Introduction to Computer Motherboard & Components

This is the main circuit board of the PC. It contains all the basic, core components of the
computer.

It contains all the basic, core components of the computer. It usually contains:
 The CPU, which plugs into a socket designed for a particular CPU's pin arrangement.
Because a motherboard has sockets that can only accept certain types of CPU, it is
important to make sure when upgrading your CPU that your motherboard can accept it.

 Memory chips - these hold data and programs that the CPU is currently using.
 Input/output ports ("I/O") such as connectors that hard disk drives, floppy disk drives and
CD-ROM drives plug in to, serial port sockets, parallel port sockets and USB port sockets.
 BIOS chips (Basic Input Output System) - the BIOS chips are PROM (Programmable Read
Only Memory) chips that contain the most basic information that a computer needs to
start up and operate. The BIOS contains bootup information, details of what sort of CPU is
installed, what hard disks are available, how the motherboard should behave etc. More
details below.

 Real time Clock (RTC) so the computer knows the time and date. The RTC needs a battery to
keep the clock running when the computer's power is turned off.
 Chips to control basic devices such as hard disks, floppy disks, serial/parallel ports etc. These
basic chips are sometimes called the "chip set".

 Some motherboards, especially laptop motherboards, have built-in graphics chips, sound
chips and modem chips so expansion cards are not needed. Unfortunately, this also means
laptops can be very hard to upgrade because these chips are usually impossible to remove
and replace. An example of "integrated peripherals" is AC '97 Audio. It combines a low-cost
audio codec (compressor/decompressor) integrated circuit (IC) with a small portion of the
core chipset's processing power to form a complete PC audio subsystem. Soft audio
processing consumes minimal CPU overhead and does away with the need for a separate
PCI audio controller (e.g. Soundblaster card). The result is reduced motherboard space and
overall system cost. Building in AC '97 costs a manufacturer about $2, compared to almost
$100 for a PCI sound card.
While motherboards have been getting smaller and smaller, computer cases seem to be getting
bigger because the new computers generate more and more heat and need lots of empty space
to ventilate themselves.
Motherboards diagram 1(a)

Motherboards diagram 1(b)

 Motherboards diagram 2

Types of motherboards (Form Factors)

(Old school)
AT (Full vs. Baby)
XT (rip)
LPX (rip)
(Newer)
ATX vs. BTX motherboard

Definitions
AT - Advanced Technology, A motherboard that follows the same design and 12x13" form
factor that was in the original IBM PC/AT. It was superseded by the Baby AT. the Baby AT
reduced width from 12" to 8.5"
ATX motherboard (Advanced Technology EXtended motherboard) The PC motherboard
that superseded the Baby AT design. The ATX layout rotated the CPU and memory 90 degrees,
allowing full-length expansions to be plugged into all sockets.
LPX (Low Profile eXtension), originally developed by Western Digital, was a loosely defined
motherboard format (form factor) widely used in the 1990s.
BTX (for Balanced Technology eXtended) is a form factor for motherboards, originally
intended to be the replacement for the aging ATX motherboard form factor in late 2004 and
early 2005.
Note : Although all motherboards have some features in common, their layout and size vary a
great deal. The most common motherboard designs in current use include ATX, Micro ATX,
BTX, and NLX. Some of these designs feature riser cards and daughterboards.

ATX and Micro ATX

The ATX family of motherboards has dominated desktop computer designs since the late 1990s.
ATX stands for "Advanced Technology Extended," and it replaced the AT and Baby-AT form
factors developed in the mid 1980s for the IBM PC AT and its rivals. ATX motherboards have
the following characteristics:
A rear port cluster for I/O ports
Expansion slots that run parallel to the short side of the motherboard
Left side case opening (as viewed from the front of a tower PC)
There are four members of the ATX family, listed in Table 3-2. In practice, though, the Mini-
ATX design is not widely used.
Table 3-2. ATX Motherboard Family Comparison

Motherboard Maximum Maximum Maximum Number of

Typical Uses
Type Width Depth Expansion Slots

ATX 12 in 9.6 in Seven Full tower

Mini-ATX 11.2 in 8.2 in Seven Full tower

microATX 9.6 in 9.6 in Four Mini tower

FlexATX 9.0 in 7.5 in Four Mini tower, small

form factor

Micro ATX - A smaller version of Full ATX

Flex ATX - Another version of the ATX motherboard
BTX

One problem with the ATX design has been the issue of system cooling. Because ATX was
designed more than a decade ago, well before the development of today's faster components, it's
been difficult to properly cool the hottest-running components in a typical system: the processor,
memory modules, and the processor's voltage regulator circuits.
To enable better cooling for these devices, and to promote better system stability, the BTX
family of motherboard designs was introduced in 2004. Compared to ATX motherboards, BTX
motherboards have the following:
Heat-producing components such as the process, memory, chipset, and voltage regulator
are relocated to provide straight-through airflow from front to back for better cooling.
The processor socket is mounted at a 45-degree angle to the front of the motherboard to
improve cooling.
A thermal module with a horizontal fan fits over the processor for cooling.
The port cluster is moved to the rear left corner of the motherboard.
BTX cases include multiple rear and side air vents for better cooling.
Because of the standardization of processor and memory locations, it's easy to use the
same basic design for various sizes of BTX motherboards; the designer can just add slots.
BTX tower cases use a right-opening design as viewed from the front.
Although BTX designs are easier to cool than ATX designs, the development of cooler-running
processors has enabled system designers to continue to favor ATX. There are relatively few
BTX-based motherboards and systems currently on the market.
Riser Cards and Daughterboards
Riser cards and daughterboards provide two different methods for providing access to
motherboard–based resources. In current slimline or rackmounted systems based on ATX or
BTX technologies, riser cards are used to make expansion slots usable that would otherwise not
be available because of clearances inside the case. Riser card designs can include one or more
expansion slots, and are available in PCI, PCI-X (used primarily in workstation and server
designs), and PCI-Express designs
The term daughterboard is sometimes used to refer to riser cards, but daughterboard can also
refer to a circuit board that plugs into another board to provide extra functionality. For example,
some small form factor motherboards support daughterboards that add additional serial or
Ethernet ports, and some standard-size motherboards use daughterboards for their voltage
regulators.

NLX Motherboard
NLX motherboards are designed for quick replacement in corporate environments. They use a
riser card that provides power and expansion slots that connect to the right edge of the
motherboard (as viewed from the front). NLX motherboards have a two-row cluster of ports
along the rear edge of the motherboard.
Most systems that use NLX motherboards are considered obsolete.

NLX (Supports motherboards with overall dimensions of 9.0" x 13.6" [maximum] to 8.0" x
10.0" [minimum]) Implemented in 1998 by Intel this form factor is gaining popularity the last
couple of years because there found on most clone computers
Support for the Pentium II
Support for AGP
Support for USB.
Support for DIMM.
Easier Access to internal components
Support for motherboards that can be removed without using tools

Power supply
The power supply provides the electricity needed by the motherboard and different components
in the computer. It usually provides a series of power leads carrying 12 volts or 5 volts. A
special lead feeds the motherboard and other leads power the disk drives. The power supply is a
sealed cube about 12cm on each side and has a fan in it to cool itself and the computer case
down.

Computer bus
A bus, in computing, is a set of physical connections (cables, printed circuits, etc.) which can be
shared by multiple hard ware components in order to communicate with one another.
The purpose of buses is to reduce the number of "pathways" needed for communication between
the components, by carrying out all communications over a single data channel. This is why the
metaphor of a "data highway" is sometimes used.

Characteristics
A bus is characterised by the amount of information that can be transmitted at once. This
amount, expressed in bits, corresponds to the number of physical lines over which data is sent
simultaneously. A 32-wire ribbon cable can transmit 32 bits in parallel. The term "width" is
used to refer to the number of bits that a bus can transmit at once.
Additionally, the bus speed is also defined by its frequency (expressed in Hertz), the number of
data packets sent or received per second. Each time that data is sent or received is called a cycle.
This way, it is possible to find the maximum transfer speed of the bus, the amount of data
which it can transport per unit of time, by multiplying its width by its frequency. A bus with a
width of 16 bits and a frequency of 133 MHz, therefore, has a transfer speed equal to:
16 * 133.106 = 2128*106 bit/s,
or 2128*106/8 = 266*106 bytes/s
or 266*106 /1000 = 266*103 KB/s
or 259.7*103 /1000 = 266 MB/s

Architecture
In reality, each bus is generally constituted of 50 to 100 distinct physical lines, divided into three
subassemblies:
The address bus (sometimes called the memory bus) transports memory addresses which
the processor wants to access in order to read or write data. It is a unidirectional bus.

The data bus transfers instructions coming from or going to the processor. It is a
bidirectional bus.

The control bus (or command bus) transports orders and synchonisation signals coming
from the control unit and travelling to all other hardware components. It is a bidirectional
bus, as it also transmits response signals from the hardware.

Chipset
A chipset is the component which routes data between the computer's buses, so that all the
components which make up the computer can communicate with each other. The chipset
originally was made up of a large number of electronic chips, hence the name. It generally has
two components:
The NorthBridge (also called the memory controller) is in charge of controlling
transfers between the processor and the RAM, which is way it is located physically near
the processor. It is sometimes called the GMCH, forr Graphic and Memory Controller
Hub.
The SouthBridge (also called the input/output controller or expansion controller)
handles communications between peripheral devices. It is also called the ICH (I/O
Controller Hub). The tem bridge is generally used to designate a component which
connects two buses.

Types of Buses in Computer Architecture

Computers comprises of many internal components and in order for these components to
communicate with each other, a ‘bus’ is used for that purpose.
A bus is a common pathway through which information flows from one component to
another. This pathway is used for communication purpose and can be established between two
or more computer components. We are going to review different computer bus architectures
that are used in computers.

The Computer Buses

Functions of Buses in Computers

The functions of buses can be summarized as below:
1. Data sharing - All types of buses found on a computer must be able to transfer data
between the computer peripherals connected to it.
The data is transferred in in either serial or parallel, which allows the exchange of 1, 2, 4 or even
8 bytes of data at a time. (A byte is a group of 8 bits). Buses are classified depending on how
many bits they can move at the same time, which means that we have 8-bit, 16-bit, 32-bit or even
64-bit buses.
2. Addressing - A bus has address lines, which match those of the processor. This allows data
to be sent to or from specific memory locations.
3. Power - A bus supplies power to various peripherals that are connected to it.
4. Timing - The bus provides a system clock signal to synchronize the peripherals attached to
it with the rest of the system.
The expansion bus facilitates the easy connection of additional components and devices on a
computer for example the addition of a TV card or sound card.
Bus Terminologies
Computers can be viewed to be having just two types of buses:
1. System bus:- The bus that connects the CPU to main memory on the motherboard. The
system bus is also called the front-side bus, memory bus, local bus, or host bus.
2. A number of I/O Buses, (Acronym for input/output), connecting various peripheral devices
to the CPU -these are connected to the system bus via a ‗bridge‘ implemented in the processors
chipset. Other names for the I/O bus include ―expansion bus", "external bus‖ or ―host bus‖.

Expansion Bus Types

These are some of the common expansion bus types that have ever been used in computers:
ISA - Industry Standard Architecture
EISA - Extended Industry Standard Architecture
MCA - Micro Channel Architecture
VESA - Video Electronics Standards Association
PCI - Peripheral Component Interconnect
PCMCIA - Personal Computer Memory Card Industry Association (Also called PC bus)
AGP - Accelerated Graphics Port
SCSI - Small Computer Systems Interface.

Table of Comparisson

8-Bit ISA card (XT-Bus) 16-Bit ISA (AT –Bus card)

8-bit data interface 16-bit data interface

4.77 MHZ bus 8-MHZ bus

62-pin connector 62-pin connector

36-pin AT extension connection

Comparison of 8-bit, & 16-bit ISA Bus as used in early computers.

ISA Bus

This is the most common type of early expansion bus, which was designed for use in the original
IBM [Link] IBM PC-XT used an 8-bit bus design. This means that the data transfers take place
in 8 bit chunks (i.e. one byte at a time) across the bus. The ISA bus ran at a clock speed of 4.77
MHz.
For the 80286-based IBM PC-AT, an improved bus design, which could transfer 16-bits of data
at a time, was announced. The 16-bit version of the ISA bus is sometimes known as the AT bus.
(AT-Advanced Technology)
The improved AT bus also provided a total of 24 address lines, which allowed 16MB of memory
to be addressed. The AT bus was backward compatible with its 8-bit predecessor and allowed 8-
bit cards to be used in 16-bit expansion slots.
When it first appeared the 8-bit ISA bus ran at a speed of 4.77MHZ – the same speed as the
processor. It was improved over the years and eventually the AT bus ran at a clock speed
of 8MHz.

MCA (Micro Channel Architecture)

This bus was developed by IBM as a replacement for ISA when they designed the PS/2 PC
which was launched in 1987.
The bus offered a number of technical improvements over the ISA bus. For instance, the MCA
runs at a faster speed of 10MHz and can support either 16-bit or 32-bit data. It also supports bus
mastering - a technology that placed a mini-processor on each expansion card. These mini-
processors controlled much of the data transfer allowing the CPU to perform other tasks.
One advantage of MCA was that the plug-in cards were software configurable i.e. they required
minimal intervention by the user when configuring.
The MCA expansion bus did not support ISA cards and IBM decided to charge other
manufacturers royalties for use of the technology. This made it unpopular and it is now an
obsolete technology.

EISA Bus

EISA (Extended Industry Standard Architecture)

It was developed by a group of manufactures as an alternative to MCA. It was designed to use a
32-bit data path and provided 32 address lines giving access to 4GB of memory.
Like the MCA, EISA offered a disk-based setup for the cards, but it still ran at 8MHz in order for
it to be compatible with ISA.
The EISA expansion slots are twice as deep as an ISA slot. If an ISA card is placed in an EISA
slot it will use only the top row of connectors, whereas a full EISA card uses both rows. It
offered bus mastering.
EISA cards were relatively expensive and were normally found on high-end workstations and
network servers.

VESA Bus
Also known as the Local bus or the VESA-Local bus. VESA (Video Electronics Standards
Association) was invented to help standardize PCs video specifications, thus solving the
problem of proprietary technology where different manufacturers were attempting to develop
their own buses.
The VL Bus provides 32-bit data path and can run at 25 or 33MHZ. It ran at the same clock
frequency as the host CPU. But this became a problem as processor speeds increased because,
the faster the peripherals are required to run, the more expensive they are to manufacture.
It was difficult to implement the VL-Bus on newer chips such as the 486s and the new Pentiums
and so eventually the VL-Bus was superseded by PCI.

VESA slots have extra set of connectors and therefore the cards are larger. The VESA design
was backward compatible with the older ISA cards.

Features of the VESA local bus card:-

32-bit interface
62/36-pin connector
90+20 pin VESA local bus extension

Peripheral Component Interconnect

Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) is one of the latest developments in bus architecture
and is the current standard for PC expansion cards. It was developed by Intel and launched as the
expansion bus for the Pentium processor in 1993. It is a local bus like VESA i.e. it connects the
CPU, memory and peripherals to wider, faster data pathway.
PCI supports both 32-bit and 64-bit data width; therefore it is compatible with 486s and
Pentiums. The bus data width is equal to the processor, for example, a 32 bit processor would
have a 32 bit PCI bus, and operates at 33MHz.
PCI was used in developing Plug and Play (PnP) and all PCI cards support PnP i.e. the user
can plug a new card into the computer, power it on and it will ―self identify‖ and ―self
specify‖ and start working without manual configuration using jumpers.
Unlike VESA, PCI supports bus mastering that is, the bus has some processing capability and
therefore the CPU spends less time processing data. Most PCI cards are designed for 5v, but
there are also 3v and dual-voltage cards, Keying slots are used to differentiate 3v and 5v cards
and slots to ensure that a 3v card is not slotted into a 5v socket and vice versa..

Accelerated Graphics Port

The need for high quality and very fast performance of video on computers led to the
development of the Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP). The AGP Port is connected to the CPU
and operates at the speed of the processor bus. This means that video information can be sent
more quickly to the card for processing.
The AGP uses the main PC memory to hold 3D images. In effect, this gives the AGP video card
an unlimited amount of video memory. To speed up the data transfer, Intel designed the port as
a direct path to the PC‘s main memory.
Data transfer rate ranges from 264 Mbps to 528mbps, 800 Mbps upto 1.5 Gbps. AGP connector
is identified by its brown colour.

Personal Computer Memory Card Industry Association (PC Card)

The Personal Computer Memory Card Industry Association was founded to provide a standard
bus for laptop computers. So it is basically used in the small computers.

Small Computer System Interface

Short for Small Computer System Interface, a parallel interface standard used by Apple
Macintosh computers,PC's and Unix systems for attaching peripheral devices to a computer.
Universal Serial Bus (USB)
This is an external bus standard that supports data transfer rates of 12 Mbps. A single USB port
can be used to connect up to 127 peripheral devices, such as mice, modems, and keyboards.
The USB also supports hot plugging/insertion (ability to connect a device without turning the PC
of) and plug and play (You connect a device and start using it without configuration).
We have two versions of USB:-
USB 1x
First released in 1996, the original USB 1.0 standard offered data rates of 1.5 Mbps. The USB
1.1 standard followed with two data rates: 12 Mbps for devices such as disk drives that
need high-speed throughput and 1.5 Mbps for devices such as joysticks that need much less
bandwidth.
USB 2x
In 2002 a newer specification USB 2.0, also called Hi-Speed USB 2.0, was introduced. It
increased the data transfer rate for PC to USB device to 480 Mbps, which is 40 times faster than
the USB 1.1 specification. With the increased bandwidth, high throughput peripherals such as
digital cameras, CD burners and video equipment could now be connected with USB.
IEEE 1394
The IEEE 1394 is a very fast external serial bus interface standard that supports data transfer
rates of up to 400Mbps (in 1394a) and 800Mbps (in 1394b).This makes it ideal for devices that
need to transfer high levels of data in real-time, such as video devices. It was developed by apple
with the name firewire.
A single 1394 port can be used to connect up 63 external devices.
It supports Plug and play
Supports hot plugging, and
Provides power to peripheral devices.

Expansion slots:
These are sockets that expansion cards like network cards, sound cards, graphics cards can be
plugged into. There have been various types of slots over the years to cater for increasingly
complex expansion cards. The earliest cards were ISA, then came EISA, then PCI and AGP
(which have special high-priority access to the CPU - AGP is used by fast graphic cards). All
expansions slots connect to a bus so data can travel between subsystems and the CPU.

Cache
Cache is a storage place (buffer or bucket) that exists between two subsystems in order for data
to be accessed more quickly to increase performance. Performance is increased because the
cache subsystem usually has faster access technology and does not have to cross an additional
bus. Cache is typically used for reads, but it is increasingly being used for writes as well. For
example, getting information to the processor from the disk involves up to five cache locations:
1. L1 cache in the processor (memory cache)
2. L2 cache (memory cache)
3. Software disk cache (in main memory)
4. Hardware disk cache (common on SCSI controllers; EIDE usually uses only a FIFO buffer)
5. Disk buffer
For reads, one subsystem will usually request more data than what is immediately needed, and
that excess data is stored in the cache(s). During the next read, the cache(s) are searched for the
requested data, and if it is found, a read to the subsystem beyond the cache is not necessary.

How to install a computer motherboard

Installing a motherboard can be a complex process. This page provides general steps and
guidelines for how to install a motherboard. Please refer to the manual and configuration guide
that is included with the motherboard for specific details on installation and configuration steps.

Note: If replacing an existing motherboard in a computer with a new motherboard, you need to
first remove the existing motherboard. The steps on this page can be referred to for removing the
motherboard, followed in reverse order.
Before getting started
 1. Write down relevant information from the top or bottom of the board, such as the Model
Number, Serial Number, and specifications.

2. Ensure you are familiar with ESD and its potential dangers while working with any
circuit board.

3. When installing a motherboard, turn the computer off and disconnect the power cord
from the power supply.

Form factor

Before installing a computer motherboard, make sure the case supports the form factor of your
motherboard. Today, the majority of available computer motherboards are either ATX or
MicroATX.

Verify and set jumpers

Before installing the computer motherboard, make sure
all the jumpers or dip switches are correct. The jumpers
and dip switches can be changed when the motherboard
is installed, but it is easier to verify them while the
motherboard is outside of the case.
Today, motherboards have the jumpers set as auto, allowing either the BIOS or the software to
setup the proper settings for the CPU and memory and other settings. If the motherboard
supports this feature, make sure the jumpers are set to auto. If you want to adjust the settings
manually for your peripherals, make sure you are using acceptable settings. Although you may
be able to overclock a system, it is recommended you use auto or the real values of the system
first to make sure the system works before tampering with its settings.

Install pegs or standoffs

After checking the jumpers, if pegs or standoffs are not in
the chassis, insert these attachments now. These are required
to prevent the motherboard from shorting out and must be
inserted before installing the motherboard.
When installing the pegs or standoffs make sure to insert them into the proper holes. Many cases
support different motherboard form factors, and if not placed in the proper holes, it may cause
damage to the motherboard. The holes on the case have a small indication of what the holes are
for; for example, a hole may have the words ATX listed next to it to indicate the hole is for an
ATX motherboard.
As the standoff is being installed, make sure they are installed firmly into the case to help
prevent issues such as the pegs coming loose when unscrewing the screw from the peg.

Motherboard Installation
After the standoffs are attached and the I/O plate is in place, install the motherboard into the case
and make sure you align the back of the motherboard with the back of the case. As the
motherboard is being installed align the holes in the motherboards with the pegs or standoffs.

Once aligned, begin placing screws into the motherboard that should go into the peg or standoff
inserted earlier.
Caution: when screwing in the screw you do not want the screw to be too tight. If tightened too
much it can cause the motherboard to crack. However, the screw should be in enough to hold the
motherboard in place.
Install essential components
If not already installed, install the below necessary components into the computer.

Front Panel Setup

Once the motherboard has been successfully physically
installed into the computer, the Fpanel (short for front panel
connectors) must be connected. This panel controls such things
as the power button, reset button, hard drive light, and power
light.
Unfortunately, the setup of this panel can be confusing at first,
even with the instructions provided from the motherboard
manufacturer. Below are steps and additional information and
help with successfully connecting the cables to this connector.

1. This connector consists of a series of two pin

connectors.
2. The cables that connect to the connector are 2, 3 or 4-
pin connectors.
3. The cables consist of red, green, blue, white or
another color cable with a black cable. This may vary,
the important thing to remember is that the black cable
or the dark color of the cable is ground or '-'.
 4. Most cases have a separate cable for each setting, but some computers now have all of
these cables as one large connector. If the computer has one large connector, it only
connects in one direction. If you are installing a new computer motherboard into an
OEM case that uses a large connector, it may not work with your motherboard since it
could be proprietary.
5. Finally, the computer cannot boot if one or more of the cables is not properly
connected. If you are unable to turn on the computer or receive no post, check these
cables first.

Connect Cables

Once the front panel cables are connected, connect the other cables in the below order.

1. Connect the main motherboard ATX style power cable coming from the power supply to
the motherboard.

Note: Connect the cables in the right direction and never force the cable. If improperly
connected, it can damage the motherboard. Today, ATX and other motherboard form
factors have a keyed power supply connector that allows the cable to be connected in
only one direction.

2. Next, connect the IDE/EIDE, SATA, or SCSI cables to the motherboard from the hard
drive, CD Drive, floppy drive.

3. Connect the Molex power cables from the power supply to each of the drives in the
computer.

CMOS setup

Once the motherboard has been successfully installed and connected into the computer, connect the
keyboard, monitor, and power to the computer. Do not connect all of the cables yet in case you
encounter problems and need to disconnect all the cables again.

Once the computer boots enter CMOS setup and set all of the values not automatically detected.
We recommend you check or set the below values.

1. CPU Settings - make sure the proper CPU speed and voltage is shown or that it is set to
auto.
2. Memory - make sure the memory settings are right, and all memory is detected.
3. Drives - verify the floppy, hard drive, and CD-ROM drive are all shown.
 4. If onboard video, modem, network, or sound is on your motherboard and you want
to them disabled for an expansion card you are installing, disable these devices now.

5. Check other settings such as the time, date, and COM ports.

Once everything has been properly detected and setup, save the settings, then exit CMOS setup and
reboot the computer.