component information Configurable settings Monitoring BIOS configuration procedure

BIOS updates

BIOS implemented either in:– ROM: Programmed at factory (older technology)– Flash memory: Can update, “flash,” the BIOS

When to update Update sources Determining BIOS version Researching BIOS updates Flashing the BIOS

Topic D

Topic A: Safety procedures Topic B: Motherboards Topic C: BIOS settings Topic D: Expansion cards

Safe handling

Unplug your computer Work at anti-static workstation Ground yourself to the chassis Keep cards inside static-protective

bags Handle cards by their edges or slot

cover plate Don’t touch board components, traces,

or edge-connector pins

Drivers

Software that interacts with a device and enables its functions

Some are provided by operating system

Others you must install

Riser card

Installing an expansion card

1. Configure DIP switches or jumpers on the card

2. Shut down PC, unplug it, remove peripheral cables, and open case

3. Locate empty and available expansion slot of correct type

4. Remove cover for that slot

5. Move or remove wires or other expansion cards so you can access the slot

6. Connect wire assemblies to the expansion board

continued

Installing an expansion card, continued

7. Begin inserting the end of edge connector that’s farthest from the slot cover; then gently push card into place in slot

8. Fix card in place with screws or clips

9. Connect any wiring assemblies

10. Close the case, connect peripherals, and start the system

11. Configure the card

12. Install required drivers

Video adapter slot types

Built into motherboard– Don’t take up an expansion slot– Common on low-end systems– Might be able to disable on-board video

adapter in BIOS

Three types of video expansion slots– PCI– AGP– PCIe

Installation of sound cards

Adapter card type must match expansion bus

Must attach CD drive’s audio-out cable to sound card

Some sound cards require device drivers from the manufacturer

Unit summary

Identified motherboard components and installed expansion cards