The
motherboard is one of the most important parts of the PC, but as a tech
enthusiast, you probably already know that. What you might not know, though, is
the role played by each chip, port or slot present on a motherboard. A lot of
people simply don’t care about these aspects, but if you’re the do-it-yourself
type, knowing everything there is to know when it comes to motherboards can
help you when it comes to troubleshooting, upgrading or even building your own
PC.
Motherboard
Basics
A computer
has many components, each with their own roles and functions. The role of the
motherboard is to allow all these components to communicate with each other.
Considering the fact that all the other components are installed on the
motherboard or connected to it, it is safe to say that the motherboard is the
central piece of a PC, the component that brings it all together.
Processor
Socket
The
processor socket is the central piece of a motherboard, usually being located
near the center of the motherboard. It’s also the central piece because it
holds the processor – the brain of your computer.
Power
Connectors
No computer
component can operate without power, and a motherboard is no exception. The
power connector, commonly a 20 or 24-pin connector, can be situated either near
the right edge of the motherboard, or somewhere close to the processor socket
on older motherboards. This is where the power supply’s main connector gets
attached, providing power to the motherboard and all the other components.
Newer
motherboards have an additional 4-pin or 8-pin connector near the processor,
used to supply additional power directly to the processor.
Memory
Slots
Located in
the upper-right part of the motherboard, the memory slots are used to house the
computer’s memory modules. The number of slots can vary, depending on
motherboard, from 2, in low-end motherboards, all the way up to 8 memory slots,
on high-end and gaming motherboards.
It is
important to pay close attention to the type of memory a motherboard supports,
in order to buy the appropriate memory modules. Newer motherboards support DDR3
memory, the current industry standard memory architecture, but motherboards
with DDR2 memory slots and even DDR1 memory slots are still present on the
market. An interesting aspect is that there are some older motherboard models
that supported different types of memory, and usually come with two DDR1 memory
slots and 2 DDR2 memory slots, or two DDR2 slots and two DDR3 slots. These
motherboards were great options for people that wanted to upgrade a motherboard
without having to upgrade all the other components as well.
The number
of memory slots should be an important criterion to take into account when
choosing a motherboard, as it will determine the maximum amount of memory you
can install.
Video
Card Slot
This is the
type of slot that doesn’t need an explanation, as its name doesn’t leave much
room for interpretation as to what its role is. Coming in the form of a
PCI-Express slot on newer motherboards or AGP on older ones, the video card
slot is situated right below the processor.
It is not
uncommon for older motherboards, especially those that target the office
segment, to lack this slot, meaning that you won’t be able to install a
discrete video card, thus having to rely on the integrated one. At the opposite
pole, high-end gaming motherboards come with multiple video card slots,
allowing the installation of multiple video cards in a SLI or CrossFire
configuration.
Expansion
Slots
Expansions
have the role of letting you install additional components to enhance or expand
the functionality of your PC. You can install a TV tuner, a video capture card,
a better soundcard, etc. – you get the idea. These ports are located under the
video card slot, and come in the form of PCI slots (on older motherboards) or a
scaled-down version of PCI-Express slots (on newer motherboards). Some
motherboards come with both types of expansion slots. The number of slots is
usually dependent on the format of the motherboard – larger motherboards (full
ATX) have more, while smaller formats (micro-ATX) have fewer, if any.
IDE and
SATA Ports
IDE and SATA
ports are used to provide connectivity for the storage devices and optical
drives. The IDE interface is somewhat outdated, so you shouldn’t be surprised
if you see a lot of new motherboards coming without this type of port. It was
replaced by the smaller and much faster SATA interface, which currently reached
its 3rd revision, being able to achieve maximum
speeds of up to 600 MB/s, as opposed to the IDE interface, which can reach a
maximum of 133 MB/s.
It is not
uncommon for manufacturers to include SATA ports of different revisions, such
as two SATA2 ports and two SATA3 ports. Considering the fact that most optical
drives on the market come with a SATA connector, and these devices are not
bandwidth-hungry, using a SATA2 port for an optical drive is perfectly
acceptable. In fact, most mechanical hard drives cannot achieve SATA3 speeds
due to mechanical limitations, so unless you plan to use multiple
high-performance solid state drives in your PC, which can benefit of the higher
speeds of SATA3, a combination of SATA2 and SATA3 shouldn’t make much of a
difference. If you’re not familiar with the differences between classical hard
drives and solid state drives, might find out some more interesting information
about computers along the way.
BIOS Chip
and Battery
The BIOS
chip contains the basic code needed to take your computer through the boot
process, up to the point where the operating system takes over. Since the BIOS
code is stored on a memory chip that needs constant power to function, a
battery is also present to keep the chip powered when the computer is
unplugged.
Northbridge
and Southbridge
If you have
a look at your motherboard, chances are you’ll see a square metal component
somewhere in the lower-right part of the board. This metal component is
actually a heatsink, and its role is to provide thermal protection for the
Northbridge – one of the most important components of a motherboard. The
northbridge is responsible for coordinating the data flow between the memory,
the video card and the processor. A secondary chip, known as Southbridge, has a
similar function, coordinating the data flow between the processor and
peripherals such as sound cards or network cards.
Front Panel
Connectors, USB Headers and Audio Header
The front
panel connector is where all the elements present on the front of your case are
connected. Power button, reset button, power led, audio connectors and USB
connectors – they are all connected to the front panel or the corresponding
headers.
Rear
Connectors
These
connectors are the bridge between the outside of your computer and the inside.
The name is a bit misleading, as the connectors are actually located on the
left edge of the motherboard; however, since these connectors are accessible
from the outside, the name simply implies where they are accessible from – the
rear of the PC case. External peripherals such as keyboard, mouse, monitor,
speakers and so on are all connected via these connectors.
So there you
have it, the parts of the motherboard and their functions, explained. Now that
you know how to choose your motherboard and build your dream PC, The
article provides a detailed outline of two of the most popular operating
systems, Linux and Windows, allowing you to determine which will suite your
needs better.