Prelims - Motherboard Flashcards
is a printed circuit board that is the foundation of a computer and allows the CPU, RAM and all other computer hardware components to function and communicate with each other
Motherboard
these connectors are usually used by CPU fans with higher power consumption
4-pin connectors
This device senses the CPU voltage requirements (usually via sense pins on the processor) and calibrates itself to provide the proper voltage to run the CPU
12v 4 pin CPU power connector
originally the motherboard was powered by
20-pin connector
is where the connectors of hard disk drive, activity lights, case speaker, reset, button, power on/off button, computer power on light, and key lock are connected to make them function smoothly
Front panel connectors
Types of system panel cables
HDD LED
POWER LED
POWER SW
RESET SW
The led activity light for the hard disk drive. This is the LED that flashes as information is being written and read from the hard drive.
HDD LED (IDE LED)
The LED power light which indicates when the computer is on, off, or in standby
POWER LED (PLED)
Controls the power button that allows you to turn on and off the computer
POWER SW (PWRSW)
Handles the reset button to restart the computer
RESET SW
is a chip located on all motherboards that contain instructions and setup for how your system should boot and how to operate
Basic Input/Output Sytem (BIOS)
To keep the clock chip running when power is off
CMOS BATTERY
is a conductor wire such as copper in a cylindrical form around an iron core that creates an inductor or electromagnet to stop magnetic energy
Inductor (electromagnetic coil)
is a chip inside a computer that connects the CPU to other primary components in the system
Northbridge
handles all of a computer’s I/O functions such as USB, audio, serial, the system BIOS, the ISA bus, the interrupt controller and IDE channels
Southbridge