1
Q
What is the motherboard?
A
- The motherboard is the main
component of a computer. It is a
large rectangular board with
integrated circuitry that connects
the other parts of the computer. - It connects all components of the
computer system - Most important component of a computer.
- All hardware devices attach to and
transmit data through the motherboard. - The motherboard is the communication center for input and output devices.
- The motherboard also provides the
connection point for fans, speakers,
on/off switches, etc… - The motherboard provides a means
for expanding and customizing the
system by inserting expansion boards.
2
Q
What are the components in the motherboard?
A
- Central Processing Unit (CPU),
- Random Access Memory (RAM),
- Hard drive,
- SATA
- USB Ports.
- Peripherals connected via the
ports or the expansion slots
3
Q
What is the CPU?
A
- The CPU is the primary component of a computer that processes instructions.
- The CPU runs the operating system and all
applications. - Receives input from the user and/or active
programs that are running. - The CPU processes data and produces output.
- The CPU (Central Processing Unit) is sometimes referred to as the “brain” of the
computer, performs most of the calculations which enable a computer to function - The CPU is made up of…
○ ALU (Arithmetic Logic Unit)
○ Control Unit
○ Prefetch Unit
○ Decode Unit
○ Registers
○ Bus Interface Unit - Has transistors (billions of them) – like an on or off switch – can perform billions calculations per second and can get really hot (needs cooling mechanism)
4
Q
What is the RAM?
A
- The RAM stores the programs and data that are being actively accessed by the CPU.
- All programs get loaded into RAM
- Reading data from the RAM is much faster than reading data from the hard drive.
- More RAM equals faster computer.
- Adding RAM can be more beneficial to your computer’s performance than upgrading the CPU.
5
Q
Hard Disk Drive
A
- A hard disk drive is a data storage device
used for storing and retrieving digital
information. - OS and all files and folders are physically
located on the drive. - Retains its data even when powered off.
Examples: mechanical hard drive, solid state hard drive
6
Q
Video/graphics card
A
- A video card can be used to process the
graphics portion of the processing load. - The video card can help almost any program run more efficiently.
- Video cards are typically installed in either the PCI or AGP slots.
- Has its own heat sinks – underneath is GPU (graphical processing unit) – like a CPU but specifically handles visual information
7
Q
What is the power supply?
A
- A power supply supplies power to all
the components in a computer. - It regulates the voltage to an adequate
amount. - The power supply is an integral part of any
computer and must function correctly for
the rest of the components to work. - Has a switch – turn off when building computer – new ones automatically change
- Changes alternating current (electrons flow both ways in the wire –oscillating ) to direct (flows only one way) current
- Power supply takes the electrons flowing in both directions and changes it direct voltage to be used by the computer
- All components of a computer operate on direct current
8
Q
What is the flash memory card reader?
A
- A memory card reader is a device for
accessing the data on a memory card. - Multi card readers do not have built-in
memory capacity, but are able to
accept multiple types and styles of
memory cards
9
Q
What is a DVD Drive?
A
- DVD - Digital Versatile Disc.
- 4.7GB storage capacity.
- Formatted for video playback while other DVDs contain applications.
- DVDs are also used to distribute software
programs. - Writable DVD provide a way to archive large amounts of data.
- Not really used that much – people now store data on the Cloud
- Many of DVDs are not rewritable – if you first put 2 GB on the DVD it is fixed
10
Q
What are expansion cards?
A
- The [expansion card] in computing is a
printed circuit board that can be inserted
into an expansion slot of a computer
motherboard to add functionality to a
computer system via the expansion bus. - connects peripheral devices or adds new capabilities to a computer
- Audio card – attached to mother board
- Card for access to internet
- New mother board has three expansion slots
11
Q
What are expansion slots?
A
- Connecting expansion cards to the motherboard to add additional capabilities
12
Q
What are memory slots?
A
Connect memory modules to the motherboard
13
Q
What is the fan?
A
Cools the CPU
14
Q
What are drive bays?
A
- Hold storage devices, such as the DVD and hard drives shown here
15
Q
What are USB ports?
A
Connect USB devices to the computer
16
Q
What is the system unit?
A
- The main case of the computer.
○ “Computer Chassis”
○ “Tower”
○ “System Unit”
○ “Base Unit”
○ … or simply “Case” - Houses all system hardware.
17
Q
What is the form factor in terms of the system unit?
A
- Can come in different Sizes
- The size is determined by the Form
Factor of the motherboard. - E.g. most desktop computers use
the ATX (Advanced Technology
Extended) form factor. - ATX was developed by INTEL in
1995. - ATX is necessary for standardization
and interchangeability of parts. - ATX cases come in a variety of
shapes and sizes although the size
for the mounting of the motherboard
is the same. - All cases come with a set of wires
that connect to ports on the case. - Also comes with audio ports as well for speakers and head phones
- Case also can have a place to mount fans for cooling the case down
- The chassis -
18
Q
What is the motherboard made up of?
A
The Motherboard is made up of
small electrical paths called traces, electrical connections, connection one device/port to other – signal flow
19
Q
What are busses?
A
- Many of these traces paths are grouped
together to form a bus. - A bus is a collection of conductors
that work together for a specific
purpose.
20
Q
What are the different bus types?
A
○ Data Bus
○ Control bus
○ Memory Bus
○ Internal bus
○ I/O Bus
○ Address Bus
○ Power Bus
21
Q
What is the data bus?
A
- The data bus is used to move data
between components. - The data is moved between
components grouped as 8, 16, 32,
or 64 bits.
22
Q
What is bus width?
A
The amount of data that can be
moved at one time is called the bus
width.
23
Q
What is the control bus?
A
The control bus delivers command
signals from the processor to devices.
24
Q
What is the memory bus?
A
- The memory bus connects the
processor to the memory. - Also known as the FSB (Front Side
Bus). - connects CPU to memory
25
What is the internal bus?
- A bus that operates only within the
internal circuitry of the CPU,
communicating among the internal
caches of memory that are part of
the CPU chip's design.
26
What is the input/output bus?
A bus that connects the processor to
expansion slots.
27
What is the address bus?
A bus system that connects the CPU with the main memory module. It identifies memory locations where data is to be stored or retrieved.
28
What is the power bus?
- A bus system that sends electrical power to small consumption devices, such as speakers, lights, and switches.
29
What is the chipset?
- Handles data manipulation that would otherwise need to be performed by the CPU.
- Chipsets also handle such things as
connecting motherboard buses together that run at different speeds.
- Chipsets also connect ports of various speeds, such as USB and Firewire.
- located under heatsinks (bars of metal in a square)
30
What is the chipset divided into?
A north bridge and a south bridge
31
What is the north bridge?
The northbridge is directly connected to the CPU through the front side bus. This portion of the chipset controls higher data speed
systems such as graphics, DVD hardware, and CPU overclocking functions.
32
What is the south bridge?
The portion of the chipset that controls the slower devices associated with the PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) and ISA
(Industry Standard Architecture) buses
33
What is CMOS and POST?
- ROM (Read only memory) chip that contains a group of software programs (BIOS).
- Non-volatile memory.
- Designed to initiate activities such as POST (power on self test)
- The POST is a simple diagnostic program that is initiated when the computer is turned on.
- It verifies that all the major computer
components are properly installed and in working order.
34
What are the expansion slots PCI?
- peripheral components interface
- Used for attaching hardware devices
to a computer.
- A bus system featuring a 32-bit data
bus that provides a high speed bus
structure.
- e.g. TV/Tuner Card, network cards,
sound cards, modems, extra USB ports
35
What are expansion slots PCI Express?
- Designed to replace PCI and AGP
(Accelerated Graphics Port) and is
available in several different formats: x1, x2, x4, x8, x12, x16 and x32.
36
What is the USB?
Universal Serial Bus
- A bus system designed to replace
the function of expansion slots.
- The USB is accessed by plugging a
USB device into the bus at a port
opening on the case.
- Up to 127 devices can be connected
to the bus.
- USB 3.1 is latest revision.
- USB 3.1 can transfer data up to 10
Gbit/s (1.25 GB/s)
37
What is SATA?
- A bus used to connect storage devices such as internal hard drives, using SATA cable (serial connection)
- offering several advantages over the older parallel interface (multiple bits at a time) because interference can occur -- when you increase the transmission rate and the speed, cross talk occurs -- creating an increase in the magnetic field of the wire causing it to disturb others:
○ Reduced cable size and cost.
○ Native hot swapping.
○ Faster data transfer through higher
signaling rates.
○ More efficient transfer through a
queuing protocol.
38
What are CPU processor speeds?
- per second. Does not exist... too
slow.
- CPU speeds are measured in Gigahertz or Megahertz
- Megahertz is equal to 1 million operations per second
- Gigahertz is equal to 1 billion operations per second
- Same CPU different speed
○ e.g. Intel I9 running at 3.2GHz
would be faster than an I9 running
at 2.66 GHz.
- Connects motherboard buses together that run at different speeds
- Clock speed in Hertz -- ie. 30 cycles per second = 30 hertz -- crucial at allowing communication between different devices at different speeds
- Also connects ports of various speeds, such as USB
39
What does the ALU do?
Performs arithmetic and logic operations, as directed by the control unit
40
What are CPU registers?
hold the results of processing
41
What is the CPU bus interface unit?
where the data and instructions leave the core
42
What is the control unit?
is in charge of the entire process, making sure everything happens at the right time. it instructs the ALU and registers what to do, based on instructions from the decode unit
43
What is the prefetch unit?
requests instructions and data from cache or RAM and makes sure they are in proper order for processing
44
What is the decode unit?
takes instructions from prefetch unit and translates them into a form the control unit can understand
45
What is internal cache memory?
Stores data and instructions before and during processing
46
What is volatile memory?
- The programs in RAM are usually
erased and reloaded again and
again.
- When the power is shut off the data
in RAM is lost. We call this volatile memory.
47
What is the mechanical drive used for?
- Mechanical drives -- two spinning disks that stores information magnetically -- north and south sides of the magnetic -- signals sent and either keeping north at the top or changing south to the top
- Changing magnetic energy from electrical energy when reading information
48
What is the newest drive?
M.2 is the newest drive -- really fast -- looks like RAM
49
What is thermal paste?
(helps it cool --- between CPU and heatsink fan -- when CPU generates heat, the paste dissipates the heat through the fan
50
What is DVI port?
replaces VGA, uses digital connection
digital visual interface
transmitting high-quality digital video signals between a computer or video source and a display device like a monitor or projector
no audio signal
plugged into graphics card
51
What is HDMI?
this connects moitors or television screens
High-Definition Multimedia Interface, is a proprietary standard for transmitting high-quality uncompressed video and digital audio signals through a single cable.
It is the common digital replacement for older analog connections like VGA and composite, allowing a single cable to carry both audio and video between devices like TVs, computer monitors, projectors, and gaming consoles.
plugged into GPU
52
What is display port?
a digital interface standard used to connect a video source, like a computer, to a display, such as a monitor or projector. It transmits high-definition audio and video over a single cable and supports high resolutions and refresh rates.
used to replace VGA and DVI
53
What is the SATA port?
connects motherboard to hard drive
SATA port is a connection on a computer's motherboard that uses Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) technology to connect and transfer data between the motherboard and storage devices like hard drives, SSDs, and optical drives.
54
What is ethernet port?
RJ-45
RJ45 is a standard 8-pin connector primarily used for wired Ethernet connections to link devices like computers, routers, and switches on a local area network (LAN)
55
What is DVD?
digital versatile disk
A DVD is a Digital Versatile Disc (originally Digital Video Disc), a type of optical disc used for storing digital data like videos, movies, music, and computer files
56
What is SSD?
solid state drive
no moving disks
An SSD, or Solid State Drive, is a type of storage device that uses flash memory chips to store data electronically, without any moving parts.
57
What is input/output shield?
goes on ports
An input/output (I/O) shield is a metal plate that fits into the back of a computer case to cover the openings for motherboard ports
58
What is optical out S/PDIF?
Sony/Philips Digital Interface Format
An optical out S/PDIF is a digital audio connection that uses a fiber-optic cable (with a TOSLINK connector) to transmit a high-quality audio signal between devices like a TV, computer, or game console and an audio receiver or soundbar. S/PDIF is the digital audio format, and "optical out" specifies the physical cable type and port used to transmit the signal, providing a connection that bypasses the need for analog conversion
59
What are the mouse and keyboard ports?
The most common mouse and keyboard ports are USB, which are standard on modern computers and are often marked with a "USB" label or a cactus-like symbol. Older computers may use PS/2 ports, which are small, round connectors, one for the keyboard (purple) and one for the mouse (green)
60
What are the audio ports?
The six common audio ports on a computer are used for different purposes based on color and function: green for audio out (speakers/headphones), pink for microphone in, and light blue for line-in (external audio devices). The remaining three ports, which can be orange, black, and gray, are typically for surround sound setups to connect rear, side, or subwoofer speakers.
connected to motherboard
