3.

System Board

3.1 Types of System Board

● A system board's primary purpose is to house the CPU and allow all
devices to communicate with each other.
● The two most popular system boards are the older AT and newer
ATX.
● The AT system board has a power connection for 5 and 12 volt
lines coming from the power supply.
● To accommodate the newer CPUs that use less voltage the ATX has
lines for 5,12 and 3.3 volts from the power supply.
● The ATX board include more power management features and
support faster system.
● Following table summarizes different boards and their form factors.
The form factor of the motherboard describes its general shape,
what sorts of cases and power supplies it can use, and its physical
organization.
● For example,a company can make two motherboards that have
basically the same functionality but that use a different form factor,
and the only real differences will be the physical layout of the
board, the position of the components, etc.

Type of Description
system
board

AT · Oldest type of system board.

· Uses P8 and P9 power connections

· Measures 30.5 cm x 33 cm
Baby AT · Smaller version at AT. Small size is possible because
system board logic is stored on a smaller chip set

· Uses P8 and P9 power connections

· Measures 33 cm x 24.4 cm

ATX Developed by Intel for Pentium systems. More conveniently

accessible layout.

Uses a single 20 pin power connector

Measures 30.5 cm x 24.4 cm

Mini ATX An ATX board with a more compact design.

Measures 28.4 x 20.8

3.2 System Clock

The clock refers to a microchip that regulates the timing and speed
of all computer functions.
In the chip is a crystal that vibrates at a specific frequency when
electricity is applied.
The shortest time any computer is capable of performing is one clock, or
one vibration of the clock chip. The speed of a computer processor is
measured in clock speed, for example, 1 MHz is one million cycles, or
vibrations, a second. 2 GHz is two billion cycles, or vibrations, a second.
A system clock or system timer is a continuous pulse that helps the
computer clock keep the correct time.
It keeps count of the number of seconds elapsed, and uses that data to
calculate the current date and time.
This is an electronic circuit which counts signals from the processor
clock, an independent oscillator, or some other reliable source, and,
among other things, causes a processor interrupt every now and
then.

Its most important feature is that it keeps running no matter what the
processor is doing. Indeed, it is not unreasonable to think of it as a
second processor, with the unusual
 3.3 CPU And Chipset(Attribute Only)

CPU

Central Processing Unit (CPU) consists of the following features −

● CPU is considered as the brain of the computer.
● CPU performs all types of data processing operations.
● It stores data, intermediate results, and instructions (program).
● It controls the operation of all parts of the computer.

CPU itself has following three components.

● Memory or Storage Unit
● Control Unit
● ALU(Arithmetic Logic Unit)
 Memory or Storage Unit
This unit can store instructions, data, and intermediate results. This unit supplies
information to other units of the computer when needed. It is also known as internal
storage unit or the main memory or the primary storage or Random Access Memory
(RAM).
Its size affects speed, power, and capability. Primary memory and secondary
memory are two types of memories in the computer. Functions of the memory unit
are −
● It stores all the data and the instructions required for processing.
● It stores intermediate results of processing.
● It stores the final results of processing before these results are released to an
output device.
● All inputs and outputs are transmitted through the main memory.

Control Unit
This unit controls the operations of all parts of the computer but does not carry out
any actual data processing operations.
Functions of this unit are −
● It is responsible for controlling the transfer of data and instructions among
other units of a computer.
● It manages and coordinates all the units of the computer.
● It obtains the instructions from the memory, interprets them, and directs the
operation of the computer.
● It communicates with Input/Output devices for transfer of data or results from
storage.
● It does not process or store data.

ALU (Arithmetic Logic Unit)

This unit consists of two subsections namely,
● Arithmetic Section
● Logic Section

Arithmetic Section
Function of arithmetic section is to perform arithmetic operations like addition,
subtraction, multiplication, and division. All complex operations are done by making
repetitive use of the above operations.

Logic Section
Function of logic section is to perform logic operations such as comparing,
selecting, matching, and merging of data.
 Chipset(Attribute Only)

● In a computer system, a chipset is a set of electronic components in an

integrated circuit known as a "Data Flow Management System" that manages the
data flow between the processor, memory and peripherals.
● It is usually found on the motherboard. Chipsets are usually designed to work
with a specific family of microprocessors.
● Because it controls communications between the processor and external
devices, the chipset plays a crucial role in determining system performance.

● The term chipset often refers to a specific pair of chips on the motherboard: the
northbridge and the southbridge.
● The northbridge links the CPU to very high-speed devices, especially RAM and
graphics controllers, and the southbridge connects to lower-speed peripheral
buses (such as PCI or ISA).
● In many modern chipsets, the southbridge contains some on-chip integrated
peripherals, such as Ethernet, USB, and audio devices.
Chipset Characteristics (Attributes):-
3.4 Pentium And It’s Competitors
Pentium is a brand used for a series of x86 architecture-compatible microprocessors
produced by Intel since 1993.
In their form as of November 2011, Pentium processors are considered entry-level
products that Intel rates as "two stars",[1] meaning that they are above the low-end Atom
and Celeron series, but below the faster Intel Core lineup, and workstation Xeon series.

The three processors are

* K5, from AMD.
* Nx586, from NexGen Microproducts, Inc. (Milpitas, CA).
* M1, from Cyrix Corp. (Richardson, TX).

3.5 ROM BIOS

● Basic Input / Output System- The first and last program executed by each and
every computer used today.
● It operates on a flag system which is a mechanical language i.e. zeros and ones.
It works on the flow that is designed and integrated at the time of manufacturing
the motherboard.
● Usually the motherboard holds the ROM and ROM contain the BIOS program
module.
● The BIOS is initiated when power is turned on and it checks for the basic
hardware components in the system to start the operating system.
● The operating systems are built in a way to find a specific file by the BIOS which
are the map to guide the BIOS further.
● These programs take charge of BIOS and use it to access peripheral
components like keyboard, etc.
 ● The first program initiated while using Windows is NTLDR.dll. If this file went
missing or renamed, the BIOS will throw an error displaying that the needed file
is missing.
● Normally the BIOS is programmed in a way as a non-rewritable block of code.
Because it is the first program to be executed and deals directly with the
hardware components; if it’s misused or damaged,the entire PC becomes
useless and worthless for none.

Need for BIOS update:

When PC world advances in the field of mobile storage devices and other hardware
peripherals, there appears a need for an update in BIOS program.

One of the necessities, some BIOS versions don’t have the support to boot from a pen
drive or other external devices like memory cards and FireWire drives, which are
designed and released after a very long gap after the BIOS embedded PC was
purchased.

In order to overcome this problem, flashing BIOS software was introduced. It replaces
the old outdated BIOS with the new one. Different motherboard manufacturers use
variant software for different operating systems. Some of the tools are

● ASUS Flash to update BIOS on ASUS motherboards.

Be cautious while updating

It is necessary to be cautious while using this type of software. Some tools will prompt
you to purchase the full version only after deleting your current BIOS. So be wise and
genuine in picking up the right tool.

How flashing BIOS tools work

You may ask that BIOS is a non – rewritable program and how come the updater tool
alone can rewrite them?

The actual fact lies in the manufacture of the ROM in motherboards. They are not fully
non-rewritable. The information inside a ROM can be wiped entirely and replace them
with completely new one. The name ROM is made general to indicate read only
memory. But the ROM can be categorized as below.
 ● ROM – Read only memory
● PROM – Programmable Read Only Memory
● EPROM – Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory
● EEPROM – Electronically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory

The EEPROM is the thing which is currently in use and is called as ROM in general.
These EEPROM’s can be erased and coded fresh with help of electric charges. The
maximum charge is attained by a PC to erase or write a program module in BIOS.

3.6 FLASH ROM

It is an advanced version of EEPROM.

It stores information in an arrangement or array of memory cells made from

floating-gate transistors.

The advantage of using this memory is that you can delete or write blocks of
data around 512 bytes at a particular time.

Whereas, in EEPROM, you can delete or write only 1 byte of data at a time.
So, this memory is faster than EEPROM.

It can be reprogrammed without removing it from the computer.

Its access time is very high, around 45 to 90 nanoseconds. It is also highly

durable as it can bear high temperature and intense pressure.
Uses: It is used for storage and transferring data between a personal
computer and digital devices. It is used in USB flash drives, MP3 players,
digital cameras, modems and solid-state drives (SSDs). The BIOS of many
modern computers are stored on a flash memory chip, called flash BIOS.
3.7 RAM
RAM (Random Access Memory) is the internal memory of the CPU for storing data,
program, and program result.
It is a read/write memory which stores data until the machine is working. As soon as
the machine is switched off, data is erased.

Access time in RAM is independent of the address, that is, each storage location
inside the memory is as easy to reach as other locations and takes the same amount
of time.
Data in the RAM can be accessed randomly but it is very expensive.
RAM is volatile, i.e. data stored in it is lost when we switch off the computer or if there
is a power failure.
Hence, a backup Uninterruptible Power System (UPS) is often used with computers.
RAM is small, both in terms of its physical size and in the amount of data it can hold.
RAM is of two types −
● Static RAM (SRAM)
● Dynamic RAM (DRAM)

Static RAM (SRAM)

The word static indicates that the memory retains its contents as long as power is
being supplied.
However, data is lost when the power gets down due to volatile nature.
 SRAM chips use a matrix of 6-transistors and no capacitors. Transistors do not require
power to prevent leakage, so SRAM need not be refreshed on a regular basis.
There is extra space in the matrix, hence SRAM uses more chips than DRAM for the
same amount of storage space, making the manufacturing costs higher. SRAM is thus
used as cache memory and has very fast access.

Characteristic of Static RAM

● Long life
● No need to refresh
● Faster
● Used as cache memory
● Large size
● Expensive
● High power consumption

Dynamic RAM (DRAM)

DRAM, unlike SRAM, must be continually refreshed in order to maintain the data.
This is done by placing the memory on a refresh circuit that rewrites the data several
hundred times per second.
DRAM is used for most system memory as it is cheap and small.
All DRAMs are made up of memory cells, which are composed of one capacitor and
one transistor.

Characteristics of Dynamic RAM

● Short data lifetime
● Needs to be refreshed continuously
● Slower as compared to SRAM
● Used as RAM
● Smaller in size
● Less expensive
● Less power consumption
●

●
3.8 On Board Ports
The below figure shows the connector side of the Motherboard:

1. RJ-45 (Registered Jack 45) LAN port : This port allows connection to
a Local Area Network (LAN) through a network hub using a RJ-45 cable.

2. Analog Audio port :This port connects a tape, CD, DVD player or other
audio soures.

3. VGA Port(Video Graphics Array) :VGA cables carry an analog signal as

opposed to a digital signal (ones and zeroes). Using higher frequencies, it's
possible to reach a relatively high range of video resolutions. However, video
quality directly responds to cable quality, and doubly so on higher
resolutions. Due to this, the quality of a VGA image can variate notable
across different makes of cables.

4. USB (Universal Serial Bus) 2.0 Ports: There are usually a couple of
these ports located on each motherboard used for connecting pen drives and
external hard drives, like Ipods or Mp3 players.
5. PS/2 Keyboard Port (purple) :This port is for a PS/2 keyboard

6. PS/2 mouse port (green):This port is for a PS/2 mouse.

7. 1394a Port : this port is used to connect to any firewire device. FireWire
has largely been supplanted by USB. Some professional audio hardware still
uses FireWire, though; you may also occasionally find higher-speed IEEE
1394b headers, but they are even rarer.

8. Optical S/PDIF Used for sound connections to home audio recievers or

powered PC speakers with optical connections.

9. eSATA port(External Serial Advanced Technology Attachment): It

is an external interface for SATA technologies. It competes with FireWire 400
and universal serial bus (USB) 2.0 to provide fast data transfer speeds for
external storage devices.
10. HDMI Connector(High-Definition Multimedia Interface):HDMI is a
digital interface for transmitting audio and video data in a single cable. It is
supported by most HDTVs and related components, such as DVD and Blu-ray
players, cable boxes, and video game systems.

11. DVI (Digital Visual Interface) connector : It is used to send digital

information from a computer to a digital display, such as a flat-panel LCD
monitor.

12. North Bridge : The northbridge typically handles communications

among the CPU, in some cases RAM, and PCI Express (or AGP) video cards,
and the southbridge. Northbridge is directly connected to AGP video, thus
providing higher transfer rates.

13. South Bridge : The southbridge is one of the two chips in the core logic
chipset on a personal computer (PC) motherboard, the other being the
northbridge. The southbridge typically implements the slower capabilities of
the motherboard in a northbridge/southbridge chipset computer
architecture. A southbridge chipset handles all of a computer's I/O functions,
such as USB, audio, serial, the system BIOS, the ISA bus, the interrupt
controller and the IDE channels.

3.9 CMOS ChipSet up

Refer PPTs shared on the moodle.