1. Installing Motherboards and Connectors Flashcards
Components of a Personal Computer (PC)
Divided between those that are designed to be handled by the user—peripheral devices—and those that would be damaged or dangerous if exposed. Peripheral devices typically perform the function of input (keyboard, mouse, microphone, and camera), output (monitor and speakers), or external storage.
LED
Light-Emitting Diodes
Power Supply Unit (PSU)
Located on the rear panel, with an integral fan exhaust.
Motherbpad I/O (Input/Output) Panel
Below the PSU, allow for the connection of peripheral devices. The spaces between the ports are covered by an I/O shield to prevent dust getting into the case.
Electrostatic Discharge (ESD)
A static charge on someone’s finger or on a tool is conducted into a computer chip. This can cause a temporary or permanent fault in the chip
Electromagnetic interference (EMI)
Energy from magnetic and electrical sources, such as motors or other electronic devices and radios, that can cause temporary or permanent faults. The PC’s case absorbs this energy, but gaps can reduce this protection.
Input/output (I/O) port
Allows a device to be connected to the PC via a peripheral cable. (Located on the Motherboard)
Binary Data Storage
Lowercase “b” unit refers to a BITI
Uppercase “B” means a BYTE
Transfer rates are expressed in units per second of the following multiples of bits and bytes:
1000—Kilobits (Kb/s or Kbps) and kilobytes (KB/s and KBps).
1000x1000—Megabits (Mb/s) or megabytes (MB/s).
1000x1000x1000—Gigabits (Gb/s) and gigabytes (GB/s).
Universal Serial Bus (USB)
The standard means of connecting most types of peripheral devices to a computer. USB peripheral device functions are divided into classes, such as human interface (keyboards and mice), mass storage (disk drives), printer, audio device, and so on.
USB Standards
What is the nominal data rate of a USB port supporting Gen 3.2 2x1?
10 Gbps
A technician connects a single port on a graphics card to two monitors using two cables. What type of interface is being used?
Both DispleyPort and Thunderbolt interfaces support this type of daisychaining.
True or False?
USD-C ports and connnectors are compatible with Apple Lightning connectors and ports.
False.
An adapter cable is required.
A technician has removed an adapter card from a PC. Should the technician obtain and install a blanking plate to complete the service operation?
Yes.
The fan system is designed to draw cool air across the motherboard and blow out warm air. Large holes in the chassis disrupt this air flow. Also, dust will be able to settle on the system components more easily. A blanking plate covers the empty slot in the case.
What are the four safety procedures when opening and handling a PC case and its componenets?
Unplug PC
Once unplugged hold down the power button for a few seconds to drain the charge of internal components
Handle components by their edges or plastic parts
Use an anti-ESD wrist strap
Random Access Memory (RAM)
STOP! Read: Motherboard CPU and System Memory Connectors
Dual Inline Memory Module (DIMM)
STOP! Read: Motherboard CPU and System Memory Connectors
What are the two types of fixed drives installed inside a PC case to provide persistent storage for the operating system, software programs, and data files?
Solid State Drive (SSD)
Hard Disk Drive (HDD)
Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA)
Used on a motherboard to connect, one or more fixed drives, as well as, removable drives, such as tape drives and optical drives (DVD/Blu-ray).
M.2 Interface
A form factor used for SSD provisionary adapters ranging between lengths of (42 mm, 60 mm, 80 mm, or 110 mm)
eSATA Interface
A variant of SATA cabling designed for external connectivity. Standard for the attachment of external drives, with a 2 m (78 in.) cable.
***You must use an eSATA cable to connect to an external eSATA port; you cannot use an internal SATA cable.
eSATAp Interface
A nonstandard powered port used by some vendors that is compatible with both USB and SATA (with an eSATAp cable).
Information Technology eXtended form factor?
Series of motherboard form factors designed for small form factor (SFF) computers and appliances.
Video (graphics adapter)
generates the signal to drive a monitor or projector. Low-end graphics adapters are likely to be included with the motherboard chipset or as part of the CPU itself. This is also referred to as an onboard adapter or onboard graphics. If a computer is to be used for 3-D gaming, computer-aided design (CAD), or digital artwork, a more powerful video adapter is required. This can be installed as an add-on card via a PCIe slot. Most graphics adapters are based on chipsets by ATI/AMD, NVIDIA, and Intel.
Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)
A microprocessor designed and optimized for processing instructions that render 2-D and 3-D images and effects on-screen. The basic test for a GPU is the frame rate it can produce for a particular game or application. Other performance characteristics include support for levels of texture and lighting effects.
Graphics memory
3-D cards need a substantial amount of memory for processing and texture effects. A dedicated card may be fitted with up to 32 GB GDDR RAM at the high end; around 8 GB would be more typical of current mid-range performance cards. Low-end cards use shared memory (that is, the adapter uses the system RAM). Some cards may use a mix of dedicated and shared.
Video ports
The type and number of connectors, such as HDMI, DisplayPort, and Thunderbolt.
Capture Cards
graphics card generates an output video signal to drive a monitor, a capture card is used to record video input and save it as a type of movie or streaming media file. Many capture cards are designed to record footage from computer games. Some are designed to work with PC games, while others record from game console HDMI sources or from a live camera HDMI source, such as a camcorder or security camera. Another class of capture card can act as a TV tuner and record video from broadcast TV sources.
