3.4 Motherboard, CPU, Expansion Cards Flashcards
Motherboard Form Factors
- over 40 different form factors
- chosen based on size of case and room for expansion
- Most common: Standard-ATX & Mini-ITX
ATX
Advanced Technology Extended
- standardized by Intel in 1995
- very common for desktops
- 20 or 24 pin power connector
- may have additional 4 or 8 pin connector for CPU
Mini-ITX
Information Technology Extended
- small form factor uses (single-purpose computing i.e. streaming media)
- low power
- screw holes are the same as ATX
Computer Bus
- Backside of motherboard
- wires connect different parts of the motherboard
PCI
Peripheral Component Interconnect
- connection for expansion cards (sound cards, network cards, etc) or other devices
- used in older computers
- 32-bit and 64-bit bus width
- parallel communication
- 3.3v or 5v capability
PCIe
- replaced PCI
- serial communication: unidirectional “lanes”, slower devices don’t slow everything else down
- x1, x2, x4, x8, x16, x32
PCIe Serial Communication
- each lane has one communications path going one way and another path going the other way
- more lanes per bandwidth
Power Connector
- one of the largest connectors
- +3.3 V, +/-5 V, +/-12 V
- originally 20 pin connector for ATX
- 24 pin was added for PCIe
P4 Connector
- 4 pin
- for ATX
- provides additional 12 V, primarily used for the CPU
- older motherboards
SATA connection
- colored connectors
- commonly used for hard drives and SSDs
- L-shaped to prevent improper insertion
eSATA Connection
- connects external storage devices
- same throughput and performance as an internal SATA connection
- usually connects to back of PC case
Headers
- pin headers
Many different uses: - power
- peripheral connections
- USB ports
- cooling fans
- lights and buttons on case
- front panel connectors (labeled)
M.2 Connector
- used to connect a M.2 SSD
- most common slot types are B, M, and B+M (based on PCIe)
CPU Compatibility
- Intel and AMD are the two main manufacturers
- motherboard is designed either for Intel or for AMD = not interchangeable
- AMD for cost
- Intel for performance
Server Motherboard
- multi socket: supports multiple physical CPU packages, CPUs split the load
- many different expansion slots
- larger ATX-sized system
- designed for a rack-mounted system
- supports ECC RAM
Desktop Motherboard
- size varies: full size to compact or monitor only systems
- single CPU
- usually 2 or 4 memory slots
- 1 or 2 expansion slots
Mobile Motherboard (Laptops)
- CPU is designed for power usage and efficiency
- CPU will throttle when laptop gets warmer due to lack of cooling
- limited modifications
- proprietary: specific to laptop model
- replacement is difficult since many parts are soldered on
BIOS
Basic Input/Output System
- software used to start computer
- aka firmware or ROM
- Initialized CPU and memory
- POST (power on self test)
- check to see if computer has memory, CPU, video card, and keyboard/mouse - Looks for boot loader on boot drive -> start the OS
Flash Memory
- usually found on the motherboard
- BIOS contents are stored in the flash memory
- some have a main BIOS and backup BIOS
UEFI BIOS
Unified Extensible Firmware Interface
- replaced legacy BIOS
- all modern computers have UEFI
- graphical and text based
- controlled by mouse
- network access
- DRM (Digital Right Management) support
Boot Options
- configure where the BIOS goes to boot the OS (ex. USB, SSD, flash drive)
- determine boot order
- some can disable hardware to make it undetectable to the OS
USB Permissions in BIOS
USBs are a security challenge:
- can be used to steal information
- can infect computers with malware
- modify which USB interfaces are enabled or disabled
- USB access can be disable completely
Fan Settings in BIOS
- configure fan performance based on best performance, best experience, etc
Secure Boot
- protects the boot process from malicious software
- verifies the digital signature associated with the bootloader with the public key that is embedded within the BIOS
- feature in UEFI BIOS
Boot Password Management
- required to start the OS
- supervisor password restricts BIOS changes
- built into the BIOS, not the OS
- must reset BIOS if password is forgotten
CMOS battery
- used to maintain BIOS config in older devices
- modern devices used flash memory for BIOS
- modern devices use this to maintain date/time when the device is off
TPM
Trusted Platform Module
- a chip with cryptographic functions
- stores encryption keys for hardware authentication
- usually embedded in motherboard or CPU
HSM
Hardware Security Module
- used in large environments
- standalone device: plug in adapter card or external hardware device
- similar function to TPM
32-bit (x86) vs 64-bit (x64) CPUs
32-bit:
- can store 2^32 bytes of info
- 4 GB memory limit
- cannot run 64-bit programs
64-bit:
- can store 2^64 bytes of info
- 17 billion GB memory limit
- can run 32-bit programs
Advanced RISC Machine (ARM)
Reduced Instruction Set Computing
- CPU architecture developed by ARM
- they design the chip and licenses the designs to manufacturers
- efficient and fast processing
- less power and less heat
- traditionally used for mobile and IoT devices
- slower than x64 but uses less power
Processor Cores
- Processors can be single-core, dual-core, quad-core…
- each core has its own cache
- caches help speed up the processing of info in and out of the CPU
Multithreading
Dividing up work into multiple threads, threads are processed in parallel by multiple cores
Hyper-Threading Technology (HTT)
- Intel proprietary technology that splits a core into two virtual cores
- Allows a single CPU core to handle multiple task simultaneously
- one CPU acts like two but doesn’t work as fast as two
Virtualization Support
- many CPU include hardware that allows a computer to virtualize other OS
- virtualization in software is limited
- hardware is faster and easier to manage
- Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x)
- AMD Virtualization (AMD-V)
Expansion cards
- expands the functionality of your computer
- connect card to expansion slot
- some require driver installation
- sound card
- video card
- capture card
- NIC (network interface card)
Cooling Fans
case fans
on-board fans
- fans attached to an adapter card
- usually on high end graphics cards
Heat Sink
- dissipate heat through thermal conduction
- usually copper or aluminum alloy
- fins/grids increase surface area
Thermal Paste
- thermally conductive adhesive
- in between heat sink and component
Thermal Pad
- alternative to thermal paste
- cut to size and install
- almost as effective as thermal paste
- must be replaced each time heat sink is removed
Liquid Cooling
- coolant is circulated through a computer
- liquid flows from the CPU block to the radiator
- fan blows air through the radiator to cool the liquid
