Motherboard

Parts and usage

What is Motherboard?
• the most important component in any personal
computer
• contains almost every important elements of the
computer
• other manufacturer refer to this as the “ Logic Board”
• the main circuit board inside the PC which holds the
processor, memory and expansion slots and connects
directly or indirectly to every part of the PC.
• made up of a chipset(known as the “glue logic”), some
code in ROM and the various interconnections or buses.
Motherboard Components
• Expansion slots
• CPU(Main Processor)
• Coprocessor
• Memory
• BIOS and
• Support circuits of chipset for interrupt, DMA
etc.
Motherboard
What is expansion slot?
The expansion slots are long thin connectors on the
motherboard, near the backside of the computer.
Various expansion cards are connected to the
motherboards through data, address and control
lines/buses on these slots. One can connect various
expansion cards such as display card, hard drive
controller, sound card, network card, modem card etc.
on these slots. When an adapter card is connected to the
expansion slot, it is actually connected to the data,
address and control bus on the motherboard.
The CPU
The main component of any motherboard is
the main processor chip which controls all the
inner functions of the system. The CENTRAL
PROCESSING UNIT(CPU) functions as the
brain of every PC. It is usually inserted into the
socket and is not soldered onto the
motherboard as many other chips are normally
done, this makes its replacement, in case of
any problem, very easy.
The CPU PowerPC Chip

Pentium Chip

Chip Fan
CPU Socket
• a mechanical component that provides
mechanical and electrical connections between
a microprocessor and a printed circuit board
(PCB). This allows the CPU to be replaced
without soldering.
Types:
PGA – Pin Grid Array ; Protruding Pins
LGA – Land Grid Array ; Balls Grid Array
CPU Sockets

Pin Grid Array Land Grid Array

Memory
• the place where computer stores the
program and data that help the program in
carrying out its operations.

• used by computers to run its operating

system in any application that you start
and also responsible in loading a system.
Types of Memory
• RAM memory(Random Access Memory)
is a read/write type of memory which is
used by the processor to keep program,
data and intermediate results during
program executions. It is VOLATILE
type of memory, which lose its content
when the power supply is switched off.
RAM(SIMM)
RAM (DIMM) laptop
Types of Memory
The physical installation of RAM memory on the
motherboard can take place in various ways.
• DIP(dual In-line Pin) memory chips were used on
initial motherboards.
• Later SIMM ( single inline memory modules)
became common.
• Currently DIMM(dual inline memory modules)
are most common memory module.
Types of Memory
• ROM (Read Only Memory)
 as its name suggest is a read only type of
memory it cannot be written.
a Non-Volatile type of memory, meaning it does
not lose its content when the power supply to it
is switched off.
A motherboard normally contains one or more of
these ROM chips.
ROM
BIOS
• BIOS -Basic Input Output System.
• A chip w/c directs the I/O operations of all the
devices in or attached to the system
• All Peripherals are instructed by BIOS
• Holds the configuration, loading the operating
system, detects also the devices, and monitors the
PC temperature.
• Communication between the processor and
memory
BIOS-Primary functions
• Prepares the machine so
other software programs
stored on various media
(such as hard drives,
floppies, and CD’s) can
load, execute, and assume
control of the computer.
CMOS
• Alternatively referred to as a Real-Time
Clock (RTC), Non-Volatile RAM
(NVRAM) or CMOS RAM
• short for Complementary Metal-Oxide
Semiconductor.
• an on-board semiconductor chip powered
by a CMOS battery inside computers
CMOS Battery
• Contains the information about the system
configuration (hard disk types, date and time,
and the order in w/c the computer will look for
bootable disk). The CMOS battery allows the
CMOS to pressure these settings.
• Preserves the settings of the
BIOS
CMOS Socket Connector
• This houses the CMOS battery
Chipset
• a group of integrated circuits, or chips, that are
designed to work together, and are usually
marketed as a single product.

There are two Chipset in a Motherboard:

• Northbridge Chipset
• Southbridge Chipset
North Bridge Chipset
• Also known as the I/O controller Hub
(ICH)
• the chip that controls all of the computers
I/O functions, such as USB , audio, serial,
the system BIOS , the ISA bus, and the
IDE channels.
South Bridge Chipset
• Also known as “Memory Controller hub”.
• Typically handles communications
between the CPU, RAM.
• Always closer to CPU w/ heat sink
• also one of the responsible in processing
data.
South and North Bridge Chipset
How does it work?
• The Northbridge connects directly to the
processor via the front side bus (FSB). A
memory controller is located on the
Northbridge, which gives the CPU fast
access to the memory. The Northbridge
also connects to the AGP or PCI Express
bus and to the memory itself.
SATA(Serial ATA )
• a computer bus interface for connecting host bus
adapters to mass storage devices such as hard disk
drives and optical drives.
• designed to replace the older AT Attachment standard
offering several advantages over the older interface:
• reduced cable size and cost (7 conductors instead of
40),
• native hot swapping,
• faster data transfer through higher signalling rates,
• more efficient transfer through an (optional) I/O
queuing protocol.
SATA
IDE header
• More commonly known as ATA and is a
standard interface for IBM compatible
hard drives.

• Primary IDE header – Goes to hard disk

• Secondary IDE header – Goes to CD-
ROM
IDE header

Data Cable
24 PIN ATX Power Connector
• Will give a power supply of the whole
system board
• 24/20 PIN depends on the system
board

Pin Out

24 PIN ATX Connector

4 Pins 12v Auxiliary Connector
• This adds a additional 12v to your processor
4 Pins 12v Auxiliary Connector
Post Speaker
POST(Power-On-Self-Test)
• This produce audible beep indicating an
error, warning, or system ok.
CD – in Header
• Connection where the CD drive is
plugged in
• Also transfer power to the CD drive such
as the audit of the CD ROM
• Allows the computer to recognized the
drive in order to operate correctly
CD – in Header
Audio Jack
• Jack for microphone, headset, speaker

Ethernet Port
• Use to connect Ethernet patch cable
Chassis FAN Power Header
Floppy Disk Header
Floppy Disk Drive (FDD)
headers are sockets on a
motherboard into which
floppy disk drive cables are
plugged. Some motherboards
have more than one FDD
header; many newer
motherboards omit them
entirely, as floppy disks have
become obsolete.
TERMS
• DDR – Double Data Rate
• AGP - Accelerated Graphics Port
• PCI - Peripheral Component Interconnect
• DIP-dual in-line package
• SIMM-single in-line memory module
• DIMM-dual in-line memory module
• IDE - Integrated Drive Electronics
• ISA - Industry Standard Architecture
• ATX - Advanced Technology eXtended

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