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DAR ES SALAAM

INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

CONTINUING EDUCATION

PREPARED BY
Edgar Bebwa
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CONTENT
(I) COMPUTER SYSTEM COMPONENT......................................................................6
2. HOW COMPUTERS WORK...................................................................................7
(I) SYSTEM PERFORMANCE....................................................................................8
(II) POWER-ON SELF TEST (POST)..........................................................................8
Loading the operating system ................................................................................................................................................. .....9
(III) THE BOOT SEQUENCE ....................................................................................9
3. HARDWARE COMPONENTS ..............................................................................10
Computer case ................................................................................................................................................................ ...........11
(I)POWER SUPPLY...............................................................................................11
(II) COOLING SYSTEMS .......................................................................................12
(III) THE MOTHERBOARD ....................................................................................13
Motherboard form factors ......................................................................................................................................................... .14
Motherboard components .................................................................................................................................................. ........14
Motherboard Chipset........................................................................................................................................................... .......15
(IV) CPUS ..........................................................................................................15
CPU REGISTERS & THE PROCESSING CYCLE............................................................................................ ......................17
Processor Slots............................................................................................................................................................ ...............17
Pentium Processors............................................................................................................................................... .....................17
(V) BIOS................................................................................................... ..........18
Evolution of the BIOS........................................................................................................................................................ ........18
BIOS Function....................................................................................................................................................... ....................19
Entering the BIOS configuration .................................................................................................................................... ...........19
(VI) CMOS..........................................................................................................20
Standard CMOS setup screen ........................................................................................................................................ ............20
BOOT SEQUENCE.................................................................................................................................................... ...............21
BIOS features and chipset features setup screens ....................................................................................................... ...............21
Chipset Features Setup.................................................................................................................................................. .............21
Power management and Plug and Play screens ..................................................................................................... ....................21
PnP/PCI Configuration Setup............................................................................................................................................. ........21
Integrated peripherals and fixed disk detection screens ................................................................................................. ............22
Fixed Disk Detection.............................................................................................................................................................. ....22
Password screens and the load setup defaults screen ..................................................................................................... ............22
BIOS exit options ............................................................................................................................................................ ..........23
Startup sequence ...................................................................................................................................................................... ..23
Post Errors and Troubleshooting........................................................................................................................... .....................23
4. MEMORY........................................................................................................25
(i) Measurement-related terminology ......................................................................................................................... ...............25
(II) ROM.............................................................................................................26
EPROM,................................................................................................................................................................................ .....26
EEPROM, and Flash ROM..................................................................................................................................... ...................26
RAM ....................................................................................................................................................................... ..................27

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Identifying SIMMs and DIMMs ............................................................................................................................................. ...28
Cache/Coast memory ............................................................................................................................................ ....................28
Expansion slots .......................................................................................................................................................................... 29
(III)BUS TYPES ........................................................................................... ........29
(IV) MONITORS/DISPLAY DEVICES .......................................................................30
(V) VIDEO CARDS ...............................................................................................31
VRAM.................................................................................................................................................................. .....................32
(VI) PORTS.........................................................................................................32
Serial and parallel ports ................................................................................................................................................... ..........32
Serial Ports..................................................................................................................................................................... ............32
Parallel Ports.............................................................................................................................................................. ................32
PS/2 ports/6-pin mini DIN, 5-pin DIN .................................................................................................................. ....................33
(V) UNIVERSAL SERIAL BUS (USB) AND FIREWIRE ................................................33
(VI) HARD DRIVES ..............................................................................................34
CONSTRUCTION..................................................................................................35
HARD DISKS ARE RIGID PLATTERS, COMPOSED OF A SUBSTRATE AND A MAGNETIC
MEDIUM. THE SUBSTRATE - THE PLATTER'S BASE MATERIAL - MUST BE NON-
MAGNETIC AND CAPABLE OF BEING MACHINED TO A SMOOTH FINISH. IT IS MADE
EITHER OF ALUMINIUM ALLOY OR A MIXTURE OF GLASS AND CERAMIC. TO ALLOW
DATA STORAGE, BOTH SIDES OF EACH PLATTER ARE COATED WITH A MAGNETIC
MEDIUM - FORMERLY MAGNETIC OXIDE, BUT NOW, ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY, A LAYER
OF METAL CALLED A THIN-FILM MEDIUM. THIS STORES DATA IN MAGNETIC
PATTERNS, WITH EACH PLATTER CAPABLE OF STORING A BILLION OR SO BITS PER
SQUARE INCH (BPSI) OF PLATTER SURFACE..........................................................35
OPERATION........................................................................................................36
FORMAT............................................................................................. ................38
FILE SYSTEMS....................................................................................................38
PERFORMANCE...................................................................................................40
AV CAPABILITY...................................................................................................41
CAPACITY...........................................................................................................42
CAPACITY BARRIERS...........................................................................................42
MR TECHNOLOGY................................................................................................44
GMR TECHNOLOGY............................................................................................. .44
"PIXIE DUST"......................................................................................................46
LONGITUDINAL RECORDING.................................................................................47
PERPENDICULAR RECORDING..............................................................................47
RAID.............................................................................................. ....................49
SMART............................................................................................ ...................50
MICRODRIVE......................................................................................................52
OAW TECHNOLOGY.............................................................................................54
PLEDM........................................................................................... ....................55
MILLIPEDE...................................................................................................... ....55
CD-ROMs ..................................................................................................................................................................... ............56
How the CD-ROM Works........................................................................................................................................... ...............57
DVD formats and drives .......................................................................................................................................................... ..58
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How the DVD-ROM Works......................................................................................................................................... ..............58
........................................................................................................................59
5. THE OPERATING SYSTEM ................................................................................59
(I) DEFINITION OF OS..........................................................................................59
(II) COMPUTER SOFTWARE CAN BE DIVIDED IN TWO ............................................60
(III) OPERATING SYSTEM FUNCTIONS ..................................................................60
Operating system types and basic terminology ...................................................................................................................... ....61
(IV) DISK OPERATING SYSTEM (DOS) ...................................................................62
Basic Elements of DOS..................................................................................................................................................... .........63
DOS file structure .............................................................................................................................................. .......................63
What Is a File?....................................................................................................................................................... ....................63
Directory Structures and Organization................................................................................................................... ....................64
Overview of basic DOS commands ..................................................................................................................................... ......64
Internal versus External DOS Commands................................................................................................................... ...............64
What Is a Command Line?.............................................................................................................................................. ...........64
Commonly Used DOS Commands and Switches....................................................................................................... ................64
Creating a DOS boot disk .................................................................................................................................................... ......67
Booting the system with a DOS disk ............................................................................................................................. ............67
Booting the System.................................................................................................................................................. ..................68
DOS configuration files ........................................................................................................................................................... ..68
CONFIG.SYS....................................................................................................................................................... .....................68
AUTOEXEC.BAT............................................................................................................................................................... .......69
Editing system configuration files ................................................................................................................................. ............69
Memory types ..................................................................................................................................................... ......................69
Conventional Memory............................................................................................................................................................. ...70
Upper Memory and Expanded Memory..................................................................................................................... ................70
Extended Memory............................................................................................................................................................ ..........70
High Memory.................................................................................................................................................................... .........70
Memory management tools ........................................................................................................................................ ...............70
6. BACKUPS...................................................................................................... ..72
(I) COMPUTER DATA BACKUP...............................................................................72
(II) SELECTING MEDIA FOR BACKUP.....................................................................73
(III) BACKUP PROCESS IN WINDOWS XP...............................................................78
7.VIRUS.............................................................................................................83
(I) COMPUTER INFECTIONS..................................................................................83
(II) COMPUTER VIRUS..........................................................................................85
(III) SPREAD OF COMPUTER VIRUSES...................................................................87
(VI) HOW TO REMOVE A COMPUTER VIRUS...........................................................88
8.practical............................................................................................................................................................................. ......89
Computer cases and system units ............................................................................................................................. .................89
Desktops ................................................................................................................................................................................. ...89
Towers .................................................................................................................................................................................. .....89
Preparing the Motherboard for Installation ............................................................................................................................ ....90
Motherboard configuration .................................................................................................................................................... ....90
Configuring the Connectors................................................................................................................................. ......................91
Configuring the BIOS............................................................................................................................................ ....................91
Configuring the Processor............................................................................................................................................. .............91
Motherboard jumpers ................................................................................................................................................. ...............91
Additional Jumpers............................................................................................................................................... .....................92
Installing the CPU ........................................................................................................................................................ .............92
The Step-by-Step Installation of the CPU........................................................................................................... .......................93
Configuring the CPU Voltage............................................................................................................................................ .........94
Installing the heat sink and fan ..................................................................................................................................... .............94
Configuring Memory................................................................................................................................................................ ..95
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Installing RAM .......................................................................................................................................................................... 95
Step-by-Step Installation of RAM.................................................................................................................................. ............96
Installing the Motherboard ....................................................................................................................................... .................96
Attaching the LEDs, keylock, and speaker .................................................................................................................... ............97
Connecting power supply cables to the motherboard .......................................................................................... ......................98
Attaching the floppy drive to the case ..................................................................................................................... ..................99
Attaching the hard drive and CD-ROM to the case ................................................................................................ ...................99
Attaching the Hard Drive...................................................................................................................................... ...................100
Attaching the CD-ROM and DVD........................................................................................................................ ...................101
Role of Drive Rails............................................................................................................................................................... ....101
Connecting the floppy drive, hard drive, CD-ROM, and DVD to the system ............................................................... ...........101
HDD and CD-ROM cables.................................................................................................................................................. .....102
Connecting the Floppy Drive............................................................................................................................. ......................102
Connecting the Hard Drive, CD-ROM, and DVD....................................................................................................... .............103
Connecting power cables to the floppy drive, hard drive, and CD-ROM ................................................................................. 103
Power Voltage Requirements............................................................................................................................................... .....103
Connecting the Drives.................................................................................................................................................. ............104
Step-by-step installation of the video card .......................................................................................................................... .....104
Fitting the case together .......................................................................................................................................................... .105
Connecting the keyboard, mouse, monitor, and power cord ................................................................................... .................105
BACKUP FILES......................................................................................................................................................................106
CHANGE THE DEFAULT DRIVE.................................................................................................................................................106
CHDIR (CD) CHANGE DIRECTORY COMMAND.......................................................................................................................107
COPY COMMAND................................................................................................................................................................107
DIR (DIRECTORY) COMMAND................................................................................................................................................108
DIR Options.................................................................................................................................................................108
ERASE COMMAND..............................................................................................................................................................109
FILE-NAMING CONVENTIONS...................................................................................................................................................109
FORMAT COMMAND ..........................................................................................................................................................110
MKDIR (MD) MAKE DIRECTORY COMMAND.........................................................................................................................110
REBOOTING THE COMPUTER (CTRL-ALT-DEL)...........................................................................................................................110
RENAME (REN) COMMAND..............................................................................................................................................110
RMDIR (RD) REMOVE DIRECTORY COMMAND.......................................................................................................................111
STOP EXECUTION (CTRL-BREAK)............................................................................................................................................111

1. Introduction to the PC
A computer is a device or set of devices which work under the control stored program (which can be
changed ), automatically accepting and processing data to produce information.

Mainframes:
Are the very largest computers - million dollar machines, which can occupy more than one
room, An example is IBM model 390.

Minicomputers:
Are large powerful machines. They typically serve a network of simple terminals. IBM's
AS/400 is an example of a minicomputer.

Workstations:
Are powerful user machines. They have the power to handle complex engineering applications.
They use the UNIX or sometimes the NT operating system. Workstations can be equipped with
powerful RISC processors like Digital Alpha or MIPS.

PC's:

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Are the Benjamin's in this order: Small inexpensive, mass produced computers. They work on
DOS, Windows, or similar operating systems. They are used for standard applications.

(i) COMPUTER SYSTEM COMPONENT


• Input devices
• Central Processing unit (CPU)
• Output devices
• Secondary storage

Main Memory

INPUT Central
OUTPUTD
DEVICE Processing
EVICE
unit
-Mouse -MONITOR
-KEYBOARD -PRINTER

Secondary
storage

Central processor unit: consisting of two component


-The arithmetic Logic unit (ALU)
-Control Unit (CU)
Its consists
• a microprocessor which is a single microchip directly to the motherboard, which is the main
electronic board in the microcomputer.

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2. How computers work


The operating system (OS) is the software that controls functionality and provides lower-level routines
for application programs. Most operating systems provide functions to read and write data to files. An
operating system translates requests for operations on files into operations that the disk controller can
perform. The operating system helps the computer perform four basic operations, :
The input operation
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The processing operation
The output operation
The storage operation |

The most common way to input data into a computer is with a keyboard and mouse. Another way to
input data is with a touch screen. On full screen computers, touch screens have on-screen buttons that
can be accessed with a finger or a stylus. These applications are custom-designed and typically simple
to use. Therefore, these applications can be used by anyone. Touch screens are also used on PDAs and
tablet computers. Because of the smaller screens, a stylus is required for precise interaction with
screen objects. Input devices allow the user to open a Web page, send an e-mail file, or access a file
from a network server.

After the data has been entered, the computer can process the data. While a file is open and the text is
being reformatted, the computer is processing data.

Processing data usually results in output. Examples of output include a word processor file or a
spreadsheet. The most common way to output data is to send the data to the computer monitor, or to a
printer. Most computers have a connection to the Internet. Other ways to output the data includes
sending the data to the Internet using e-mail or through a web page.

Data storage is probably the most important of the four basic computer functions. Floppy disks and
hard drives are examples of storage devices. The most common way to store a file is to save it to a
hard drive. Hard drives can be compared to large file cabinets. An operating system will find a place
on the hard drive, save the file, and remember the location of the file.

(i) System performance


• Processor Speed
• Amount of Memory
• Hard-disk free Space
• System bus speed
• Graphic acceleration Cards(Video Cards)
The Boot Process
Initializing the system hardware
For an operating system to run, the system must be loaded into the computer RAM. When a computer
is first turned on, it launches a program called the bootstrap loader that resides in the Basic Input
Output System (BIOS) chip or firmware. The primary functions of the bootstrap loader are to test the
computer hardware and to locate and load the operating system into RAM. Because the bootstrap
program is built into the BIOS chip, it is also referred to as BIOS control. During the execution of the
BIOS firmware routines, three sets of operations are performed:
• Power-On Self Tests (POSTs) are run.
• Initialization is completed.
• BIOS moves the starting address and mode information into the DMA controller then loads the
Master Boot Record (MBR).

(ii) Power-On Self Test (POST)


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To test the computer hardware, the bootstrap program runs a program called power-on self test or
POST. In this test, the computer CPU checks itself first and then checks the computer system timer.
The POST checks the RAM by writing data to each RAM chip and then reading that data. Any
differences indicate a problem.

If the POST finds errors, it sends a message to the computer monitor. If the POST finds errors that
cannot be displayed on the monitor, it sends errors in the form of beeps. If the POST does not find
errors, the POST sends one beep and the screen begins to display OS loading messages.

There are three major manufacturers of BIOS chips:


• AMIBIOS, American Megatrends, Inc.
• Phoenix BIOS, Phoenix Technologies Ltd.
• Award BIOS, Award Software, Inc., part of Phoenix Technologies

Each manufacturer has different beep codes. Different versions of the BIOS have different beep codes.
It is normal to hear a single beep during the boot process, as long as the boot process does not stop.
This is a code to signify that the computer is starting normally.
POST is an important phase of the bootstrap process. Consult the manual that comes with the
motherboard or the website of the manufacturer to learn more about the BIOS and the error beep
codes.

Loading the operating system


Next, the bootstrap program needs to locate and copy the OS to the computer RAM. The order in
which the bootstrap program searches the OS boot up file can be changed in the system BIOS setup.
The most common order for the search for the OS is the floppy disk, then the hard drive, then the CD-
ROM.

When the bootstrap finds the OS boot record, the record is copied to the computer RAM. Then the
bootstrap program turns over the control of the boot process to the boot record. The boot record looks
for files on the hard disk that help the hard disk find and locate the rest of the OS. As files are located
and loaded into RAM, the boot record is no longer needed. The OS that was stored on the hard disk is
now in control of the boot process.

The last step of the boot process is for the OS to find the hardware configuration files that are specific
to the computer. If the computer has a modem or a sound card, the OS finds their configuration files
and loads them. Configuration files are also called hardware drivers.

(iii) The boot sequence

The PC boot sequence defines a set of actions and their sequence. The boot sequence occurs during a
cold boot, when the PC power switch is turned on. The boot sequence also occurs during a warm boot,
when the PC is restarted or reset.

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Perform a warm boot in one of three ways:


Choose Start > Shutdown > Restart.
Press the computer reset button.
Press Ctrl-Alt-Del twice.

A cold boot begins whenever the PC power switch is turned on. A cold boot involves more events and
bootstrap activities than a warm boot. A cold boot causes the BIOS to guide the computer boot
sequence through a series of steps that verify the integrity of the system.

The exact steps and the number of events in the boot sequence may vary depending on a number of
factors:
• The version of windows
• The BIOS manufacturer
• The BIOS version
• The system hardware configuration
• Warm or cold boot

3. Hardware Components

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Computer case
The computer case and the power supply are two important parts that determine the performance of a
system. The type of case and power supply will usually determine the type of motherboard used. The
power supply is usually included in the computer case.

Which type of case to use is the first decision when building a computer. The case is made up of the
metal frame and a cover. The cover is usually constructed of metal or hard plastic. The case is the
housing unit for the internal components and protects against dust and damage. The case usually
comes with the power supply needed to power the computer and the installed components.

Computer cases are either desktop or tower models and The desktop model sits on a desk horizontally.
The monitor can be set on top. This choice can be a space saver.
The tower model stands upright in a vertical position that allows easy placement on the floor. Mini-
tower, mid-tower, and full tower cases are available.

The choice of a desktop case or tower is a matter of personal preference. However, it is important to
consider the workspace before choosing a case.

Hardware components are installed in the bays of the case. The bays are placeholders for the drives.
Devices may be easily interchanged from bay to bay if necessary. Drive bays are 5.25 in. or 3.5 in.
wide. Some drive bays are normally left unfilled in a new computer. This allows the machine to be
upgraded with a ZIP drive, tape backup, or a CD-ROM burner.

(i)Power supply

COLOUR CODEs
Yellow= +5v
Red = +5v
Orange/brown = +3.5v
Black = 0v
White = -5v
Blue = -12v
12v: this voltage is used on some type of serial port circuits.
5v: A now circuts voltage -5v was used on some of the earliest PCs for floppycontrollers
+3.3: It is used to run most newer CPUs as well as some types of system memory,AGP(video cards)
and other circuits.
+5v: this is voltage used to run the motherboard.
+12v:this voltage is used primarily to power disk drive motor.

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A power supply, as shown in Figure , provides the needed voltage to power the various electronic
circuits that make up the PC. It receives the external AC power.

Tip: Alternating current (AC) flows in one direction then reverses its direction and repeats the process.
It is the most common form of electricity generated from a power plant. The power supply converts
AC to direct current (DC) or other levels required for the system. DC is electrical current that travels
in only one direction.

The power supply is contained in a metal box. Within this box, a transformer converts the voltage that
is supplied from standard outlets into voltages that the computer parts need to operate.

Tip: Power supplies are rated in watts. A typical computer has a 250-300 watt power supply.

A fan installed in the power supply prevents the computer and the computer components from
overheating by maintaining airflow. It is critical that these components be kept at a consistent
operating temperature to ensure the best performance. The fan is built into the power supply with
openings on the backside of the case. Never block or cover the fan inlet port.

There are several different types of power supplies. The power supplies vary in size and design. The
more common types are known as the AT and ATX power supply form factors. AT type supplies are no
longer used in new systems. They are generally found on computers built prior to the mid-1990s. ATX
is the most common power supply. Probably the easiest way to distinguish the AT and ATX is from the
nature of the connectors. Common PC power supplies are switched power supplies, instead of linear
power supplies.

The devices that attach to the power supply use +5v, +12v, and +3.3v DC power. Older devices also
use –5v and –12v DC power. Examples of older devices are PC/XT and early AT. The power supply
must support the type of processor that is to be used. Each power supply comes with all these
specifications.

Tip: Electrical current, or current, is the flow of charges that is created when electrons move. In
electrical circuits, current is caused by a flow of free electrons. When voltage is applied, and there is a
path for the current, electrons move from the negative terminal along the path to the positive terminal.
The negative terminal repels the electrons while the positive terminal attracts them.

(ii) Cooling systems


The power supply fan helps prevent the computer components from overheating by maintaining
airflow in the case. Older computer cases could accommodate an additional fan. However, cases are
currently designed to accommodate up to six additional fans.

Overheating is a critical problem that can cause a computer system to malfunction or fail. A heat sink
is made of a material that absorbs the heat generated. Then the heat sink disperses the heat away from
the CPU.

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Other cooling methods are becoming more widely available. Computer cases made of aluminum
create a much cooler environment for the installed components. However, aluminum cases are more
expensive. Liquid cooled cases introduce water as a cooling agent. Liquid cooling units fit most cases
that have a place to mount a back exhaust fan. They include a pump, reservoir, the fan and radiator,
and the CPU block. The system can be installed and used to keep the components an average of 8-10
degrees cooler

(iii) The motherboard


The motherboard is the nerve center of the computer system. A motherboard can also be described as
dual-processor or single-processor. The need for processing power continues to grow. Single
processors are not always able to meet the demand, especially in corporate networking environments.
Dual-processor boards are usually installed for an advanced network operating system, such as
Windows 2000.

The motherboard is also called the system board or the main board. Everything else in the system
plugs into, is controlled by, or depends on the motherboard to communicate with other devices on the
system. The system board is the largest of the printed circuit boards. Every system has one. The
system board generally houses the following components:
• The CPU
• The controller circuitry
• The bus
• The RAM
• The expansion slots for additional boards
• The ports for external devices
• The Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS, pronounced C moss)
• The other Read Only memory (ROM)
• The BIOS chips
• The support chips providing varied functionality

If the computer is a desktop case, the system board is generally located at the bottom of the computer
case. If the computer is a tower-configuration case, the system board is mounted vertically along one
side. All of the components that relate to the system unit connect directly to the system board. External
devices would not be able to communicate with the system unit without the system board. External
devices include the mouse, the keyboard, or the monitor.

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Motherboard form
factors

Printed circuit boards


are constructed from
sheets of fiberglass.
They are covered with
sockets and various
electronic parts,
including different
kinds of chips. A chip is
made up of a very small
circuit board etched on
a square of silicon.
Silicon is a material
with the same chemical
structure as common
sand. Chips vary in size, but many are roughly the size of a postage stamp. A chip is also referred to as
a semiconductor or integrated circuit. The individual wires and hand-soldered connectors used in older
system boards have been replaced by aluminum or copper traces printed on circuit boards. This
improvement has significantly saved the amount of time spent on building a PC, and has reduced the
cost for the manufacturer and the consumer.
Motherboards are usually described by their form factors. Form factors describe the physical
dimensions of the motherboard. The two most common form factors currently in use are the Baby AT
motherboard and the ATX motherboard. Most new systems come with the ATX motherboard form
factor. The ATX motherboard is similar to the Baby AT motherboard except for the following
enhancements:
The expansion slots are parallel to the short side of the board, which allows more space for other
components.
The CPU and RAM are located next to the power supply. These components consume a lot of power,
so they need more cooling by the fan of the power supply.
An integrated I/O port and PS/2 mouse connectors are included on the motherboard.
3.3 volt operation from an ATX power supply are supported.

Motherboards are sometimes described according to the type of microprocessor interface, or the socket
they present. Motherboards can be described as Socket 1, Slot 370, and so on. Slot 1 is first generation
ATX. Single Socket 370 is second generation ATX. Sockets and Slots are discussed later in this
module, under the section “CPUs”.

Motherboard components
The components found on a motherboard can vary depending on the age of the motherboard and the
level of integration.

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Motherboard Chipset
The motherboard chipset determines the compatibility of the motherboard with several other vital
system components. It determines the performance and limitations of the motherboard. The chipset
consists of a group of microcircuits contained on several integrated chips or combined into one or two
very large scale integration (VLSI) integrated chips. VLSI are chips that have over 20,000 circuits.

The chipset determines the following:


• The amount of RAM a motherboard can use
• The type of RAM chip
• The cache size and speed
• The processor types and speed
• The types of expansion slots the motherboard can accommodate

While new microprocessor technologies and speed improvements tend to receive all the attention,
chipset innovations are just as important.

There are many manufacturers of chipsets,. Intel currently produces some of the fastest chipsets.

(iv) CPUs
Microchip attached directly to the motherboard (which is the main electronic board in the
microcomputer)

Main Memory

INPUT Central
DEVICE ALU Processing CU OUTPUTD
Unit EVICE
-Mouse
-KEYBOARD -MONITOR
-PRINTER

Secondary
storage

MAIN MEMORY (PRIMARY STORAGE)


• Function as a number of separate functions holds data currently being processed.
• Storage area where output data can be held before it is transferred to the printer or to same
other output device.
• It will hold the program currently being executed.

CPU (central processing unit)

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Its manage everything held in memory so that the machine keeps track of what is stored,where it
is and what type of data it is so that there is no risk of the program instructions being mixed up
with output data or any other data.

SECONDARY STORAGE (non-volatile)


Floppy disk and cd-roms being used for secondary storage and also with the use of the internal
hard-disk.

OUTPUT
E.G printer, desktop.

INPUT
Keyboard, mouse.

The computer will not run without a CPU. The CPU is often referred to as the brains of a computer.
On the motherboard, the CPU is contained on a single integrated circuit called the microprocessor. The
CPU contains two basic components, a control unit and an Arithmetic/Logical Unit (ALU).
A control unit instructs the computer system on how to follow the program instructions. It directs the
movement of data to and from processor memory. The control unit temporarily holds data,
instructions, and processed information in its arithmetic/logic unit. In addition, it directs control
signals between the CPU and external devices such as hard disks, main memory, and I/O ports.
The Arithmetic/Logic Unit (ALU) performs both arithmetic and logical operations. Arithmetic
operations are fundamental math operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
Logical operations such as the AND, OR, and XOR are used to make comparisons and decisions.
Logical operations determine how a program is executed.
THE ARITHMETIC /LOGIC UNIT
One of the most obvious processes through which input data has to go is that of calculation.

THE CONTROL UNIT


It exercises control over all the other components which exist within the system.
• Instruct the input device to read the quantity & the unit price & to store them in main
memory
• Instruct the ALU to take copies of the two values and multiply them together to obtain the
gross cost and to store this value back in main memory.
• Instruct the ALU to obtain a copy of gross cost & calculate 10% of this figure and to store
the result, discount, into main memory, and the final calculate result has been stored in
secondary memory ready for output to an output device.

The processor handles most of the operations that are required of the computer by processing
instructions, sending signals out, checking for connectivity, and ensuring that operations and hardware
are functioning properly. The processor acts as a messenger to components such as the RAM, the
monitor, and the disk drives.
Interrupt requests (IRQs)
If interrupt are enable d on receipt of anm interrupt the currenty executing program is suspendned in
an orderly fashion and control is passed to an interrupt service routine.

• PROGRAM

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Generated by some condition that occurs as a result of an instruction execution such as
Arithmetic overflow, division by zero or attempt to execute an illegal machine instruction.
• TIMER
Generated by a timer within the processor to allow the operating system & perform certain
functions at regular interval time.
I/O
I/O controller to signal normal completion of an Operation or to signal a variety of error
condition.
Hardware failure
General by a failure such aas power failure on memory parity error.

CPU REGISTERS & THE PROCESSING CYCLE


Within the CPU are number of high speed, special purpose memory units called registers which are
used to store data read from memory.
• Instruction registers to store instructions
• Data registers to store data.
• Program counter registers- to enable to processor to perform the instruction in the correct order.
• General-purpose registers available to the programmer and reffereneed in assembly language
programs.
• Stack pointer register,which points to a Last in First Out (LIFO) stack holding return addresses
& accessed when an interrupt occur.

Processor Slots
Slot-type processors were only on the market for a year. Intel moved from the socket configuration to
a processor packaged in a cartridge that fits into a slot in the motherboard for its Pentium II processor.
Similarly, AMD has progressed from Slot A, similar to Slot 1, to Socket A for its high-end AMD
Athlon and Duron processors.

Pentium Processors
The current family of the Intel Pentium microprocessors includes the Pentium II, III, IV and Xeon.
The Pentium class is the current standard for processor chips. These processors represent the Intel
processor second and third generations. By combining memory cache with microprocessor circuitry,
the Pentium supports processor speeds of 1000 MHz and more. The combined chips cover less than 2
square in. (6 sq cm) and comprise over a million transistors.

The Pentium processors have made several improvements over their predecessor, which evolved from
the Intel 80486. For instance, the Pentium data bus is 64 bits wide and can take in data 64 bits at a
time. Compare this to the Intel 486 with 32 bits. The Pentium has multiple caches of storage totaling as
much as 2 MB, compared to the 8 kilobytes of the Intel 486.

Improvements in processor speeds allow the components to get data in and out of the chip more
quickly. The processor does not become idle waiting for data or instructions. This enables the software
to run faster. These components need to handle the flow of information through the processor, interpret
instructions so the processor can execute them, and send the results back to the PC memory. The
manufacturer website, http://www.intel.com provides more about the Pentium family of processors.

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Processor Speed Rating


CPU descriptions as Pentium 133, Pentium 166, or Pentium 200 are well known. These numbers are
specifications that indicate the maximum operating speed at which the CPU can execute instructions
reliably. The CPU speed is controlled by an external clock located on the motherboard, not the
microprocessor. The speed of the processor is determined by the frequency of the clock signal. It is
typically expressed in megahertz (MHz). The higher the number is, the faster the processor is.
Processor speeds are getting faster all the time. Processor speeds of 3.0 gigahertz (3000 MHz) are
currently available.

The CPU can run at a much higher MHz than the other chips on the motherboard. Therefore, the CPU
speed and the frequency of the clock signal are not always at a one-to-one ratio. A variable-frequency
synthesizer circuit built into the motherboard circuit multiplies the clock signal so that the
motherboard can support several speeds of CPUs.

Generally, three factors determine how much information can be processed at any given time:
• The size of the internal bus
• The size of the address bus
• The processor speed ratings

(v) BIOS
What is BIOS?
BIOS stands for Basic Input Output System. It contains the program code required to control all the
basic operating components of the computer system. In other words, the BIOS contains the software
required to test hardware at boot up, load the operating system, and support the transfer of data
between hardware components.

In this section and those that follow, the crucial role of the system BIOS will be covered.

The final step in the configuration of a new computer is the BIOS setup. Enter BIOS setup during the
boot up process by following the screen instructions.
BIOS setup allows the customization of a computer to function optimally based on the hardware and
software profiles. The BIOS code is typically embedded in ROM chip on the motherboard. The ROM
chip is read-only which protects the ROM from disk, RAM, or power failures that could corrupt it.
Additionally, it ensures that the BIOS code is always available, since it is a requirement for the system
to boot. Although the BIOS cannot be changed while loaded in memory, the basic BIOS program can
be updated. Newer BIOS ROM chips are in a type called electrically erasable programmable read-only
memory (EEPROM), also called flash BIOS. Flash BIOS allows the upgrade of the BIOS software
from a disk provided by the manufacturer without replacing the chip. BIOS upgrades are typically
used by manufacturers to fix flaws or bugs in the BIOS code and improve system capabilities.

Evolution of the BIOS


The basic design standard of the system BIOS was originally developed by the IBM Corporation for
use in its XT and AT computer systems in the early 1980s. Unfortunately, the IBM BIOS only worked

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with IBM hardware. Therefore, other manufacturers who built “clones” of these systems had to
guarantee compatibility of the computers with the IBM standard. Cloning was necessary in order to
guarantee that the computer software applications developed for IBM systems would run on their
systems as well. By the late 1980s, a few companies had successfully developed compatible BIOS that
other manufacturers could use. Three companies have since come to dominate the BIOS market:
• Phoenix Technologies, Ltd. (Phoenix)
• American Megatrends, Inc. (AMI)
• Award Software, Inc. (Award)

Note: Award is now a division of Phoenix Technologies, Ltd.

Of the three, Phoenix now concentrates primarily in the specialized laptop computer market, while
AMI and Award are the chief suppliers to the modern non-IBM computer market.

BIOS Function
The BIOS function is simple. It initially runs basic device test programs and then seeks to configure
these devices. The system BIOS and the information required to configure it is stored on a
Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) chip. CMOS is a battery-powered storage chip
located on the system board. The CMOS chip has rewritable memory that allows the BIOS upgrade.

Configuration of the BIOS on a computer is called the BIOS setup. It is also called the CMOS setup,
named for the chip that stores the BIOS settings. It is especially important to get the BIOS setup right
the first time. Since the BIOS scans the system at boot time and compares what it finds against settings
in CMOS, it must be properly configured in order to avoid errors. Proper operation of the system
depends on the BIOS loading the correct program code for its devices and internal components.
Without the correct code and device drivers, the system will either not boot properly or work
inconsistently with frequent errors.

If a system crashes, or fails unexpectedly, it can be restarted thanks to the BIOS. Built into the BIOS is
a comprehensive self-diagnostic routine called the power-on self test (POST), which checks the
internal system circuits at boot up and gives error codes. After the initial circuit checks, the BIOS also
checks the internal components against a known list of operating devices stored in the CMOS chip.
Any problems are indicated using error codes or messages. These error messages will help in
diagnosing and repairing the problem. In order for the BIOS to have meaningful diagnostics and error
checking, the internal components and devices of a newly assembled computer need to be configured
properly in CMOS.

Entering the BIOS configuration


When setting up the computer for the first time, it is necessary to run the CMOS Configuration Setup
utility. As mentioned in the previous section, the computer checks the CMOS to determine what types
of options are installed in the system. The system BIOS allows access to this configuration information
through its CMOS Setup utility. Simply press the appropriate key, depending on the system, during the
opening boot sequence to provide access to the BIOS. In general, early in the startup process, the
BIOS places a prompt on the display to tell the user that the CMOS Setup utility can be accessed by
pressing a special key, or a given key combination. Note that the keys, or key combinations, used to
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access the setup menus may vary from one BIOS manufacturer to another, and sometimes from one
BIOS version to another.

Press the proper key or key combinations within a predetermined amount of time in order to access the
setup utility. If the keys are not pressed within that time, the BIOS program will continue with the boot
up process with possibly undesirable results. The key commands stop the boot up routine and display
the main menu screen of the setup utility, The main menu on any given computer may be different than
the one shown in Figure , depending on which BIOS and version is being used. The values input
through the BIOS setup are stored in the system CMOS configuration registers. These registers are
examined each time the system is booted up in the future to tell the computer what types of devices are
installed.

(vi) cmos
Standard CMOS setup screen
(complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor)
The instructions regarding ch boices in the CMOS setup screen can be found in the corresponding
section in the motherboard manual. Through this screen, the desired configuration values can be
entered into the CMOS registers. The cursor on the screen can be moved from item to item using the
keyboard cursor control keys. The standard CMOS setup screen includes the basic operating
parameters that need to be set for the system to work correctly. These BIOS features are typically
universal for all PCs.

The fields available for entering configuration data that are commonly found in this screen are date,
time, hard disks, drive A, drive B, video, and halt on. Each of these items are described in the list that
follows:
• Date and Time – These first two fields are used for setting the clock that controls the settings in
the operating system. The date and time are required for many types of software applications to
manage data. The format required is very important. For the initial system setup, a default date
is usually assigned, such as January 1, 1980. The time is given in the 24-hour format, similar to
military time.
• Hard Disks – This section contains fields that identify devices attached to the two IDE
controllers integrated on the motherboard. IDE controllers can have up to two hard drives or
one hard drive and another IDE device such as a CD-ROM. Normally, one is configured as a
master and the other as a slave. There can be four configuration entries, including Primary
Master, Primary Slave, Secondary Master, and Secondary Slave. It is usually recommended to
set the drive type to Auto. This allows the BIOS to auto-detect and configure the hard drives so
that this information does not have to be entered manually.
• Drive A: and Drive B: – These two sections identify the types of floppy disk drives using the
options available. In this instance, there is only one drive, a 3.5 in. High Density 1.44-MB
floppy drive. There is none for Drive B: since none was installed.
• Video – This section identifies the video adapter. The choices here are very few and the default
EGA/VGA has been the standard for everything since 1990. Whether VGA, SVGA, or
anything more advanced, all the video adapters since 1990 will support the basic VGA BIOS
instructions built into the system BIOS.
• Halt On – This is the last user definable field in the standard CMOS screen. The choices here
allow a specific system response to errors. This is so error problems can be reported before
they corrupt data.

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In addition, the informational box in the lower right corner of the screen has non-user definable
screens that give information on the total memory configuration of a system.

BOOT SEQUENCE
The order of driver that a system's Bios follow when looking for the Operation system to boot after the
computer has performed POST

BIOS features and chipset features setup screens

The BIOS Features Setup screen provides advanced features that control the behavior of the system.
This setup screen is where the system hardware can be fine-tuned for optimal performance. The
disable and enable features for advanced troubleshooting can also be used. Unless there is a good
reason to change them, most of the features should be left at their default settings.

One important setup option on the BIOS Features Setup screen allows the system boot order to be
specified. For example, on newer systems it is preferable to boot from the hard drive or CD-ROM
rather than from the 3.5 in. floppy drive as older systems did.

Chipset Features Setup


Every chipset variation has a specific BIOS designed for it. Therefore, there are functions specific to
the design of system boards using that chipset. The Chipset Features Setup screen as shown in Figure ,
allows the fine-tuning of the control parameters for the main system chipset. Recall from Module 2
that the chipset controls the memory, system cache, processor, and I/O buses. Because of the
potentially disabling nature of these settings, the first feature set choice is Automatic Configuration
with the default set to Enabled. It is recommended that the default be left at Enabled unless there is a
good reason to disable Automatic Configuration. The remaining features are not automatically
configured. BIOS and Chipset features setup will be covered in future labs.

Power management and Plug and Play screens


This section discusses power management. As with other setup screens, the instructions in this
environment can be found in the corresponding section in the motherboard manual. Use the feature
settings found in Power Management Setup screen, as shown in Figure , to control the optional power
management for devices on the computer. These features can be enabled in order to control devices
going into sleep or suspend mode. However, be aware that some software applications and operating
systems may not deal well with components being powered down, as the software may no longer
recognize such devices properly. If this is the case, the power management feature can be disabled.

PnP/PCI Configuration Setup


The Plug and Play (PnP) and the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) Configuration screen
contains the feature settings used to control the system I/O bus and IRQ and DMA allocation for ISA
and PCI PnP devices as shown in Figure . In order for PnP to work, the device or adapter to be
installed, the BIOS, and the operating system must all support it.

One feature of particular importance in this section is the “Resource Controlled By” setting. When set
by default to Automatic Configuration, the BIOS will automatically manage the interrupts and direct

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memory access channels on the I/O bus for the PnP devices to avoid conflicts with any legacy, non-
PnP, ISA devices. Note that sometimes IRQs or DMAs must be manually designated for some non-
conforming PnP expansion boards or adapter cards. In such cases, such designated resources will have
to be removed from BIOS handling.

In general, the default settings should be used for this section of the BIOS setup when working on
newer systems, because any manual configurations require a good knowledge of the installed bus
devices. If any conflicts occur, be aware that the “Reset Configuration Data” feature will clear this
portion of the BIOS setup and return it to defaults upon rebooting the system. Consult the system
board manual before making any changes here.

Integrated peripherals and fixed disk detection screens


This section will discuss features of the BIOS setup that are used to configure the control of integrated
peripheral support on the motherboard. Integrated peripherals typically include such devices as the
onboard floppy and hard drive controllers, USB controller, serial ports, parallel ports, and the sound
card chip. An example of the Integrated Peripherals Configuration screen is shown in Figure . Setting
these features to Auto, when applicable, permits the BIOS to issue the appropriate IDE drive
commands to determine what mode the hard drives will support. This is always a recommended
option. The USB Controller feature is used for enabling or disabling the controller chip for the USB
ports on the motherboard.

Fixed Disk Detection


From the Standard CMOS Setup screen discussed earlier, recall the “Hard Disks” feature, which had
an AUTO setting for automatically detecting the hard drive geometry. At times, this feature does not
work with certain IDE hard drives. IDE HDD Auto Detection is used for such situations. It allows you
to manually run the IDE auto-detection program and select the auto-detection for each drive on the
controller channel. The BIOS then scans and reports drive parameters that can be accepted or rejected.
Any drive parameters that are accepted are then entered into the Standard CMOS Setup.

As usual, the “Reset Configuration Data” feature is an escape mode for resetting this section to
defaults and returning to the last known functional configuration during reboot. Instructions for
configuring each feature are included in the manual that comes with the motherboard.

Password screens and the load setup defaults screen


Passwords add security to a network system. The system administrator sets passwords for users and for
the supervisor to manage the system.
• User Password – This option allows the installation of a password that will prevent the system
from booting unless the proper password is entered. This option also prevents access to the
BIOS, eliminating the possibility of other people changing the BIOS setup on the computer.
This option is particularly useful when booting up the computer for the first time. It is
recommended to follow the on-screen and password instructions in the motherboard user
manual.
• Supervisor Password – This feature is normally used only in large institutions where BIOS
settings are kept standardized by computer support personnel. Once set, these computer BIOS
setups are locked with a master password only known to the network administrator or an
administrator designee. The instructions for this option can also be found in the motherboard
manual.

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If no password is required but this screen is accidentally engaged, complete the following actions to
move to the next screen:
When prompted for a password, press the Enter key without entering a password.
At the second screen labeled “Password Disabled”, press any key to return to the main setup screen.

Load Setup Defaults Screen


The Load Setup Defaults screen resets the BIOS setup to default settings. This feature will not in any
way affect those settings in the Standard CMOS Setup screen since they are the absolute minimums
required for the system to function. When configuring the system for the first time and problems are
encountered, this method can be used for restoring the system to its default settings.
Additional information regarding this feature can be found in the motherboard manual.

BIOS exit options


In addition to exiting BIOS, options are provided to save or discard any changes and to continue to
work in the utility. Another option on the exit screen is to Load System Defaults. System defaults
allows the BIOS to return to the basic settings originally set by the manufacturer.
There are two BIOS exit options, exit without saving setup and save and exit setup The exit without
saving setup screen is used to exit the BIOS setup program without saving any modified settings made
to the system. The save and exit setup is used to exit the BIOS setup program and save changes to the
CMOS chip. Although there are shortcuts for doing this, always use this exit feature in order to avoid
any accidental loss of all of the setup modification entries.

Note: It is a good idea to have a written copy of the BIOS settings kept with the checklist inventory.

When exiting and saving settings, the computer will restart according to the new configuration. The
start up disk can be inserted which allows the system to boot to a command prompt. The hard drive
can now be partitioned in preparation for installing the operating system.

Startup sequence
Even after careful post assembly inspection, the first boot can still run into problems. If this happens,
depending at what stage of the boot sequence it occurs, there may not be an opportunity to go into the
BIOS menu to configure the BIOS setup. This section describes the critical role played by power-on
self test (POST). The POST allows the troubleshooting of many common problems.

Whenever a computer starts up, a series of tests are automatically performed to check the primary
components in the system, such as the CPU, ROM, memory, and motherboard support circuitry. The
routine that carries out this function is referred to as the POST. POST is a hardware diagnostics routine
that is built into the system BIOS. The basic function of the POST routine is to make sure that all the
hardware the system needs for startup is there and that everything is functioning properly before the
boot process begins. The POST routine therefore ensures that the computer is ready to begin the boot
sequence. POST also provides some basic troubleshooting to determine what devices have failed or
have problems initializing during this pre-startup hardware check.

Post Errors and Troubleshooting


The POST routine provides error or warning messages whenever it encounters a faulty component.
Post error codes take the form of a series of beeps that identify a faulty hardware component. If
everything has been installed correctly during the assembly process and the new system is functioning
normally, one short beep will usually be heard at the completion of POST. If a problem is detected, a
different number of beeps will be heard, sometimes in a combination of short and long tones. These

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are mainly BIOS-dependent codes. They vary according to BIOS manufacturer and even between
different versions of BIOS.

The beep codes can be used to troubleshoot hardware failures occurring during the POST routine.
Although the POST routine is not very thorough compared to existing disk-based diagnostics, it is a
first line of defense, especially in detecting severe motherboard problems. POST typically provide
three types of output messages. These messages include audio codes, beeps, onscreen text messages,
and hexadecimal numeric codes that are sent to an I/O port address. POST generally continues past
non-fatal problems, but fatal problems cause POST to stop the boot process. If problems occur early,
before any drivers are loaded for the monitor then POST can only signal that a problem exists using
beeps. Beeps are issued through the computer system speaker. Conversely, if the POST and the boot
sequence can advance up to a point where the system can use the system video to display messages,
then a message can be displayed on the screen. The message indicates what problems occurred and the
probable cause. These are referred to as visual error codes. These error messages are usually in the
form of a numeric code, for example, 1790-Disk 0 Error.

In many instances, the BIOS manual or the manufacture website will need to be consulted for charts to
help decode some of the more detailed error codes. They make up some of the major groups of POST
hardware diagnostics messages commonly used on PC systems. Although most of the major BIOS
manufacturers use many of these codes, not one uses all of these codes. Consult the manual for a
specific system BIOS.

Problems that occur during the POST are usually caused by incorrect hardware configuration or
installation. Actual hardware failure is rare. A POST error may indicate that power has to be turned off
from the system.

Unplug the system from the wall, and carefully double-check the assembled computer to make sure
that one or all of the steps in the list that follows were properly carried out:
• All cables are correctly connected and secured.
• All drivers are properly installed.
• CMOS/BIOS Setup configuration settings are all correct.
• Motherboard jumper settings are correct, if changed from the original settings.
• There are no device conflicts.
• The expansion boards and disk drives are installed correctly.
• The power supply is set to the proper input voltage of the user’s country or region.
• A keyboard, monitor, and mouse are properly attached.
• A bootable hard disk is properly installed.
• The BIOS is the right version, supports the drive installed, and the parameters are entered
correctly.
• A bootable floppy disk is in drive A, if necessary.
• All memory SIMMs or DIMMs are installed correctly.

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4. MEMORY
Read-only memory (ROM) chips are located on the motherboard. ROM chips contain instructions that
can be directly accessed by the microprocessor. Unlike RAM, ROM chips retain their contents even
when the computer is powered down. The contents cannot be erased or changed by normal means.
Data transfer from ROM is slower than RAM, but faster than any disk. Some examples of ROM chips
that can be found on the motherboard include BIOS ROM, electrically erasable programmable read-
only memory (EEPROM), and Flash ROM.

(i) Measurement-related terminology


When working in the computer industry, it is important to understand the terms that are used. Whether
reading the specifications about a computer system, or talking with another computer technician, there
is a rather large dictionary of terms that should be known. The technician needs to know the following
terminology:
bit – The smallest unit of data in a computer. A bit can take the value of either one or zero. A bit is
the binary format in which data is processed by computers.
byte – A unit of measure that is used to describe the size of a data file, the amount of space on a
disk or other storage medium, or the amount of data being sent over a network. One byte
consists of eight bits of data.
nibble – Half a byte or four bits.
kilobyte (KB) – 1024, or approximately 1000, bytes.
kilobytes per second (kBps) – A measurement of the amount of data that is transferred over a
connection such as a network connection. kBps is a data transfer rate of approximately 1,000
bytes per second.
kilobit (Kb) – 1024, or approximately 1000, bits.
kilobits per second (kbps) – A measurement of the amount of data transferred over a connection
such as a network connection. kbps is a data transfer rate of approximately 1,000 bits per
second.
megabyte (MB) – 1,048,576 bytes, or approximately 1,000,000 bytes.
megabytes per second (MBps) – A common measurement of the amount of data transferred over
a connection such as a network connection. MBps is a data transfer rate of approximately
1,000,000 bytes or 106 kilobytes per second.
megabits per second (Mbps) – A common measurement of the amount of data transferred over a
connection such as a network connection. Mbps is a data transfer rate of approximately
1,000,000 bits or 106 kilobits per second.

Note: A common error is confusing KB with Kb and MB with Mb. A capital B indicates bytes while a
lower case b indicates bits. Similarly, multipliers greater than one are capitalized and multipliers less
than one are lower case. For example, M=1,000,000 and m=0.001. Remember to do the proper
calculations when comparing transmission speeds that are measured in KB with those measured in Kb.
For example, modem software usually shows the connection speed in kilobits per second, such as 45
kbps. However, prominent browsers display file-download speeds in kilobytes per second. Therefore,
the download speed with a 45-kbps connection would be a maximum of 5.76-kBps.

In actual practice, the download speed of a dialup connection cannot reach 45 kbps because of other
factors that consume bandwidth at the same time as the download. The technician needs to know the
following terminology:

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• hertz (Hz) – A unit of frequency measurement. It is the rate of change in the state, or cycle, in
a sound wave, alternating current, or other cyclical waveform. Hertz is synonymous with
cycles per second, and it is used to describe the speed of a computer microprocessor.
• megahertz (MHz) – One million cycles per second. This is a common measurement of the
speed of a processing chip.
gigahertz (GHz) – One billion cycles per second. This is a common measurement of the speed of a
processing chip.
Basic Input/Output System (BIOS)
The basic input/output system (BIOS) contains the instructions and data in the ROM chip that control
the boot process and the computer hardware. BIOS is sometimes called firmware. The ROM chip that
contains the firmware is called the ROM BIOS chip, ROM BIOS, or simply BIOS. It is usually
marked BIOS on the motherboard. The system BIOS is a very critical part of the computer. If the CPU
is considered the brains of the computer, the system BIOS is considered the heart of the system. The
BIOS determines what hard drive the user has installed, whether or not there is a 3.5-inch floppy drive,
what kind of memory is installed, and many other important parts of the system hardware at startup.
The responsibility of the BIOS is to serve as a liaison between the computer operating software and
the various hardware components that support it. These responsibilities include:
• Hosting the setup program for the hardware
• Testing the system in a process known as POST
• Controlling all the aspects of the boot process
• Producing audio and video error codes when there is a problem during the POST
• Providing the computer with basic instructions to control devices in the system
• Locating and executing any BIOS codes on expansion cards
• Locating a volume or boot sector from any drives to start the operating system
• Ensuring hardware and system compatibility

The BIOS is easy to locate because it is larger than most other chips. It often has a shiny plastic label
containing the manufacturer name, the serial number of the chip, and the date the chip was
manufactured. This information is vital when the time comes to select the correct upgrade for the
chip..

(ii) ROM
EPROM,
EEPROM, and Flash ROM
ROM is the most common way to store system-level programs that need to be available to the PC at all
times. The most common example is the system BIOS program. The BIOS program is stored in a
ROM called the system BIOS ROM. Having this program in a permanent ROM means it is available
when the power is turned on. Therefore, the PC can use it to boot up the system.

EPROM and EEPROM are ROM chips that can be erased and reprogrammed. Erasable programmable
read-only memory (EPROM) is a special type of programmable read-only memory (PROM) that can
be erased by shining ultraviolet light through a clear window on top of the chip. Because the ROM
chip holds the instructions that enable a device to function properly, it sometimes has to be
reprogrammed or replaced when upgraded device instructions are required. Unlike EPROM,
EEPROM chips are erased using a higher than normal electric voltage instead of ultraviolet light.
When the system BIOS is contained on EEPROM, it can be upgraded by running special instructions.

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Flash ROMs are special EEPROM chips that have been developed as a result of advancements in
EEPROM technology. Toshiba created the term for the ability of the chip to be erased in a flash, or
very quickly. Flash ROM holds the BIOS in most new systems. It can be reprogrammed under special
software control. Upgrading BIOS by running special software is known as flashing. The BIOS
implemented on a flash memory is known as plug-and-play BIOS, and it supports plug-and-play
devices. These chips retain data when the computer is powered down so information is permanently
stored. Flash memory is less expensive and denser than EEPROM chip technology.

RAM
Random access memory (RAM) is the place in a computer where the OS, application programs, and
data in current use are kept so that they can be quickly reached by the processor. The cache,
pronounced CASH, is a place to store something temporarily. For example, the files automatically
requested by looking at a web page are stored on the hard disk in a cache subdirectory under the
directory for the browser. COASt stands for Cache on a stick. It provides cache memory on many
Pentium-based systems.

RAM is considered temporary or volatile memory. The contents of RAM are lost when the computer
power is turned off. RAM chips on the computer motherboard hold the data and programs that the
microprocessor is processing. RAM is memory that stores frequently used data for rapid retrieval by
the processor. The more RAM a computer has, the more capacity the computer has to hold and process
large programs and files. The amount and type of memory in the system can make a big difference in
the system performance. Some programs have more memory requirements than others. Typically a
computer running Windows 95, 98, or ME would have 64 MB installed. It is common to find systems
with 128 MB or 256 MB of RAM, especially if they are running newer operating systems such as
Windows 2000 or other network operating systems.

Tip: Know the definition of volatile memory.

There are two classes of RAM that are commonly used today. These are Static RAM (SRAM) and
Dynamic RAM (DRAM). SRAM is relatively more expensive, but it is fast and holds data when the
power is turned off for a brief period of time. This is useful in such circumstances as an unexpected
loss of power. SRAM is used for cache memory. DRAM is inexpensive and somewhat slow. It requires
an uninterrupted power supply to maintain the data. DRAM stores data in tiny capacitor that must be
refreshed to maintain the data.

RAM can be installed on the motherboard, either as a permanent fixture, or in the form of small chips.
The chips are referred to as Single Inline Memory Modules (SIMMs) or Dual Inline Memory Modules
(DIMMs). SIMMs and DIMMs are removable cards that can be replaced with larger or smaller
increments of memory. Although having more memory installed on the computer is a good thing, most
system boards have limitations on the amount and type of RAM that can be added or supported. Some
systems may require that only SIMMs be used. Other systems may require that SIMMs be installed in
matched sets of 2 or 4 modules at a time. Additionally, some systems use only RAM with parity while
others use non-parity RAM. Parity has built-in error checking capability built into the RAM chip to
ensure data integrity. Non-parity does not have error checking capability.

Tip: Sometimes it is necessary to adjust the system BIOS (CMOS) to enable the use of RAM with
parity or non-parity RAM. This depends on the type of motherboard. The relevant information is
found in the manual.
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Identifying SIMMs and DIMMs


A SIMM plugs into the motherboard with a 72-pin or 30-pin connector. The pins connect to the system
bus, creating an electronic path through which memory data can flow to and from other system
components. Two 72-pin SIMMs can be installed in a computer that supports 64-bit data flow. With a
SIMM board, the pins on opposite sides of the module board are connected to each other forming a
single row of contacts.

A DIMM plugs into the system memory bank using a 168-pin connector. The pins establish a
connection with the system bus, creating an electronic path through which data can flow between the
memory chip and other system components. A single 168-pin DIMM supports 64-bit data flow, for
non-parity, and 72-bit data flow, for parity. This configuration is now being used in the latest
generation of 64-bit systems. An important feature is that the pins on a DIMM board are not connected
side to side, as with SIMMs, forming two sets of contacts.

Note: SIMMs are available in 30-pin and 72-pin versions. DIMMs take the form of larger, 168-pin
circuit boards.

Newer or more specialized forms of RAM are frequently put out into the market. Random access
memory Digital to Analog Converter (RAMDAC) is a specialized form of memory designed to
convert digitally encoded images into analog signals for display. It is made of a SRAM component for
storing the color map and three DACs, one each for the RGB electron guns. Video RAM (VRAM) and
Windows RAM (WRAM) are currently the best memory for video. Both VRAM and WRAM are
optimized for video cards and are designed to be dual-ported. This means that the chipset processor
and RAMDAC chip can access the memory at the same time. Simultaneous access greatly increases
video throughput. The newest types of video cards also support the newest system RAM types, such as
Synchronous DRAM (SDRAM).

Most other types of RAM, such as extended data out (EDO) RAM and fast page mode (FPM) RAM,
are too slow for current computing standards. They are no longer used in new computers.

Cache/Coast memory
Cache is a specialized form of computer chip, or firmware. Cache is designed to enhance memory
performance. Cache memory stores frequently used information and transfers it to the processor much
faster than RAM. Most computers have two separate memory cache levels:
• L1 cache is located on the CPU
• L2 cache is located between the CPU and DRAM

L1 cache is faster than L2 because it is located within the CPU and runs at same speed as the CPU. It
is the first place the CPU looks for its data. If data is not found in L1 cache, the search will then
continue with L2 cache, and then on to main memory.

L1 and L2 cache is made of SRAM chips. However, some systems use the Coast modules. Coast
modules are used to provide cache memory on many Pentium-based systems. It is noted for its
reliability and speed because it uses the pipeline-burst cache. The pipeline-burst cache is significantly
faster than SRAM cache. Some systems offer both SRAM sockets and a Coast module socket. The
Coast module essentially resembles a SIMM, except that it is taller and has a different connector
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Expansion slots
Expansion slots are receptacles on the computer motherboard that accept printed circuit boards.
Expansion slots are also known as sockets. All computers have expansion slots that allow additional
devices to be added. Devices include video cards, I/O cards, and sound cards.

There are several types of expansion slots on a motherboard. The number and type of expansion slots
in the computer determines the possibilities of future expansion. Figure shows the different slot types.
The most common expansion slots include the ISA, the PCI, and the AGP.

The Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) is a 16-bit expansion slot developed by IBM. It transfers
data with the motherboard at 8 MHz. ISA slots are becoming obsolete. They are being replaced by PCI
slots in new systems. However, many motherboard manufacturers still include one or two ISA slots for
backward compatibility with older expansion cards. In 1987, IBM introduced the 32-bit, Extended ISA
(EISA) bus, which accommodates the Pentium chip. EISA became fairly popular in the PC market.

The Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) is a 32-bit local bus slot developed by Intel. Since they
talk to the motherboard at 33 MHz, the PCI bus slots offer a significant improvement over ISA or
EISA expansion slots. With the PCI bus, each add-on card contains information that the processor uses
to automatically configure the card. The PCI bus is one of the three components necessary for plug-
and-play. The main purpose of the PCI bus is to allow direct access to the CPU for devices such as
memory and video. PCI expansion slots are the most commonly used type in current motherboards.

The Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) was developed by Intel. AGP is a dedicated high-speed bus that
is used to support the high demands of graphical software. This slot is reserved for video adapters.
This is the standard graphics port in all new systems. On AGP-equipped motherboards, a single AGP
slot holds the display adapter, and the PCI slot can be used for another device. Slightly shorter than the
white PCI slot, the AGP slot is usually a different color and is located about an inch beyond the PCI
slot. AGP 2.0 currently defines an interface supporting 1x and 2x speeds at 3.3V, and 1x, 2x, and 4x
speeds at 1.5V signaling. AGP 3.0 is the latest specification defining the new signaling scheme for 4x
and 8x speeds at .8V signaling levels. AGP 3.0 delivers over 2.1 GB/s of bandwidth to support graphic
intensive applications, including digital photos and video. A summary of the different AGP modes with
the clock rate and the transfer rate is shown in Figure below.

(iii)Bus types
The basic components of the
computer are connected together
by communication paths, called
buses. The system bus is a parallel
collection of conductors that carry
data and control signals from one
component to the other. Recall that
the conductors in modern
computers are actually metallic
traces on the circuit board.

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The microprocessor is connected to the rest of the computer system through three buses. The buses are
the data bus, the address bus, and the control bus. The bus types are discussed in detail later in this
module.

There are three major system bus types that can be identified based on the type of information they
carry. These include the address bus, data bus, and control bus.

The address bus is a unidirectional pathway. Unidirectional means that information can only flow one
way. The function of the pathway is to carry addresses generated by the CPU to the memory and I/O
elements of the computer. The number of conductors in the bus determines the size of the address bus.
The size of the address bus determines the number of memory locations and I/O elements that the
microprocessor can address.

The data bus is a bidirectional pathway for data flow. Bidirectional means that information can flow in
two directions. Data can flow along the data bus from the CPU to memory during a write operation,
and data can move from the computer memory to the CPU during a read operation. However, should
two devices attempt to use the bus at the same time, data errors will occur. Any device connected to
the data bus must have the capability to temporarily put its output on hold when it is not involved in an
operation with the processor. This is also called a floating state. The data bus size, measured in bits,
represents the computer word size. Generally, the larger the bus size is, the faster the computer system
is. Common data bus sizes are 8-bits or 16-bits for older systems and 32-bits for new systems. 64-bit
data bus systems are currently being developed.

The control bus carries the control and timing signals needed to coordinate the activities of the entire
computer. Control bus signals are not necessarily related to each other, unlike data and address buses.
Some are output signals from the CPU, and others are input signals to the CPU from I/O elements of
the system. Every microprocessor type generates or responds to a different set of control signals.

The most common control signals in use today are as follows:


• System Clock (SYSCLK)
• Memory Read (MEMR)
• Memory Write (MEMW)
• Read/Write Line (R/W Line)
• I/O Read (IOR)
• I/O Write (IOW)

(iv) Monitors/display devices


Computers are usually connected to a display device, also called a monitor. Monitors are available in
different types, sizes, and characteristics. When purchasing a new computer, the monitor may have to
be purchased separately.

Understanding the characteristics of a good monitor will help determine which is best suited for a
specific system. The following terms relate to monitors.
Pixels – Picture elements. The screen image is made of pixels, or tiny dots. The pixels are arranged in
rows across the screen. Each pixel consists of three colors. They are red, green, and blue (RGB).
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Dot Pitch – A measurement of how close together the phosphor dots are on the screen. The finer the
dot pitch is, the better the image quality. Look for the smaller number. Most monitors today have a
0.25 mm dot pitch. Some have a 0.22 mm dot pitch, which gives a very fine resolution.
Refresh Rate – The rate the screen image is refreshed. Refresh rates are measured in hertz (Hz),
which means times per second. The higher the refresh rate, the more steady the screen image will be. It
may look like a steady picture, but actually it flickers every time the electron beam hits the phosphor-
coated dots. Refresh rate is also called vertical frequency or vertical refresh rate.
Color Depth – The number of different colors each pixel can display. This is measured in bits. The
higher the depth, the more colors that can be produced.
Video RAM (VRAM) – The memory a video card has. The more VRAM the video card has, the more
colors that can be displayed. The video card also sends out the refresh signal, thus controlling the
refresh rate.
Resolution – Varies based on the number of pixels. The more pixels in the screen, the better the
resolution. Better resolution means a sharper image. The lowest screen resolution on modern PCs is
640 x 480 pixels, which is called Video Graphics Array (VGA). There are now Super Video Graphics
Array (SVGA) and Extended Graphics Array (XGA) with resolutions all the way up to 1600 x 1200
shown in see Figure .
Monitor screen sizes – Measured in inches. The most common sizes are 14", 15", 17", 19", and 21"
screens, measured diagonally. Note that the visible size is actually smaller than the measurement size.
Have this in mind when shopping for a monitor for the computer.
Display Colors – The colors are created by varying the light intensity of the three basic colors. The
24- and 32-bit colors are the usual choice for graphic artists and professional photographers. For most
other applications, a 16-bit color will be sufficient. The following is a summary of the most commonly
used color depths:
• 256 colors – 8-bit color
• 65,536 colors – 16-bit color, also called 65K or HiColor
• 16 million colors – 24-bit color, also called True Color
• 4 billion colors – 32-bit color, also called True Color

A high quality monitor and a high quality video card are required for both a high resolution and a high
refresh rate.

(v) Video cards


The video card, shown in Figure , is the interface between the computer and monitor. The video card
tells the monitor which pixels to light up, what color the pixels should be, and the intensity of the
color. The video card can be an expansion card installed into one of the motherboard expansion slots,
or it can be built into the motherboard. The display capabilities of a computer depend on both the
video adapter and the monitor. A monochrome monitor, for example, cannot display colors, no matter
how powerful the video adapter is. Video memory is a generic term used to refer to memory in the
computer video system. Video memory is not the same as VRAM.

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VRAM
VRAM is a special type of memory used on video cards. Most modern video cards contain VRAM,
which is a special form of DRAM that has two separate data ports. One port is dedicated to updating
the image that is viewed on the computer screen. The other port is used for changing the image data
stored on the video card. The VRAM stores displays so the computer RAM does not have to. A 64-bit
AGP video card with 4 MB of RAM should be sufficient for most computers. However, more graphic
intensive games may perform better with a video card having 32 MB or more VRAM. Some video
cards even include a graphics coprocessor for performing graphics calculations. These adapters are
referred to as graphics accelerators. A newer form of VRAM is Windows RAM (WRAM).

Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP)


AGP is an expansion slot on the Pentium II for installing a video card. AGP is designed exclusively for
video cards. An AGP card allows game and 3D applications to store and retrieve more realistic
textures in system memory rather than video memory without incurring any performance problems. A
significant advantage of the AGP is that the PCI bus is relieved of handling graphics data. Therefore,
the PCI slot can concentrate on other demanding duties. AGP also doubles the PCI transfer speed.

Video adapters are also known as video cards, video boards, and video display boards. At a minimum,
a video card should be a PCI adapter with at least 4 MB of RAM or more, depending on the type of
graphics that will be run.

(vi) PORTS
Serial and parallel ports
An I/O port is a pathway into and out of the computer through a connector on the back of the
computer. All peripheral devices that connect to the computer use I/O ports. There are different types
of I/O ports on the computer that serve different purposes. This section explores the various types of
ports and the types of devices that use them to interface with the computer.

Serial Ports
A serial port is used to connect devices that use a serial interface. Devices such as a modem, scanner,
and a mouse use a serial interface. Generally, a PC can identify up to four serial ports. A typical
computer contains only two serial ports, referred to as COM1 and COM2. Serial ports are sometimes
called the RS-232 ports because they use the RS-232C standard as defined by the Electronics Industry
Association (EIA). A serial port serially transmits data bits one after the other over a single line. USB
2.0, the most recent version, will run at a speed of 450 megabit per second (Mbps).

DB-9 (9-pin) connector used on most new computers for the serial ports. Older printers use a larger,
25-pin connector for the serial port interface, The mouse is sometimes used in serial port 1, which is a
9-pin male connector. The modem is typically used in serial port 2, which is also a 9-pin male
connector. Both serial ports are located in the back of the computer system.

Parallel Ports
A parallel port is a socket on the computer that is used to connect newer printers or other peripheral
device such as a portable hard disk, tape backup, scanner, or a CD-ROM. The parallel port contains
eight lines for transmitting an entire byte (8 bits) across the eight data lines simultaneously. The

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parallel port interface offers 8-bit parallel data words and nine I/O control lines at a DB-25 socket, or
25-pin female connector. DB-25 socket can be found on the back of the computer unit. a female DB-
25 parallel port. the 36-pin female port typically found on the printer. Parallel ports can be configured
as LPT1, LPT2, or LPT3.

Parallel ports were originally used for printers. However, currently they are used for both data input
and output devices. This type of parallel port is called bidirectional. A parallel port is often used for the
rapid transmission of data over short distances. The newer, enhanced parallel ports can be converted
from unidirectional to bidirectional through the CMOS setup screen. In older PCs, the parallel printer
interface was located on the back of the video adapter card, on a multiple I/O card, or on a dedicated
parallel printer card. Today, on Pentium system boards, the parallel port is located directly on the back
plate of an I/O card, or is connected through a ribbon cable to the 25-pin connector on the back of the
unit. Avoid using a parallel cable longer than 15 ft (4.6 m) when connecting an external device such as
a printer to the computer parallel port. A shorter cable will reduce the chance for errors and will ensure
data integrity.

PS/2 ports/6-pin mini DIN, 5-pin DIN


PS/2 keyboard or PS/2 mouse ports are used to connect the PC to its keyboard and mouse. Though
both ports look identical, the mouse and keyboard ports are not interchangeable. Usually both ports are
color coded or labeled to avoid any confusion,. The cable that connects the PS/2 keyboard or mouse
uses a PS/2 type connector. The PS/2, or 6-pin mini-DIN, has become very popular since its
introduction by IBM in 1987 with the IBM PS/2. However, the 5-pin DIN XT/AT connector type ports
and serial mice are still quite common. The 5-pin DIN AT connectors are typically used to connect the
AT keyboard directly to the motherboard. One advantage of the PS/2 port is that a mouse may be
connected to the computer without using a serial port.

(v) Universal serial bus (USB) and FireWire


The USB, shown in Figure , is an external port that allows the user to connect up to 127 external PC
peripherals. External peripherals include the following:
• USB keyboards
• Mice
• Printers
• Modems
• Scanners
• Digital cameras
• Digital video cameras
• External disk drives

USB is an emerging technology. It offers a data transfer rate of up to 12 Mbps. The latest version, USB
2.0, is much faster and transfers data at a rate of 450 Mbps. Seven USB devices can typically be
connected directly to the computer using the standard USB four-pin connector. By using external hubs,
each of the seven devices can be connected to the others, creating a daisy chain of 127 devices. An
external hub is a networking device that is discussed further in a later module. USB devices can be
hot-plugged. This means that they can be attached while the computer is already powered up and
running. USB devices are also plug-and-play.

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USB devices are classified as Full-speed or Low-speed devices based on their communication
capabilities. A cable serving a Full-speed device has a length limit of 16 ft 5 in.(5 m). The length limit
for cables used between Low-speed USB devices is 9 ft 10 in. (3 m).

USB was introduced in the late 1990s and was not supported by Microsoft Windows 95 and NT 4.0.
Support for USB is one of the reasons Windows 98 or 2000 are the preferred operating systems. This
port may eventually replace everything except the VGA port. Most PC USB peripherals can also be
used on a Macintosh. However, some lack the necessary drivers.

FireWire is a high-speed, platform-independent communication bus. The FireWire interconnects


digital devices such as digital video cameras, printers, scanners, digital cameras, and hard drives. It is
also known as i.LINK or IEEE 1394. Developed by Apple, FireWire was designed to allow peripherals
to seamlessly plug into a computer. The benefits of FireWire include the following:
• Compatible, smaller connectors
• Hot-plug connection
• Shared memory
• A single connection
• Backward compatibility
• Speed

FireWire can support up to 63 devices using cable lengths up to 4.5 m (14 ft), the length limit for
cabling. Like USB, these devices can be hot-plugged.

FireWire is based on a shared memory model that allows devices to directly access locations in
memory. This prevents having to wait for information to flow in a stream. FireWire is much faster than
the original version of USB, transferring data at rates up to 400 Mbps.

(vi) Hard drives


When the power to a PC is switched off, the contents of memory are lost. It is the PC's hard disk that
serves as a non-volatile, bulk storage medium and as the repository for a user's documents, files and
applications. It's astonishing to recall that back in 1954, when IBM first invented the hard disk,
capacity was a mere 5MB stored across fifty 24in platters. 25 years later Seagate Technology
introduced the first hard disk drive for personal computers, boasting a capacity of up to 40MB and
data transfer rate of 625 KBps using the MFM encoding method. A later version of the company's
ST506 interface increased both capacity and speed and switched to the RLL encoding method. It's
equally hard to believe that as recently as the late 1980s 100MB of hard disk space was considered
generous. Today, this would be totally inadequate, hardly enough to install the operating system alone,
let alone a huge application such as Microsoft Office.

The PC's upgradeability has led software companies to believe that it doesn't matter how large their
applications are. As a result, the average size of the hard disk rose from 100MB to 1.2GB in just a few
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years and by the start of the new millennium a typical desktop hard drive stored 18GB across three
3.5in platters. Thankfully, as capacity has gone up prices have come down, improved areal density
levels being the dominant reason for the reduction in price per megabyte.

It's not just the size of hard disks that has increased. The performance of fixed disk media has also
evolved considerably. When the Intel Triton chipset arrived, EIDE PIO mode 4 was born and hard disk
performance soared to new heights, allowing users to experience high-performance and high-capacity
data storage without having to pay a premium for a SCSI-based system.

Construction
Hard disks are rigid platters, composed of a substrate and a magnetic medium. The substrate -
the platter's base material - must be non-magnetic and capable of being machined to a smooth
finish. It is made either of aluminium alloy or a mixture of glass and ceramic. To allow data
storage, both sides of each platter are coated with a magnetic medium - formerly magnetic oxide,
but now, almost exclusively, a layer of metal called a thin-film medium. This stores data in
magnetic patterns, with each platter capable of storing a billion or so bits per square inch (bpsi) of
platter surface.

Platters vary in size and hard disk drives come in two form factors, 5.25in or 3.5in. The trend is
towards glass technology since this has the better heat resistance properties and allows platters to be
made thinner than aluminium ones. The inside of a hard disk drive must be kept as dust-free as the
factory where it was built. To eliminate internal contamination, air pressure is equalised via special
filters and the platters are hermetically sealed in a case with the interior kept in a partial vacuum. This
sealed chamber is often referred to as the head disk assembly (HDA).

Typically two or three or more platters are stacked on top of each other with a common spindle that
turns the whole assembly at several thousand revolutions per minute. There's a gap between the
platters, making room for magnetic read/write head, mounted on the end of an actuator arm. This is so
close to the platters that it's only the rush of air pulled round by the rotation of the platters that keeps
the head away from the surface of the disk - it flies a fraction of a millimetre above the disk. On early
hard disk drives this distance was around 0.2mm. In modern-day drives this has been reduced to

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0.07mm or less. A small particle of dirt could cause a head to "crash", touching the disk and scraping
off the magnetic coating. On IDE and SCSI drives the disk controller is part of the drive itself.

There's a read/write head for each side of each platter, mounted on arms which can move them towards
the central spindle or towards the edge. The arms are moved by the head actuator, which contains a
voice-coil - an electromagnetic coil that can move a magnet very rapidly. Loudspeaker cones are
vibrated using a similar mechanism.

The heads are designed to touch the platters when the disk stops spinning - that is, when the drive is
powered off. During the spin-down period, the airflow diminishes until it stops completely, when the
head lands gently on the platter surface - to a dedicated spot called the landing zone (LZ). The LZ is
dedicated to providing a parking spot for the read/write heads, and never contains data.

Operation
The disc platters are mounted on a single spindle that spins at a typical 10,000rpm. On EIDE and SCSI
drives the disk controller is part of the drive itself. It controls the drive's servo-motors and translates
the fluctuating voltages from the head into digital data for the CPU.

Data is recorded onto the magnetic surface of a platter in exactly the same way as it is on floppies or
digital tapes. Essentially, the surface is treated as an array of dot positions, with each "domain' of
magnetic polarisation being set to a binary "1" or "0". The position of each array element is not
identifiable in an "absolute" sense, and so a scheme of guidance marks helps the read/write head find
positions on the disk. The need for these guidance markings explains why disks must be formatted
before they can be used.

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When it comes to accessing data already stored, the disk spins round very fast so that any part of its
circumference can be quickly identified. The drive translates a read request from the computer into
reality. There was a time when the cylinder/head/sector location that the computer worked out really
was the data's location, but today's drives are more complicated than the BIOS can handle, and they
translate BIOS requests by using their own mapping.

In the past it was also the case that a disk's controller did not have sufficient processing capacity to be
able to read physically adjacent sectors quickly enough, thus requiring that the platter complete
another full revolution before the next logical sector could be read. To combat this problem, older
drives would stagger the way in which sectors were physically arranged, so as to reduce this waiting
time. With an interleave factor of 3, for instance, two sectors would be skipped after each sector read.
An interleave factor was expressed as a ratio, "N:1", where "N" represented the distance between one
logical sector and the next. The speed of a modern hard disk drive with an integrated controller and its
own data buffer renders the technique obsolete.

The rate at which hard disk capacities have increased over the years has given rise to a situation in
which allocating and tracking individual data sectors on even a typical drive would require a huge
amount of overhead, causing file handling efficiency to plummet. Therefore, to improve performance,
data sectors have for some time been allocated in groups called clusters. The number of sectors in a
cluster depends on the cluster size, which in turn depends on the partition size.

When the computer wants to read data, the operating system works out where the data is on the disk.
To do this it first reads the FAT (File Allocation Table) at the beginning of the partition. This tells the
operating system in which sector on which track to find the data. With this information, the head can
then read the requested data. The disk controller controls the drive's servo-motors and translates the
fluctuating voltages from the head into digital data for the CPU.

More often than not, the next set of data to be read is sequentially located on the disk. For this reason,
hard drives contain between 256KB and 8MB of cache buffer in which to store all the information in a
sector or cylinder in case it's needed. This is very effective in speeding up both throughput and access
times. A hard drive also requires servo information, which provides a continuous update on the
location of the heads. This can be stored on a separate platter, or it can be intermingled with the actual

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data on all the platters. A separate servo platter is more expensive, but it speeds up access times, since
the data heads won't need to waste any time sending servo information.

However, the servo and data platters can get out of alignment due to changes in temperature. To
prevent this, the drive constantly rechecks itself in a process called thermal recalibration. During
multimedia playback this can cause sudden pauses in data transfer, resulting in stuttered audio and
dropped video frames. Where the servo information is stored on the data platters, thermal recalibration
isn't required. For this reason the majority of drives embed the servo information with the data.

Format
When a disk undergoes a low-level format, it is divided it into tracks and sectors. The tracks are
concentric circles around the central spindle on either side of each platter. Tracks physically above
each other on the platters are grouped together into cylinders which are then further subdivided into
sectors of 512 bytes apiece.

The concept of cylinders is important, since cross-platter information in the same cylinder can be
accessed without having to move the heads. The sector is a disk's smallest accessible unit. Drives use a
technique called zoned-bit recording in which tracks on the outside of the disk contain more sectors
than those on the inside.

File systems
The precise manner in which data is organised on a hard disk drive is determined by the file system
used. File systems are generally operating system dependent. However, since it is the most widely
used PC operating system, most other operating systems' file systems are at least read-compatible with
Microsoft Windows.

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The FAT file system was first introduced in the days of MS-DOS way back in 1981. The purpose of
the File Allocation Table is to provide the mapping between clusters - the basic unit of logical storage
on a disk at the operating system level - and the physical location of data in terms of cylinders, tracks
and sectors - the form of addressing used by the drive's hardware controller.

The FAT contains an entry for every file stored on the volume that contains the address of the file's
starting cluster. Each cluster contains a pointer to the next cluster in the file, or an end-of-file indicator
at (0xFFFF), which indicates that this cluster is the end of the file. The diagram shows three files:
File1.txt uses three clusters, File2.txt is a fragmented file that requires three clusters and File3.txt fits
in one cluster. In each case, the file allocation table entry points to the first cluster of the file.

The first incarnation of FAT was known as FAT12, which supported a maximum partition size of 8MB.
This was superseded in 1984 by FAT16, which increased the maximum partition size to 2GB. FAT16
has undergone a number of minor modifications over the years, for example, enabling it to handle file
names longer than the original limitation of 8.3 characters. FAT16's principal limitation is that it
imposes a fixed maximum number of clusters per partition, meaning that the bigger the hard disk, the
bigger the cluster size and the more unusable space on the drive. The biggest advantage of FAT16 is
that it is compatible across a wide variety of operating systems, including Windows 95/98/Me, OS/2,
Linux and some versions of UNIX.

Dating from the Windows 95 OEM Service Release 2 (OSR2), Windows has supported both FAT16
and FAT32. The latter is little more than an extension of the original FAT16 file system that provides
for a much larger number of clusters per partition. As such, it offers greatly improved disk utilisation
over FAT16. However, FAT32 shares all of the other limitations of FAT16 plus the additional one that
many non-Windows operating systems that are FAT16-compatible will not work with FAT32. This
makes FAT32 inappropriate for dual-boot environments, although while other operating systems such
as Windows NT can't directly read a FAT32 partition, they can read it across the network. It's no
problem, therefore, to share information stored on a FAT32 partition with other computers on a
network that are running older versions of Windows.

With the advent of Windows XP in October 2001, support was extended to include the NTFS. NTFS is
a completely different file system from FAT that was introduced with first version of Windows NT in
1993. Designed to address many of FAT's deficiencies, it provides for greatly increased privacy and
security. The Home edition of Windows XP allows users to keep their information private to
themselves, while the Professional version supports access control and encryption of individual files
and folders. The file system is inherently more resilient than FAT, being less likely to suffer damage in
the event of a system crash and it being more likely that any damage is recoverable via the chkdsk.exe
utility. NTFS also journalises all file changes, so as to allow the system to be rolled back to an earlier,
working state in the event of some catastrophic problem rendering the system inoperable.

FAT16, FAT32 and NTFS each use different cluster sizes depending on the size of the volume, and
each file system has a maximum number of clusters it can support. The smaller the cluster size, the

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more efficiently a disk stores information because unused space within a cluster cannot be used by
other files; the more clusters supported, the larger the volumes or partitions that can be created.

The table below provides a comparison of volume and default cluster sizes for the different Windows
file systems still commonly in use:

FAT16 FAT32 NTFS


Volume Size
Cluster Size Cluster Size Cluster Size
7MB - 16MB 2KB Not supported 512 bytes
17MB - 32MB 512 bytes Not supported 512 bytes
33MB - 64MB 1KB 512 bytes 512 bytes
65MB - 128MB 2KB 1KB 512 bytes
129MB - 256MB 4KB 2KB 512 bytes
257MB - 512MB 8KB 4KB 512 bytes
513MB - 1GB 16KB 4KB 1KB
1GB - 2GB 32KB 4KB 2KB
2GB - 4GB 64KB 4KB 4KB
4GB - 8GB Not supported 4KB 4KB
8GB - 16GB Not supported 8KB 4KB
16GB - 32GB Not supported 16KB 4KB
32GB - 2TB Not supported Not supported 4KB

Performance
The performance of a hard disk is very important to the overall speed of the system - a slow hard disk
having the potential to hinder a fast processor like no other system component - and the effective
speed of a hard disk is determined by a number of factors.

Chief among them is the rotational speed of the platters. Disk RPM is a critical component of hard
drive performance because it directly impacts the latency and the disk transfer rate. The faster the disk
spins, the more data passes under the magnetic heads that read the data; the slower the RPM, the
higher the mechanical latencies. Hard drives only spin at one constant speed, and for some time most
fast EIDE hard disks span at 5,400rpm, while a fast SCSI drive was capable of 7,200rpm. In 1997
Seagate pushed spin speed to a staggering 10,033rpm with the launch of its UltraSCSI Cheetah drive
and, in mid 1998, was also the first manufacturer to release an EIDE hard disk with a spin rate of
7,200rpm.

In 1999 Hitachi broke the 10,000rpm barrier with the introduction of its Pegasus II SCSI drive. This
spins at an amazing 12,000rpm - which translates into an average latency of 2.49ms. Hitachi has used
an ingenious design to reduce the excessive heat produced by such a high spin rate. In a standard 3.5in
hard disk, the physical disk platters have a 3in diameter. However, in the Pegasus II, the platter size
has been reduced to 2.5in. The smaller platters cause less air friction and therefore reduce the amount
of heat generated by the drive. In addition, the actual drive chassis is one big heat fin, which also helps
dissipate the heat. The downside is that since the platters are smaller and have less data capacity, there
are more of them and consequently the height of the drive is increased.

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Mechanical latencies, measured in milliseconds, include both seek time and rotational latency. "Seek
Time" is measured defines the amount of time it takes a hard drive's read/write head to find the
physical location of a piece of data on the disk. "Latency" is the average time for the sector being
accessed to rotate into position under a head, after a completed seek. It is easily calculated from the
spindle speed, being the time for half a rotation. A drive's "average access time" is the interval between
the time a request for data is made by the system and the time the data is available from the drive.
Access time includes the actual seek time, rotational latency, and command processing overhead time.

The "disk transfer rate" (sometimes called media rate) is the speed at which data is transferred to and
from the disk media (actual disk platter) and is a function of the recording frequency. It is generally
described in megabytes per second (MBps). Modern hard disks have an increasing range of disk
transfer rates from the inner diameter to the outer diameter of the disk. This is called a "zoned"
recording technique. The key media recording parameters relating to density per platter are Tracks Per
Inch (TPI) and Bits Per Inch (BPI). A track is a circular ring around the disk. TPI is the number of
these tracks that can fit in a given area (inch). BPI defines how many bits can be written onto one inch
of a track on a disk surface.

The "host transfer rate" is the speed at which the host computer can transfer data across the IDE/EIDE
or SCSI interface to the CPU. It is more generally referred to as the data transfer rate, or DTR, and can
be the source of some confusion. Some vendors list the internal transfer rate, the rate at which the disk
moves data from the head to its internal buffers. Others cite the burst data transfer rate, the maximum
transfer rate the disk can attain under ideal circumstances and for a short duration. More important for
the real world is the external data transfer rate, or how fast the hard disk actually transfers data to a
PC's main memory.

By late 2001 the fastest high-performance drives were capable of an average latency of less than 3ms,
an average seek time of between 4 and 7ms and maximum data transfer rates in the region of 50 and
60MBps for EIDE and SCSI-based drives respectively. Note the degree to which these maximum
DTRs are below the bandwidths of the current versions of the drive's interfaces - Ultra ATA/100 and
UltraSCSI 160 - which are rated at 100MBps and 160MBps respectively.

AV capability

Audio-visual applications require different performance characteristics than are required of a hard disk
drive used for regular, everyday computer use. Typical computer usage involves many requests for
relatively small amounts of data. By contrast, AV applications - digital audio recording, video editing
and streaming, CD writing, etc. - involve large block transfers of sequentially stored data. Their prime
requirement is for a steady, uninterrupted stream of data, so that any "dropout" in the analogue output
is avoided.

In the past this meant the need for specially designed, or at the very least suitably optimised, hard disk
drives. However, with the progressive increase in the bandwidth of both the EIDE and SCSI interfaces
over the years, the need for special AV rated drives has become less and less. Indeed, Micropolis - a
company that specialised in AV drives - went out of business as long ago as 1997.

The principal characteristic of an " AV drive" centred on the way that it handled thermal recalibration.
As a hard drive operates, the temperature inside the drive rises causing the disk platters to expand (as
most materials do when they heat up). In order to compensate for this phenomenon, hard drives would
periodically recalibrate themselves to ensure the read and write heads remain perfectly aligned over
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the data tracks. Thermal recalibration (also known as "T-cal") is a method of re-aligning the read/write
heads, and whilst it is happening, no data can be read from or written to the drive.

In the past, non-AV drives entered a calibration cycle on a regular schedule regardless of what the
computer and the drive happened to be doing. Drives rated as "AV" have employed a number of
different techniques to address the problem. Many handled T-cal by rescheduling or postponing it until
such time that the drive is not actively capturing data. Some additionally used particularly large cache
buffers or caching schemes that were optimised specifically and exclusively for AV applications,
incurring a significant performance loss in non-AV applications.

By the start of the new millennium the universal adoption of embedded servo technology by hard disk
manufacturers meant that thermal recalibration was no longer an issue. This effectively weaves head-
positioning information amongst the data on discs, enabling drive heads to continuously monitor and
adjust their position relative to the embedded reference points. The disruptive need for a drive to
briefly pause data transfer to correctly position its heads during thermal recalibration routines is
thereby completely eliminated.

Capacity

Since its advent in 1955, the magnetic recording industry has constantly and dramatically increased the
performance and capacity of hard disk drives to meet the computer industry's insatiable demand for
more and better storage. The areal density storage capacity of hard drives has increased at a historic
rate of roughly 27% per year - peaking in the 1990s to as much as 60% per year - with the result that
by the end of the millennium disk drives were capable of storing information in the 600-700 Mbits/in2
range.

The read-write head technology that has sustained the hard disk drive industry through much of this
period is based on the inductive voltage produced when a permanent magnet (the disk) moves past a
wire-wrapped magnetic core (the head). Early recording heads were fabricated by wrapping wire
around a laminated iron core analogous to the horseshoe-shaped electromagnets found in elementary
school physics classes. Market acceptance of hard drives, coupled with increasing areal density
requirements, fuelled a steady progression of inductive recording head advances. This progression
culminated in advanced thin-film inductive (TFI) read-write heads capable of being fabricated in the
necessary high volumes using semiconductor-style processors.

Although it was conceived in the 1960s, it was not until the late 1970s that TFI technology was
actually deployed in commercially available product. The TFI read/write head - which essentially
consists of wired, wrapped magnetic cores which produce a voltage when moved past a magnetic hard
disk platter - went on to become the industry standard until the mid-1990s. By this time it became
impractical to increase areal density in the conventional way - by increasing the sensitivity of the head
to magnetic flux changes by adding turns to the TFI head's coil - because this increased the head's
inductance to levels that limited its ability to write data.

The solution lay in the phenomenon discovered by Lord Kelvin in 1857 - that the resistance of
ferromagnetic alloy changes as a function of an applied magnetic field - known as the anisotropic
magnetoresistance (AMR) effect.

Capacity barriers
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Whilst Bill Gates' assertion that "640KB ought to be enough for anyone" is the most famous example
of lack of foresight when it comes to predicting capacity requirements, it is merely symptomatic of a
trait that has afflicted the PC industry since its beginnings in the early 1980s. In the field of hard disk
technology at least 10 different capacity barriers occurred in the space of 15 years. Several have been
the result of BIOS or operating system issues, a consequence of either short-sighted design,
restrictions imposed by file systems of the day or simply as a result of bugs in hardware or software
implementations. Others have been caused by limitations in the associated hard disk drive standards
themselves.

IDE hard drives identify themselves to the system BIOS by the number of cylinders, heads and sectors
per track. This information is then stored in the CMOS. Sectors are always 512 bytes in size.
Therefore, the capacity of a drive can be determined by multiplying the number of cylinders by the
number of sectors by 512. The BIOS interface allows for a maximum of 1024 cylinders, 255 heads and
63 sectors. This calculates out at 504MiB. The IEC's binary megabyte notation was intended to
address the confusion caused by the fact that this capacity is referred to as 528MB by drive
manufacturers, who consider a megabyte to be 1,000,000 bytes instead of the binary programming
standard of 1,048,576 bytes.

The 528MB barrier was the most infamous of all the hard disk capacity restrictions and primarily
affected PCs with BIOSes created before mid-1994. It arose because of the restriction of the number of
addressable cylinders to 1,024. Its removal - which led to the "E" (for Enhanced) being added to the
IDE specification - by abandoning the cylinders, heads and sectors (CHS) addressing technique in
favour of logical block addressing, or LBA. This is also referred to as the BIOS Int13h extensions.
With this system the BIOS translates the cylinder, head and sector (CHS) information into a 28-bit
logical block address, allowing operating systems and applications to access much larger drives.

Unfortunately, the designers of the system BIOS and the ATA interface did not set up the total bytes
used for addressing in the same manner, nor did they define the same number of bytes for the cylinder,
head, and sector addressing. The differences in the CHS configurations required that there be a
translation of the address when data was sent from the system (using the system BIOS) and the ATA
interface. The result was that the introduction of LBA did not immediately solve the problem of the
528MB barrier and also gave rise to a further restriction at 8.4GB.

The 8.4GB barrier involved the total addressing space that was defined for the system BIOS. Prior to
1997 most PC systems were limited to accessing drives with a capacity of 8.4GB or less. The reason
for this was that although the ATA interface used 28-bit addressing which supported drive capacities
up to 2**28 x 512 bytes or 137GB, the BIOS Int13h standard imposed a restriction of 24-bit
addressing, thereby limiting access to a maximum of only 2**24 x 512 bytes or 8.4GB.

The solution to the 8.4GB barrier was an enhancement of the Int13h standard by what is referred to as
Int13h extensions. This allows for a quad-word or 64 bits of addressing, which is equal to 2**64 x 512
bytes or 9.4 x 10**21 bytes. That is 9.4 Tera Gigabytes or over a trillion times as large as an 8.4GB
drive. It was not until after mid-1998 that systems were being built that properly supported the BIOS
Int13h extensions.

By the beginning of the new millennium, and much to the embarrassment of the drive and BIOS
manufacturers, the 137GB limit imposed by the ATA interface's 28-bit addressing was itself beginning
to look rather restrictive. However - better late than never - it appears as though the standards bodies
may have finally learnt from their previous mistakes. The next version of the EIDE protocol (ATA-6) -

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being reviewed by the ANSI committee in the autumn of 2001 - allows for 48 bits of address space,
giving a maximum addressable limit of 144PB (Petabytes). That's 100,000 times higher than the
current barrier and, on previous form, sufficient for the next 20 years at least!.

MR technology

In 1991, IBM's work on AMR technology led to the development of MR (magnetoresistive) heads
capable of the areal densities required to sustain the disk drive industry's continued growth in capacity
and performance. These circumvented the fundamental limitation of TFI heads - fact that their
recording had alternately to perform conflicting task writing data on as well retrieving previously-
written by adopting a design which read write elements were separate, allowing each be optimised for
its specific function.

In an MR head, the write element is a conventional TFI head, while the read element is composed of a
thin stripe of magnetic material. The stripe's resistance changes in the presence of a magnetic field,
producing a strong signal with low noise amplification and permitting significant increases in areal
densities. As the disk passes by the read element, the disk drive circuitry senses and decodes changes
in electrical resistance caused by the reversing magnetic polarities. The MR read element's greater
sensitivity provides a higher signal output per unit of recording track width on the disk surface. Not
only does magnetoresistive technology permit more data to be placed on disks, but it also uses fewer
components than other head technologies to achieve a given capacity point.

The MR read element is smaller than the TFI write element. In fact, the MR read element can be made
smaller than the data track so that if the head were slightly off-track or misaligned, it would still
remain over the track and able to read the written data on the track. Its small element size also
precludes the MR read element from picking up interference from outside the data track, which
accounts for the MR head's desirable high signal-to-noise ratio.

Manufacturing MR heads can present difficulties. MR thin film elements are extremely sensitive to
electrostatic discharge, which means special care and precautions must be taken when handling these
heads. They are also sensitive to contamination and, because of the materials used in its design, subject
to corrosion.

MR heads also introduced a new challenge not present with TFI heads: thermal asperities, the
instantaneous temperature rise that causes the data signal to spike and momentarily disrupt the
recovery of data from the drive. Thermal asperities are transient electrical events, usually associated
with a particle, and normally do not result in mechanical damage to the head. Although they can lead
to misreading data in a large portion of a sector, new design features can detect these events. A thermal
asperity detector determines when the read input signal exceeds a predetermined threshold, discounts
that data value and signals the controller to re-read the sector.

The various improvements offered by MR technology amount to an ability to read from areal densities
about four times denser than TFI heads at higher flying heights. In practice this means that the
technology is capable of supporting areal densities of at least 3 Gbits/in2. The technology's sensitivity
limitations stem from the fact that the degree of change in resistance in an MR head's magnetic film is
itself limited. It wasn't long before a logical progression from MR technology was under development,
in the shape of Giant Magneto-Resistive (GMR) technology.

GMR technology

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Giant Magneto-Resistive (GMR) head technology builds on existing read/write technology found in
TFI and anisotropic MR, producing heads that exhibit a higher sensitivity to changing magnetisation
on the disc and work on spin-dependent electron scattering. The technology is capable of providing the
unprecedented data densities and transfer rates necessary to keep up with the advances in processor
clock speeds, combining quantum mechanics and precision manufacturing to give areal densities that
are expected to reach 10Gbits/in2 and 40Gbits/in2 by the years 2001 and 2004 respectively.

In MR material, e.g. nickel-iron alloys, conduction electrons move less freely (more frequent
collisions with atoms) when their direction of movement is parallel to the magnetic orientation in the
material. This is the "MR effect", discovered in 1988. When electrons move less freely in a material,
the material's resistance is higher. GMR sensors exploit the quantum nature of electrons, which have
two spin directions-spin up and spin down. Conduction electrons with spin direction parallel to a film's
magnetic orientation move freely, producing low electrical resistance. Conversely, the movement of
electrons of opposite spin direction is hampered by more frequent collisions with atoms in the film,
producing higher resistance. IBM has developed structures, identified as spin valves, in which one
magnetic film is pinned. This means its magnetic orientation is fixed. The second magnetic film, or
sensor film, has a free, variable magnetic orientation. These films are very thin and very close
together, allowing electrons of either spin direction to move back and forth between these films.
Changes in the magnetic field originating from the disk cause a rotation of the sensor film's magnetic
orientation, which in turn, increases or decreases resistance of the entire structure. Low resistance
occurs when the sensor and pinned films are magnetically oriented in the same direction, since
electrons with parallel spin direction move freely in both films.

Higher resistance occurs when the magnetic orientations of the sensor and pinned films oppose each
other, because the movement of electrons of either spin direction is hampered by one or the other of
these magnetic films. GMR sensors can operate at significantly higher areal densities than MR
sensors, because their percent change in resistance is greater, making them more sensitive to magnetic
fields from the disk.

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Current GMR hard disks have storage densities of 4.1Gbit/in2, although experimental GMR heads are
already working at densities of 10Gbit/in2. These heads have a sensor thickness of 0.04 microns, and
IBM claims that halving the sensor thickness to 0.02 microns - with new sensor designs - will allow
possible densities of 40Gbit/in2. The advantage of higher recording densities is that disks can be
reduced in physical size and power consumption, which in turn increases data transfer rates. With
smaller disks for a given capacity, combined with lighter read/write heads, the spindle speed can be
increased further and the mechanical delays caused by necessary head movement can be minimised.

IBM has been manufacturing merged read/write heads which implement GMR technology since 1992.
These comprise a thin film inductive write element and a read element. The read element consists of
an MR or GMR sensor between two magnetic shields. The magnetic shields greatly reduce unwanted
magnetic fields coming from the disk; the MR or GMR sensor essentially "sees" only the magnetic
field from the recorded data bit to be read. In a merged head the second magnetic shield also functions
as one pole of the inductive write head. The advantage of separate read and write elements is both
elements can be individually optimised. A merged head has additional advantages. This head is less
expensive to produce, because it requires fewer process steps; and, it performs better in a drive,
because the distance between the read and write elements is less.

"Pixie dust"

In the past decade, the data density for magnetic hard disk drives has increased at a phenomenal pace,
doubling every 18 months and - since 1997 - doubling every year. The situation had left researchers
fearing that hard drive capacities were getting close to their limit. When magnetic regions on the disk
become too small, they cannot retain their magnetic orientations and thus their data - over the typical
lifetime of the product. This is called the "super paramagnetic effect", and has long been predicted to
appear when densities reached 20 to 40 billion bits (gigabits) per square inch, not a huge way away
from the densities that had been reached by the start of the new millennium.

However, in the summer of 2001, IBM announced a breakthrough in storage technology that could
prolong the life of the conventional hard disk drive for the foreseeable future. The key to the
breakthrough is a three-atom-thick layer of the element ruthenium, a precious metal similar to
platinum, sandwiched between two magnetic layers. That only a few atoms could have such a dramatic
impact has resulted in scientists referring to the ruthenium layer informally as "pixie dust".

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Known technically as "antiferromagnetically-coupled (AFC) media", the new multilayer coating is
expected to permit hard disk drives to store 100 billion bits (gigabits) of data per square inch of disk
area by 2003 and represents the first fundamental change in disk drive design made to avoid the high-
density data decay due to the super paramagnetic effect. Conventional disk media stores data on a
single magnetic layer. AFC media's two magnetic layers are separated by an ultra-thin layer of
ruthenium. This forces the adjacent layers to orient themselves magnetically in opposite directions.
The opposing magnetic orientations make the entire multilayer structure appear much thinner than it
actually is. Thus small, high-density bits can be written easily on AFC media, but they will retain their
magnetisation due to the media's overall thickness.

As a consequence, the technology is expected to allow densities of 100 gigabits per square inch and
beyond.

Longitudinal recording

For nearly 50 years, the disk drive industry has focused nearly exclusively on a method called
longitudinal magnetic recording, in which the magnetisation of each data bit is aligned horizontally in
relation to the drive's spinning platter. In longitudinal recording, the fields between two adjacent bits
with opposing magnetisations are separated by a transition region.

While areal densities have historically pretty much doubled every year,more recently however, the rate
of increase has slowed, and the limit of areal densities for hard disk technology using longitudinal
recording - due to the superparamagnetic effect - is now generally reckoned to be in the region of 100
to 200 Gbits/in2.

This has led to more aggressive approaches to delaying the superparamagnetic effect being sought, and
the emergence of perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) technology as a solution capable of
doubling hard disk data densities in the relative short term and of ultimately enabling a more 10-fold
increase in storage capacity over today's technology.

Perpendicular recording
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In perpendicular recording, the magnetisation of the bit is aligned vertically - or perpendicularly - in
relation to the disk drive's platter. Since the bits do not directly oppose each other, the need for
transition packing is significantly reduced. This allows bits to be more closely packed with sharper
transition signals, facilitating easier bit detection and error correction. The potential for higher areal
density results.

To help understand how perpendicular recording works, consider the bits as small bar magnets. In
conventional longitudinal recording, the magnets representing the bits are lined up end-to-end along
circular tracks in the plane of the disk. If you consider the highest-density bit pattern of alternating
ones and zeros, then the adjacent magnets end up head-to-head (north-pole to north pole) and tail-to-
tail (south-pole to south-pole). In this scenario, they want to repel each other, making them unstable
against thermal fluctuations. In perpendicular recording, the tiny magnets are standing up and down.
Adjacent alternating bits stand with north pole next to south pole; thus, they want to attract each other
and are more stable and can be packed more closely.

Key to being able to make the bits smaller, without superparamagnetism causing them to lose their
memory, is the use of a magnetically "stronger" (higher coercivity) material as the storage medium.
This is possible due to the fact that in a perpendicular arrangement the magnetic flux is guided through
a magnetically soft (and relatively thick) underlayer underneath the hard magnetic media films
(considerably complicating and thickening the total disk structure). This magnetically soft underlayer
can be effectively considered a part of the write head, making the write head more efficient, thus
making it possible to produce a stronger write field gradient with essentially the same head materials
as for longitudinal heads, and therefore allowing for the use of the higher coercivity - and therefore
inherently more thermally stable - magnetic storage medium.

By 2005 all of the major hard disk manufacturers were working on PMR technology and the
technology was expected to be broadly adopted in products by the end of 2007. Hitachi Global Storage
Technologies demonstrated an areal density of 345 Gbits/in2 in laboratory testing in the autumn of that
year, expected to bring hard drive areal density half way to the 345 Gbits/in2 mark with a 1 TB 3.5in
product in the first half of 2007, and was predicting a 2 TB 3.5in desktop drive by 2009.

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Extensions to PMR technology are expected to take hard drive advancements out beyond the next two
decades, and eventually allow information densities of up to 100 Tbits/in2.

RAID

In the 1980s, hard-disk drive capacities were limited and large drives commanded a premium price. As
an alternative to costly, high-capacity individual drives, storage system developers began
experimenting with arrays of smaller, less expensive hard-disk drives. In a 1988 publication, "A Case
for Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive Disks", three University of California-Berkeley researchers
proposed guidelines for these arrays. They originated the term RAID - redundant array of inexpensive
disks - to reflect the data accessibility and cost advantages that properly implemented arrays could
provide. As storage technology has advanced and the cost per megabyte of storage has decreased, the
term RAID has been redefined to refer to "independent" disks, emphasising the technique's potential
data availability advantages relative to conventional disk storage systems.

The original concept was to cluster small inexpensive disk drives into an array such that the array
could appear to the system as a single large expensive drive (SLED). Such an array was found to have
better performance characteristics than a traditional individual hard drive. The initial problem,
however, was that the Mean Time Before Failure (MTBF) of the array was reduced due to the
probability of any one drive of the array failing. Subsequent development resulted in the specification
of six standardised RAID levels to provide a balance of performance and data protection. In fact, the
term "level" is somewhat misleading because these models do not represent a hierarchy; a RAID 5
array is not inherently better or worse than a RAID 1 array. The most commonly implemented RAID
levels are 0, 3 and 5:

• Level 0 provides "data striping" (spreading out blocks of each file across multiple disks) but no
redundancy. This improves performance but does not deliver fault tolerance. The collection of
drives in a RAID Level 0 array has data laid down in such a way that it is organised in stripes
across the multiple drives, enabling data to be accessed from multiple drives in parallel.
• Level 1 provides disk mirroring, a technique in which data is written to two duplicate disks
simultaneously, so that if one of the disk drives fails the system can instantly switch to the
other disk without any loss of data or service. RAID 1 enhances read performance, but the
improved performance and fault tolerance are at the expense of available capacity in the drives
used.
• Level 3 is the same as Level 0, but 0 sacrifices some capacity, for the same number of drives,
to achieve a higher level of data integrity or fault tolerance by reserving one dedicated disk for
error correction data. This drive is used to store parity information that is used to maintain data
integrity across all drives in the subsystem.
• Level 5 is probably the most frequently implemented. It provides data striping at the byte level
and also stripe error correction information. This results in excellent performance coupled with
the ability to recover any lost data should any single drive fail.

The data striping storage technique is fundamental to the concept and used by a majority of RAID
levels. In fact, the most basic implementation of this technique, RAID 0, is not true RAID unless it is
used in conjunction with other RAID levels since it has no inherent fault tolerance. Striping is a
method of mapping data across the physical drives in an array to create a large virtual drive. The data
is subdivided into consecutive segments or "stripes" that are written sequentially across the drives in
the array, each stripe having a defined size or "depth" in blocks. A striped array of drives can offer

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improved performance compared to an individual drive if the stripe size is matched to the type of
application program supported by the array:

• In an I/O-intensive or transactional environment where multiple concurrent requests for small


data records occur, larger (block-level) stripes are preferable. If a stripe on an individual drive
is large enough to contain an entire record, the drives in the array can respond independently to
these simultaneous data requests.
• In a data-intensive environment where large data records are stored, smaller (byte-level) stripes
are more appropriate. If a given data record extends across several drives in the array, the
contents of the record can be read in parallel, improving the overall data transfer rate.

Extended Data Availability and Protection (EDAP) is another data storage concept, closely related to
RAID. A storage system with EDAP capability can protect its data and provide on-line, immediate
access to its data, despite failure occurrence within the disk system, within attached units or within its
environment. The location, type and quantity of failure occurrences determine the degree of EDAP
capability attributed to the disk system. Two types of RAID provide EDAP for disks: Mirroring and
Parity RAID. Mirroring predated Parity RAID and was identified in the Berkeley Papers as RAID
Level 1. Its disadvantage is that, unlike Parity RAID, Mirroring requires 100% redundancy. Its
advantages, unlike Parity RAID, are that read performance is improved, the impact on write
performance is generally modest and a higher percentage of disks in a Mirrored redundancy group
may fail simultaneously as compared to a Parity RAID redundancy group. Parity RAID is identified in
the Berkeley Papers as RAID Levels 3, 4, 5 and 6. In these cases, overhead (redundant data in the form
of Parity) as compared to Mirroring (redundant data in the form of a complete copy) is significantly
reduced to a range of 10% to 33%.

Parity RAID levels combine striping and parity calculations to permit data recovery if a disk fails. The
diagram illustrates the concepts of both data striping and Parity RAID, depicting how a block of data
containing the values 73, 58, 14, and 126 may be striped across a RAID 3 array comprising four data
drives and a parity drive, using the even-parity method.

Up until the late 1990s, the implementation of RAID had been almost exclusively in the server
domain. By then, however, processor speeds had reached the point where the hard disk was often the
bottleneck that prevented a system running at its full potential. Aided and abetted by the availability of
motherboards that included a RAID controller - by 2000 the deployment of RAID's striping technique
had emerged as a viable solution to this problem on high-end desktop systems.

SMART

In 1992, IBM began shipping 3.5-inch hard disk drives that could actually predict their own failure -
an industry first. These drives were equipped with Predictive Failure Analysis (PFA), an IBM-
developed technology that periodically measures selected drive attributes - things like head-to-disk
flying height - and sends a warning message when a predefined threshold is exceeded. Industry
acceptance of PFA technology eventually led to SMART (Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting
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Technology) becoming the industry-standard reliability prediction indicator for both IDE/ATA and
SCSI hard disk drives.

There are two kinds of hard disk drive failures: unpredictable and predictable. Unpredictable failures
happen quickly, without advance warning. These failures can be caused by static electricity, handling
damage, or thermal-related solder problems, and there is nothing that can be done to predict or avoid
them. In fact, 60% of drive failures are mechanical, often resulting from the gradual degradation of the
drive's performance. The key vital areas include:

• Heads/head assembly: crack on head, broken head, head contamination, head resonance, bad
connection to electronics module, handling damage
• Motors/bearings: motor failure, worn bearing, excessive run out, no spin, handling damage
• Electronic module: circuit/chip failure, bad connection to drive or bus, handling damage
• Media: scratch, defect, retries, bad servo, ECC corrections, handling damage.

These have been well explored over the years and have led to disk drive designers being able to not
only develop more reliable products, but to also apply their knowledge to the prediction of device
failures. Through research and monitoring of vital functions, performance thresholds which correlate
to imminent failure have be determined, and it is these types of failure that SMART attempts to
predict.

Just as hard disk drive architecture varies from one manufacturer to another, so SMART-capable drives
use a variety of different techniques to monitor data availability. For example, a SMART drive might
monitor the fly height of the head above the magnetic media. If the head starts to fly too high or too
low, there's a good chance the drive could fail. Other drives may monitor additional or different
conditions, such as ECC circuitry on the hard drive card or soft error rates. When impending failure is
suspected the drives sends an alert through the operating system to an application that displays a
warning message.

A head crash is one of the most catastrophic types of hard disk failure and - since the height at which a
head flies above the surface of the media has decreased steadily over the years as one of the means to
increase areal recording densities, and thereby disk storage capacities - it might reasonably be
expected to be an increasingly likely form of failure. Fortunately, this is not the case, since flying
height has always been one of the most critical parameters for disk drive reliability and as this has
steadily decreased, so the techniques used to predict head crashes have become progressively more
sophisticated. Not only are heads flying too low are in danger of crashing, but if the recording head
flies higher than intended, even for a short period of time, the magnetic field available may be
insufficient to reliably write to the media. This is referred to as a "high fly write". External shock,
vibration, media defect or contamination may cause this. Soft errors caused by this phenomenon are
recoverable, but hard errors are not.

The fly height is controlled by the suspension attached to the slider containing the magnetic recording
head and the airbearing of the slider. This aerodynamic system controls the variation in fly height as
the slider is positioned over the surface of the media. Traversing the head between the inner and outer
radius of the disk causes a two-to-one change in velocity. Prior to current technology in airbearing
designs, this change in velocity would have created a two-to-one change in nominal fly height.
However, with current day airbearing designs, this variation can be reduced to a fraction of the
nominal value and fly heights - the distance between the read/write elements and the magnetic surface
- are typically of the order of a few millionths of an inch and as low as 1.2 micro-inches. There are
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several conditions - for example, altitude, temperature, and contamination -
that can create disturbances between the airbearing and the disk surface and
potentially change the fly height.

Thermal monitoring is a more recently introduced aspect of SMART, designed to alert the host to
potential damage from the drive operating at too high a temperature. In a hard drive, both electronic
and mechanical components - such as actuator bearings, spindle motor and voice coil motor - can be
affected by excessive temperatures. Possible causes include a clogged cooling fan, a failed room air
conditioner or a cooling system that is simply overextended by too many drives or other components.
Many SMART implementations use a thermal sensor to detect the environmental conditions that affect
drive reliability - including ambient temperature, rate of cooling airflow, voltage and vibration - and
issue a user warning when the temperature exceeds a pre-defined threshold - typically in the range 60-
65°C).

The table below identifies a number of other failure conditions, their typical symptoms and causes and
the various factors whose monitoring can enable impending failure to be predicted:

Type of Failure Symptom/Cause Predictor


Growing defect list, media defects, handling Number of defects, growth
Excessive bad sectors
damage rate
Run-out, bias force
Excessive run-out Noisy bearings, motor, handling damage
diagnostics
Excessive soft errors Crack/broken head, contamination High retries, ECC involves
Drive not ready, no platter spin, handling Spin-up retries, spin-up
Motor failure, bearings
damage time
Drive not responding, no None, typically
Bad electronics module
connect catastrophic
Seek errors, calibration
Bad servo positioning High servo errors, handling damage
retries
High soft errors, servo retries, handling Read error rate, servo error
Head failure, resonance
damage rate

In its brief history, SMART technology has progressed through three distinct iterations. In its original
incarnation SMART provided failure prediction by monitoring certain online hard drive activities. A
subsequent version improved failure prediction by adding an automatic off-line read scan to monitor
additional operations. The latest SMART technology not only monitors hard drive activities but adds
failure prevention by attempting to detect and repair sector errors. Also, whilst earlier versions of the
technology only monitored hard drive activity for data that was retrieved by the operating system, this
latest SMART tests all data and all sectors of a drive by using "off-line data collection" to confirm the
drive's health during periods of inactivity.

Microdrive

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GMR technology was a key feature of IBM's (the company's hard disk drive business was
subsequently acquired by Hitachi Global Storage Technologies in 2002) revolutionary Microdrive
device, launched in mid-1999. The world’s smallest, lightest one-inch hard drive was invented at
IBM’s San Jose Research Center by a team of engineers engaged in the study of micromechanical
applications such as Si micro-machined motors and actuators for possible usage in very small disk
drives.

The Microdrive uses a single one-inch diameter glass platter with a metal coating which is less than a
thousandth of the thickness of a human hair. Powered by nine elecromagnets, the spindle motor spins
the 16g disk at 4,500rpm, data being transmitted and received through the actuator's miscroscopic
read-write heads as it sweeps across the disk. Rubber shock absorbers and an actuator locking latch
prevent damage to the disk's surface, both under normal operating conditions and if the unit is jarred or
dropped. The drive's circuit board acts as the drive's brain, controlling its functions from speed to
dataflow.

The tiny elements inside the Microdrive confer some unique advantages. For example, since the
actuator has 50 times less inertia than one in a larger drive, it can ramp up to full speed in half a

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second. Consequently, its possible to allow the drive to stop spinning when data is not being accessed -
thereby improving the device's power conservation characteristics.

Use of the industry-standard CF+ Type II interface - allowing easy integration into a variety of
handheld products and providing compatibility with PCMCIA Type II interface via the use of an
adapter - took CompactFlash storage into completely new territory, enabling high-capacity yet cost-
effective personal storage for a wide variety of electronic devices.

The Microdrive was initially released with capacities of 170MB and 340MB, with a claimed seek time
of 15ms, average latency of 6.7ms and a data transfer rate of between 32 Mbit/s and 49 Mbit/s. In
2000, 512MB and 1GB versions were released and capacities continued to increase, reaching 8GB by
2005. By that time, other manufacturers had entered the market, with Seagate having launched an 8GB
1in drive in the same year and Sony licensing re-badged Hitachi-made models under the brand name
"Sony Microdrive".

Hitachi expects to see the recent advancements in Perpendicular Magnetic Recording (PMR)
technology translate into storage capacities of up to 20GB on a one-inch Microdrive by the year 2007.

OAW technology

While GMR technology is looking to areal densities of up to 40Gbit/in2 in the next few years, some
hard disk manufacturers anticipate that the phenomenon of losing data due to data bits being packed
too close together will begin to happen when drives begin holding around 20Gbit/in2. The Seagate
subsidiary, Quinta Corporation, is planning to combat this storage technology barrier, otherwise known
as the Superparamagnetic Limit, with its Optically Assisted Winchester (OAW) technology, expected
to appear sometime during 1999.

OAW has as much in common with magneto-optical technology as conventional magnetic hard drives,
but uses a clever bundle of techniques to get around the size and performance drawbacks of MO
formats. The technique uses laser light to select various heads within the drive, rather than the typical
electromagnetic system in conventional drives. The principle is simple: a laser is focused on the
surface of a platter and can be used for reading and writing. The former relies on the Kerr Effect,
whereby polarised light bounced off a magnetised surface has its polarisation twisted. Put that through
a further polarising filter and the intensity of the light corresponds to the alignment of the illuminated
domain.

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This method of reading needs less power from the laser, so the heating effect on the medium is
minimal, preventing data corruption. The same laser and optics can be used for writing, using a
magneto-optical technique. A tiny spot on the hard disk is heated with a higher-power output laser to
beyond the temperature called the Curie Point, above which the surface material's magnetic properties
can be flipped with a magnetic coil. This changes the light polarisation characteristics. Unlike regular
magneto-optics, however, OAW heats the media and writes to it in one pass, rather than heating on one
rotation and writing on the next. OAW is able to do this as it uses a micromachined servo mirror and a
minute objective lens to focus the laser very accurately on the smallest area possible. Adjacent areas
aren't heated up and are therefore left unchanged.

Since the laser used to heat the media can be focused on a much smaller area than a magnet, higher
data densities are possible. The media itself is made of an amorphous alloy that does not have a
granular structure, with an atomic level density constraint. Unlike conventional magneto-optical disks,
the laser light is carried to the head via an optical fibre rather than being directed via mirrors through
air. As a result, the head and arm take up much less space, allowing multiple platter configurations to
be fitted into the same form factor as a Winchester hard disk. Performance should be comparable to a
regular hard disk too, but durability will be much higher, as the disk media is extremely non-volatile at
room temperature.

PLEDM

Notwithstanding the various candidates for the hard disk technology for the next millennium, it could
be that the future of hard disks doesn't lie in mechanical storage systems at all. Developments in
memory technology could mean that solid-state storage becomes a serious alternative to the hard disk.
Solid-state disk technology, with data stored in huge banks of high speed RAM, is already available at
a high-end server level, but with current RAM it can't reach the capacities or price points to make it a
mainstream proposition. However, researchers for Hitachi, Mitsubishi, Texas Instruments and others
are already at work on low-cost, high-capacity RAM chips that could fit the bill. Hitachi and
Cambridge University have been working on PLEDM (Phase-state Low Electron-number Drive
Memory).

PLEDM uses tiny two-transistor cells instead of the capacitors used in regular DRAM and can be
developed to retain memory even with power switched off. It's expected to become a commercial
product around 2005, promising a read/write time of less than 10 ns and a large signal even at low
voltage.

Millipede

In late 1999, IBM's Zurich Research Laboratory unveiled a concept which suggests that micro- and
nanomechanic systems may be able to compete with electronic and magnetic devices in the mass
storage arena. Instead of writing bits by magnetising regions of a disk's surface, "Millipede" - as the
scientists have nicknamed their novel device - melts tiny indentations into the recording medium's
surface.

Based on Atomic Force Microscopy, the technology uses tips mounted on the ends of tiny cantilevers
etched in silicon to scan surfaces in minute detail. Millipede's tips are heated with electric pulses to
750 degrees F (400 degrees C), hot enough to melt the disk's polymer-film surface. The tips leave
holes just 30 to 50 nm across. Each hole represents a bit. To read the data, Millipede detects whether a
tip is in a hole by taking the cantilever's temperature.
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The most recent array design consists of an array of 64 x 64 cantilevers (4096) on a 100 µm pitch. The
6.4 x 6.4 mm2 array is fabricated on a 10 x 10 mm2 silicon chip using a newly developed "transfer and
join" technology that allows the direct interconnection of the cantilevers with CMOS electronics used
to control the operation of the cantilevers. With this technology the cantilevers and CMOS electronics
are fabricated on two separate wafers, allowing the processes used in the fabrication to be
independently optimised. This is a critical feature, as many of the processes used to fabricate
mechanical structures such as cantilevers are not compatible with the fabrication of CMOS electronics.

The cantilevers used in the array are of a three-terminal design, with separate heaters for reading and
writing, and a capacitive platform for electrostatic actuation of the cantilevers in the z-direction. The
cantilevers are approximately 70 µm long, with a 500-700 nm long tip integrated directly above the
write heater. The apex of each tip has a radius on the scale of a few nanometers allowing data to be
written at extremely high densities (greater than 1 Tbits/in2). In addition to the cantilevers, the array
chip also carries eight thermal sensors which are used to provide x/y positioning information for
closed-loop operation of the micro-scanner.

High data rates can be achieved by parallel operation of a large number of tiny tips in a small area.
IBM scientists believe their technique will eventually allow storage densities of up to 500 gigabits per
square inch (80 Gbit/cm2). That's five to ten times the presumed upper limit for magnetic storage.

CD-ROMs
This section discusses CD-ROM drives and media. The technology behind the CD-ROM dates back to
late 1970s. In 1978, the Sony and Phillips Corporations introduced the audio compact disc (CD).
Presently, the size of the actual media and the basic design of the CD-ROM has not changed. Virtually
every system unit assembled today includes a CD-ROM drive. It consists of a spindle, a laser that
flashes onto the uneven surface of the disc, a prism that deflects the laser beam, and a light-sensitive
diode that reads the flashing light. Currently, there are many choices. They include the CD-ROM, the
CD-R, the CD-RW, and the DVD-ROM,

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A CD-ROM drive is a secondary storage device that reads information stored on a compact disc.
While floppy and hard disks are magnetic media, the CD-ROM is an optical media. The life span of
optic media is counted in tens of years. This makes the CD-ROM a very useful tool.

CD-ROMs are useful for installing programs, running applications that install some of the files to the
hard drive, and executing the program by transferring the data from the CD-ROM to memory while
the program is running.

A CD-ROM is a read-only optical storage medium. The term CD-ROM can refer to both the media
and the reader unit. The reader unit is also called a CD-ROM drive or CD.

The computer CD disk possesses the same form factor, or physical dimensions, as its music
counterpart. It is a layered disc with a polycarbonate body, approximately 4.75" in diameter. The body
is coated with a thin film of aluminum alloy. A plastic coating protects the disc from scratches. The
data is laid on the alloy film.

The major components within a CD-ROM drive are the optical head assembly, head actuator
mechanism, spindle motor, loading mechanism, connectors and jumpers, and logic board. Internal CD-
ROM drives are housed inside the computer case. External CD-ROM drives are connected to the
computer by a cable.

How the CD-ROM Works


The CD is usually produced or mastered at a factory. The recording technique for a CD is not
magnetic, as the floppy and hard disk media is. For a CD, a laser etches the data onto a master disc.
The production laser burns pits into the smooth surface of the disc, leaving flat surfaces in between.
The patterns of pits and lands represent data. Up to 682 MB of text, audio, video, and graphical data
can be written to a disc. Once the master is produced, it is used to stamp copies. Once the copies have
been made, they are then sealed for distribution.

When data is being read, light from the laser is bounced off the pits and the lands located on the
underside of the disk. The pits reflect less light, so they are read by the CD-ROM drive as 0s. The
lands reflect more light, so they are read as 1s. Together these 1s and 0s make up the binary language
understood by computers.

CD-Writers for PCs are now commonly available. They provide a more widespread ability to write
CD-ROMs in a process known as CD burning.

One specification for a CD-ROM drive is its speed. The faster the disc spins, the faster the data can be
transferred to the computer memory. The CD-ROM speed is indicated by a number with an "x" after it.
For example, a 12-speed CD-ROM is labeled as a 12x. The larger the number, the faster the disc can
spin, Two other important specifications to consider are the access time and data transfer rate.

CD-ROM speed ratings for external drives will vary. Check the manufacturer documentation for more
information.

Other specifications directly or indirectly influence speed, access time or transfer rate. They are seek
time, cache memory, interface type, and error correction.

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DVD formats and drives
A DVD is a type of optical disc that uses the same 120mm diameter as a CD. The DVD looks like a
CD, but the storage capacity is significantly higher. DVDs can be recorded on both sides and some
commercial versions can support two layers per side. This can provide more than 25 times the storage
of CD.

DVD originally stood for Digital VideoDisc. As the technology evolved in the computer world, the
video portion was dropped and it was simply D-V-D. The DVD Forum (www.dvdforum.org) was
founded in 1995 for the purpose of exchanging and disseminating ideas and information about the
DVD Format and its technical capabilities, improvements, and innovations. The DVD Forum started
using the term Digital Versatile Disc. Currently, both Digital Versatile Disk and Digital Video Disk are
acceptable.

There are two types of media developed for DVDs including plus and minus. The DVD Forum
supports DVD media with a hyphen such as DVD-R and DVD-RW. This media is called Minus R or
Minus RW. The DVD +RW Alliance, www.dvdrw.com, was created in 1997. The DVD +RW Alliance
developed the plus standards. These include DVD+R and DVD+RW. The plus and minus were
confusing until recently. In 2002 drives were introduced that support both the plus and minus types of
media.
As the price of DVD recordable and rewritable drives, comes down they will be installed on more and
more computer systems. Currently, DVD players and combo drives are affordable and included in
many computers. Combo drives are CD and DVD players together.

How the DVD-ROM Works


Like a CD, data is stored in the form of indentations and bumps on the reflective surface of every
DVD disk. The indentations are called pits, and the bumps are called lands.

When data is being read, light from the laser is bounced off the pits. The lands are located on the
underside of the disk. The pits reflect less light, so they are read by the DVD drive as 0s. The lands
reflect more light, so they are read as 1s. Together these 1s and 0s make up the binary language
understood by computers.

Speed, Access Time, and Transfer Rate


One specification for a DVD drive is its speed. The faster the disc spins, the faster the data can be
transferred to the computer memory. The DVD speed is indicated by a number with an "x" after it. For
example, a 12-speed DVD is labeled as a 12x. The larger the number, the faster the disc can spin.

Two other important specifications to consider are the access time and data transfer rate. Access time
is how quickly the data the user is looking for can be located and the laser positioned. Data transfer
rate is how fast the computer can transfer the information into memory.

DVD speed ratings for external drives will vary. Check the manufacturer documentation for more
information.

Other specifications that directly or indirectly influence speed, access time or transfer rate are seek
time, cache memory, interface type, and error correction.

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5. The Operating System


Components of an operating system
An operating system is a software program that provides an interface between the user and the
computer and manages thousands of applications. Most computer systems are sold with an operating
system installed. Computers that are designed for individual users are called Personal Computers
(PCs). PC operating systems are designed to control the operations of programs such as Web browsers,
word processors, and e-mail programs.

Test Tip: Know the definition of an operating system as it relates to a PC.

(I) Definition of OS
The Os software that control the execution of computer programs and which may provide
Scheduling,debugging,I/O Control,Accounting,Comilation,Storage assignment,data
management and related service.

MAIN FUNCTION
Computers that are capable of handling concurrent users and multiple jobs are called network servers
or servers. Servers use operating systems called Network Operating Systems (NOS). A fast computer
with a NOS installed may manage operations for a large company or a large Internet site, which
involves keeping track of many users and many programs.
There are three basic elements that make up the major design components of any operating system.
These components are described as modular because each has a distinct function and can be developed
separately:
• User interface – A user interacts with the operating system through the user interface. The user
interface is the part of the operating system that can be used to issue commands by either
typing them at a command prompt or pointing and clicking the mouse on a graphical user
interface (GUI).
• Kernel – This is the core of the operating system. The kernel is responsible for loading and
operating programs or processes and managing input and output.
• File management system – The file management system is what the operating system uses to
organize and manage files. A file is a collection of data. Virtually all of the information that a
computer stores is in the form of a file. There are many types of files, including program files,
data files, and text files. The way an operating system organizes information into files is called
the file system. Most operating systems use a hierarchical file system, which organizes files
into directories under a tree structure. The beginning of the directory system is called the root
directory.

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(II) Computer software can be divided in two
•System software
Which manage the operation of the computer itself.
OTHER SYSTEM PROGRAM INCLUDE
• Compilers-that translate the program that programmers write (source code) into a code that the
computer understands (object code).
• Linkers-Which combine several components of object code to create a system from several
programs.
• Editor-simple text editor that enable programmers to create and edit their source code.
• Interpreters-that operate to interpret commands from the keyboard, or other input device and
instruct the computer to perform a specific function,.

APLLICATION PROGRAMS
• Which solve problems for their users.
May be mass produce for the consumer or business market or may be developed specifically to
meet the needs of a particular customer or set of users.

SYSTEM SOFTWARE
The most fundamental of all the system programs is the OS. he main roles of the OS are to:
• Hide the complexities of the hardware from the user
• Mange the hardware resources in order to provide foe an orderly & controlled allocated of the
processors memories and peripherals amongst the various application and system programs
completing for them.

(III) Operating system functions


Regardless of the size and complexity of the computer and its operating system, all operating systems
perform the same basic functions:
• File and folder management – An operating system creates a file structure on the computer
hard drive where user data can be stored and retrieved. When a file is saved, the operating
system saves it, attaches a name to it, and remembers where it put the file for future use.
• Management of applications – When a user requests a program, the operating system locates
the application and loads it into the primary memory or RAM of the computer. As more
programs are loaded, the operating system must allocate the computer resources.

• Support for built-in utility programs –The operating system uses utility programs for
maintenance and repairs. Utility programs help identify problems, locate lost files, repair
damaged files, and backup data. Figure shows the progress of the Disk Defragmenter, which is
found in Programs > Accessories > System Tools.
• Control to the computer hardware – The operating system sits between the programs and the
Basic Input Output System (BIOS). The BIOS controls the hardware. All programs that need
hardware resources must go through the operating system. The operating system can either
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access the hardware through the BIOS or through the device drivers as shown in Figure . The
Windows 2000 NOS bypasses the system BIOS and controls the hardware directly.

All programs are written for a specific operating system. Programs written for the UNIX operating
system will not work on a Windows operating system. The operating system allows programmers to
write applications without having to consider hardware access. If the operating system did not transmit
information between the application and the hardware, programs would have to be rewritten every
time they were installed on a new computer.

Operating system types and basic terminology


To understand the capabilities of an operating system, it is important to understand some basic terms.
The following terms are often used when comparing operating systems:
• Multiuser – Two or more users can work with programs and share peripheral devices such as
printers at the same time.
• Multitasking – The computer is capable of operating multiple applications at the same time.
• Multiprocessing – The computer can have two or more central processing units (CPUs) that
programs share.
• Multithreading – A program can be broken into smaller parts that can be loaded as needed by
the operating system. Multithreading allows individual programs to be multitasked.

PRIMARY FUNTION OF AN OS
• Processes- process management, which support scheduling of processing and interprocess
communication and detection prevention of "deadlocks".
• Storage- manages management, to ensure that the processes that require memory can obtain it
when they need it.
• Data-file management, to ensure memory can obtain it when they need it.
• Input/output device- I/O management to ensure that the system is not held up waiting
unnecessarily is one in which the user interacts directly with the system to supply commands
and data as the application program undergoes execution and receiver the results of processing
immediately.

SECONDARY FUNCTION OF AN OS
• User accounting
In many Os it is possible to keep records of the usage that individuals have made of resources
such as CPU, disk space, printer-pages.

• Logging
The Os may keep a comprehensive record of all the system action that relates to particular
program, or to all program.

• Utility Software
Utility programs of routes carry out certain well defined procedures that are common to
virtually all application & installation.

Almost all modern operating systems are multiuser, multitasking, and support multithreading.

The following is a list of some of the most popular operating systems:


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• Microsoft Windows 95, 98, and ME – Windows is one of the most popular operating systems
today. These operating systems are designed for PCs with Intel-compatible CPUs. Windows-
based PCs use a GUI as the interface between the computer and the user. These systems are
designed for a single user.
• Microsoft Windows NT, 2000, and XP – These operating systems are designed to support
multiple users and to operate multiple applications simultaneously. Windows NT, 2000, and XP
have incorporated many networking features.
• The Macintosh Operating System – The first Macintosh computers became available in
January of 1984 and were designed to be very user-friendly compared to the existing DOS
computers. The latest release of the Macintosh Operating system is called System X. System X
is highly functional and is based on UNIX as its core technology.
• UNIX – UNIX, which was introduced in the late 1960s, is one of the oldest operating systems.
UNIX has always been popular with the professionals responsible for maintaining computer
networks. UNIX-based computers from IBM, Hewlett-Packard (HP), and SUN Microsystems
have helped maintain Internet operations since the beginning. There are many different
versions of UNIX today. One of the most recent is the extremely popular Linux.
Windows, UNIX, and Macintosh operating systems are proprietary operating systems, which means
that they must be purchased. Linux is an operating system that is open source and is available as a free
download or from developers at a much lower cost than an OS like Windows. As UNIX-based
computers have become more powerful and GUIs have became more common, the popularity of Linux
has increased.

(IV) Disk Operating System (DOS)


What is DOS, and why learn about it?
Microsoft developed the Disk Operating System (DOS) in 1981. DOS, which is sometimes called MS-
DOS, was designed for the IBM PC. Windows 98 and Windows 2000 both support DOS commands to
reduce compatibility issues with older applications. DOS is a collection of programs and commands
that are used to control overall computer operations in a disk-based system. There are three distinct
sections that make up the disk operating system:
• Boot files – These are used during the boot process, or system startup.
• File management files – These enable a system to manage its data in a system of files and
folders.
• Utility files – These enable the user to manage system resources, troubleshoot the system, and
configure the system settings.

DOS programs usually work in the background and allow the user to input characters from the
keyboard, define a file structure for storing records on the disk, and output data to a printer or monitor.
DOS is responsible for finding and organizing data and applications on the disk.

The introduction of operating systems with GUIs, such as Microsoft Windows, has made DOS mostly
obsolete. However, DOS is still important in many areas including programming, operating older
applications, and installing Windows operating systems, especially on older computers. All
generations of Windows support DOS commands for backward compatibility with older applications.
It is important to understand the basics of DOS before proceeding with a Windows operating system
installation.

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Basic Elements of DOS


DOS is useful as a troubleshooting aid when Windows will not boot. It allows the hard drive to be
accessed without the GUI and provides the ability to run troubleshooting or diagnostic programs. The
following are some of the basic properties of DOS:
DOS is a command line operating system and it is not user-friendly. The best way to learn about DOS
is to use it.
• DOS can only run one program at a time. It does not support multitasking.
• DOS can only run small programs and has memory limitations.
• DOS is an essential tool for IT professionals and is used extensively for troubleshooting.

To access DOS from Windows, click on Start > Run. A separate window opens that allows commands
to be entered. Then type command to access the DOS prompt.

DOS file structure


To understand basic DOS commands, first look at the structure of the disk. Programs and data are
stored on a disk the same way that a document would be filed in a file cabinet. Program and data files
in DOS are grouped together in directories. Directories are similar to folders in a file cabinet. The files
and directories are organized for easy retrieval and use. Directories can be kept inside other
directories, just like a folder can be placed inside another folder. Nested directories are referred to as
subdirectories. Directories are called folders in Windows operating systems.

What Is a File?
A file is a block of related data that is given a single name and treated as a single unit. Examples
include programs, documents, drawings and other types of illustrations, and sound components. A
record is kept of the location of every directory, subdirectory, and file on a disk. This record is stored
on a table called the File Allocation Table (FAT). FAT32, which was introduced in Windows 95 OSR2,
is an improved version of FAT. FAT32 allows a more efficient use of disk space for storing files.

Files are referred to by filenames. In DOS, filenames can be up to eight characters with an extension
of three characters. The extension, which identifies the file type, is separated from the main portion of
the filename by a period (.). An example of a DOS file name is mynotes.txt.

In DOS, all files have attributes, which are a set of parameters that describe a file. The nature of a file
can be determined by the attributes of a file. The common attributes for DOS files include the
following:
• Hidden File – The user will not see hidden files when using a normal file search in a DOS
environment.
• Read Only – The user can open and read this type of file but cannot modify the file in any way.
• Archive – The archive contains a backup copy of files.
• System File – The DOS operating system must have these files for a successful boot up.

Hidden files are important files that must be concealed and protected from unauthorized users. A
hidden file is not listed in a standard DOS directory listing and it can only be seen with a specific

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command. It is important to note that a hidden file can still be accessed and modified. To see a hidden
file, use the command dir /ah at a command prompt.

Directory Structures and Organization


Hard drives organize the disk into directories and subdirectories. The main directory is called the root
directory. All other directories branch out from the root directory, similar to the branches of a tree. In
MS-DOS, a graphical representation of the directory organization is called a directory tree, as shown
in Figure . It is important to understand how DOS organizes disks when preparing a hard drive for
Windows installation.

Finding a file requires knowledge of the drive, directory, and subdirectory in which the file is found.
The first hard drive in most computer systems is C. Each hard drive in the computer can be thought of
as a file cabinet or root. The root of the C drive is represented by C:\. Any files or directories within
the root are represented by the root followed by the name of the file or directory, such as C:\example.
Any directory or file located within a directory is represented by the directory name, followed by a
backslash (\), followed by the name of the file or subdirectory, such as C:\example\file.exe. In MS-
DOS, the format for specifying the path to a file is C:\directory\subdirectory
\subdirectory\filename:
The C:\ specifies the C disk drive of the computer.
The back slash (\) after each item signifies the presence of a directory or subdirectory.
The first back slash indicates the root directory, which is present on all DOS disks.
The filename, which is found at the end of the path, is located in the final subdirectory.

Overview of basic DOS commands


A DOS command is an instruction that DOS executes from the command line. Internal commands
such as dir and copy are built into the COMMAND.COM program and are always available when
DOS is operating. Many external commands such as format and xcopy are individual programs that
reside in the DOS directory.

Internal versus External DOS Commands


DOS contains internal commands, which are built into the operating system, and external commands,
which must be executed from a file. Basic commands are generally internal and more advanced
commands are usually external. External commands are stored on disk for future use. Internal
commands are located in the COMMAND.COM program, and are loaded into memory during the
boot up process. Examples of internal and external commands are discussed later in this module.

What Is a Command Line?


The operating system usually provides the user interface. In DOS, the main user interface is the
command line. The command line is the space that follows the DOS prompt. For example, C:\
represents the hard disk drive root directory in C:\>. The greater-than sign (>) is called the prompt. All
DOS commands are typed to the right of the prompt and are executed by pressing the Enter key. All
DOS functions can be entered and executed from the command line. For example, all system files in
the C directory can be viewed by typing C:\>dir *.sys.

Commonly Used DOS Commands and Switches


DOS commands are used to instruct the disk operating system to perform a specific task. Many DOS
commands can be modified by adding switches to the end. Switches are options that will modify the

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output of the command. A switch is added to the command by adding a space, a forward-slash (/), and
a single letter. For example, C:\>dir /w.

In this example, the /w is a switch. The /w will modify the dir command by presenting the screen
output information in a wide format. The rest of this section will focus on some commonly used DOS
commands and switches. The following commands are helpful for various operating system
installations:
attrib – Used to display, set, or remove one or more of the four attributes that can be assigned to files
and directories. The four attributes are read-only, archive, system, and hidden. The attrib command is
an external DOS command. A plus (+) or minus (-) sign used in the attrib command sets or clears an
attribute. The format of the attrib command is as follows:

attrib [ + or - ] [variable] [directory\filename] /[switch]

The following variables can be used with the attrib command:

– r – Indicates a read-only file


– a – Indicates an archive file
– s – Indicates a system file
– h – Indicates a hidden file

del – This command deletes named files. The del and erase commands are synonymous. The switch /p
is commonly used to prompt the user for confirmation before deleting each file. The format of the del
command is as follows:

del [directory\filename] /[switch]

edit – This external command allows a user to view, create, or modify a file. The format of the edit
command is as follows:

edit [directory\filename] /[switch]

The following switches are commonly used with the edit command:

– b – Forces monochrome mode


– h – Displays the maximum number of lines possible for the hardware
– r – Loads files in read-only mode
– [file] – Specifies initial files to load, wildcards and multiple file specs can be given

format – This external command is used to erase all the information from a floppy disk or a hard drive.
The format command can be used to prepare a hard drive before installing a Windows OS. A typical
format command is as follows:

format [directory\filename] /[switch]

The following switches are commonly used with the format command:

– q – Performs a quick format but does not clear the FAT so file recovery is possible
– s – Copies system files to the formatted disk

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– u – Performs unconditional format and all previous data, including the FAT, is permanently erased

Note: The /s switch must be added when formatting to make a system disk. If this switch is not used,
the disk can be reformatted or the DOS sys command can be used.

fdisk – This external command allows users to delete and create partitions on the hard disk drive. The
fdisk command is commonly used to prepare the hard drive before installing a Windows OS. This
command is entered at the command prompt as follows:

fdisk /[switch]

A commonly used switch is /status, it displays partition information when used with the fdisk
command.

scandisk – This command is a DOS program that is designed to detect and repair errors on a hard drive
or floppy disk. The scandisk command is entered at the command prompt as follows:

scandisk /[switch]

Switches commonly used with the scandisk command are as follows:

– all – Checks and repairs all local drives at once


– checkonly – Checks the drive for errors but does not make repairs
– autofix – Automatically fixes errors and saves lost clusters by default as files in the root directory

mem – This external command is used to display a table that shows how memory is currently
allocated. The mem command is entered at the command prompt as follows:

mem /[switch]

Switches commonly used with the mem command are as follows:

– c – Lists the programs that are currently loaded into memory and shows how much conventional and
upper memory each program is using
– d – Lists the programs and internal drivers that are currently loaded into memory
– e – Lists the free areas of conventional and upper memory, which are discussed later in this module
– p – Pauses after each screen of information

copy – This command is commonly used to copy one or more files from one location to another. The
copy command can also be used to create new files. By using the copy con: command to copy files
from the keyboard console to the screen, files can be created and then saved to disk. Switches
commonly used with the copy command are as follows:

– y – Replaces existing files without providing a confirmation prompt


– -y – Displays a confirmation prompt before copying over existing files
– a – Copies ASCII files and applies to the filename preceding it and to all following filenames
– b – Copies binary files and applies to the filename preceding it and to all following filenames
– v – Checks the copy to make sure that a file was copied correctly and displays an error message if
the copy cannot be verified

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more – Displays output one screen at a time. The more command is entered at the command prompt as
follows:

more [filename]

The cd, mkdir, rmdir, and deltree commands are slightly different because they do not use switches. A
brief description of these commands is as follows:
cd – Changes or displays the current directory on the specified drive
mkdir or md – Creates a new directory
rmdir or rd – Removes an empty directory, can only be used after all subdirectories and files within the
directory have been deleted or moved
deltree – Deletes a directory, including all files and subdirectories that are in it

Test Tip: Be able to perform DOS operations and know the most commonly used commands.

Creating a DOS boot disk

There are times when computers will not be able to start. To troubleshoot the problem, an alternate
method of starting the system is needed. A DOS boot disk is an important tool that is used to perform
this task. DOS boot disks can also be used to boot up a newly assembled computer to install the
operating system. The boot disk is a floppy disk with three necessary system files on it:
• COMMAND.COM
• IO.SYS
• MSDOS.SYS

Note: The DOS boot disk may also contain a file called drvspace.bin. This file is only necessary to
read a drive that has been compressed. The data on a compressed drive cannot be accessed without this
file.

Diagnostic programs should also be included on this disk. To create the boot disk, perform the
following steps on a computer with DOS installed on the hard disk:

Step 1 Start the computer.

Step 2 Insert a blank floppy disk in the drive.

Step 3 Type format A: /s at the command prompt and press Enter.

Step 4 Type sys A: if the disk is already formatted and press Enter.

Booting the system with a DOS disk


A DOS boot disk is used to boot a computer to the DOS prompt. The first section of a DOS disk
contains the boot sector. The boot sector includes information about how the disk is organized.
Sometimes it contains a small master boot record (MBR) that can access a larger and more powerful
bootstrap loader program, which is located in the root directory.

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The MBR is usually found at sector-1, head-0, and track-0 of the first logical hard drive or on the boot
disk. The MBR is the required boot record on any boot or system disk. The MBR can boot up the
hardware system to the operating system. A boot disk simplifies the process of preparing a hard drive
and installing an operating system.

Booting the System


Insert a bootable disk in the floppy disk drive and turn on the computer. The BIOS will execute the
bootstrap program, which is a small BIOS program that initiates and controls a large portion of the
boot up process. The bootstrap program will move the MBR into RAM and then BIOS will begin
loading the operating system. If the system performs a standard DOS boot up it will usually display
the date and time prompts on the monitor screen, followed by the DOS command line prompt A:\. This
prompt indicates that DOS is operational and that the A: floppy drive is the currently active drive.

DOS configuration files


In the MS-DOS operating system, there are two important configuration files called CONFIG.SYS and
AUTOEXEC.BAT. These files can be included in the DOS boot up process. These files are used to
optimize the system.

At the beginning of the boot procedure BIOS checks the root directory of the boot disk for the
CONFIG.SYS file. Then it searches for the COMMAND.COM interpreter. Finally, it looks in the root
directory again for the AUTOEXEC.BAT file. The AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files can play
important roles in optimizing the system memory and disk-drive usage. The order of file execution in
the boot up process can be summarized as follows:
• IO.SYS
• MSDOS.SYS
• CONFIG.SYS
• COMMAND.COM
• AUTOEXEC.BAT

Test Tip: Remember the files involved in the DOS boot up process and the order of their execution.
In Windows 9x, CONFIG.SYS is mostly needed for the installation of real-mode device drivers for
devices that are not supported by Windows 9x 32-bit device drivers. Real-mode is discussed later in
this module.

CONFIG.SYS
The CONFIG.SYS resides in the root directory and is used to load drivers and change settings at
startup. Installation programs often modify CONFIG.SYS to customize the computer for their own
use. Most CONFIG.SYS files in Windows 9x will be empty, plain text files that are waiting for any
changes that the user wants to add to the system. After switching from DOS to Windows 9x, most of
the values that were formerly located in this file will move to IO.SYS. To override the values in
IO.SYS, enter the appropriate statements and values in CONFIG.SYS. CONFIG.SYS is also used to
run memory managers.
During the boot process, while the MS-DOS message "Starting DOS..." is on the screen, special
function keys can be used to alter CONFIG.SYS. There is also an option to access

AUTOEXEC.BAT:
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F5 or the left Shift key – Skips CONFIG.SYS file including AUTOEXEC.BAT files
F8 – Proceeds through the CONFIG.SYS files and any AUTOEXEC.BAT files one step at a time
waiting for user confirmation

Test Tip: Know the function keys that can be used during the boot process.

AUTOEXEC.BAT
The AUTOEXEC.BAT contains DOS commands that will automatically be executed when DOS is
loaded into the system. The following commands are normally located in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
DATE – Causes DOS to prompt the user for the date
TIME – Causes DOS to prompt the user for the date and time
PROMPT=$P$G – Causes the active drive and directory path to be displayed on the command line
SET TEMP=C:\TEMP – Sets up an area for holding data temporarily in a directory called TEMP
PATH=C:\;C:\DOS;C:\MOUSE – This command creates a specific set of paths that DOS uses to
search for executable .COM, .EXE, and .BAT files. In this example, DOS will first search for
executable files in the root directory of C, followed by the DOS directory, and finally the MOUSE
directory.
DOSKEY – Loads the DOSKEY program into memory
SMARTDRV.EXE 2048 1024 – Configures the system for a 1-MB disk cache in DOS and a 2-MB
cache for Windows
CD\ – Causes the DOS default directory to change to the root directory
DIR – Causes a DOS DIR command to be performed automatically

It is important to know which commands are normally located in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file.

Editing system configuration files

SYSEDIT is a standard text editor used to edit system configuration files such as CONFIG.SYS and
AUTOEXEC.BAT. This utility can also be used to edit the Windows initialization files that are
generally referred to as INI files. INI files are text files that users can edit with a standard text editor
utility such as SYSEDIT. INI files were created when Windows 3.x was added to the DOS structure,
and have been included in the \Windows directory of more recent Windows operating systems for
backward compatibility. Common examples are WIN.INI and SYSTEM.INI. CONFIG.SYS and
AUTOEXEC.BAT are found at the root directory C:\. To access these configuration files in Windows
95, choose Start > Run and type sysedit.
These files can also be accessed for editing in MS-DOS by typing EDIT CONFIG.SYS or EDIT
AUTOEXEC.BAT at the DOS command prompt

Memory types
The operating system that runs the computer uses physical memory and virtual memory. Physical
memory is called RAM and is also referred to as system memory. The four categories of system
memory in the operating system are conventional, upper, high and extended memory.
The logical divisions of memory were originally created because MS-DOS and early IBM PC
microprocessors had a maximum memory space of 1 MB. This 1 MB of memory was split into two
chunks. The first 640 KB was for the user and the operating system and the upper 384 KB was for

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BIOS and utilities. Since Windows 9x is built on an MS-DOS foundation, it supports different types of
physical memory specifications from the original IBM PC and its many descendants. These physical
memory specifications are discussed in this section, while virtual memory is discussed in a later
section.

Conventional Memory
Conventional memory includes all memory addresses between 0 and 640 KB. It is also called base
memory. This is the area where MS-DOS programs normally operate. In older DOS machines, this is
the only memory available for running the operating system files, application programs, memory-
resident routines, and device drivers. Memory-resident routines include terminate-and-stay (TSR)
programs such as mouse and CD-ROM drivers.

Upper Memory and Expanded Memory


Also known as reserved memory, upper memory includes memory addresses that fall between 640 KB
and 1024 KB (1 MB). It follows conventional memory and has a size of 384 KB. Upper memory is
available in the form of upper memory blocks (UMBs). Programs that operate on upper memory
include system BIOS, plug-and-play BIOS, video BIOS, and video RAM. Depending on the system,
between 96 KB and 160 KB of this memory space is not used by hardware, but these addresses are
only available if an appropriate memory manager such as EMM386.EXE is installed during the startup
process..

Expanded memory is another memory area that is similar to upper memory. Expanded memory is also
called the expanded memory specification (EMS). This memory that can be accessed in pages of 16-
KB chunks from a 64-KB page frame. These pages are established in unused UMBs. The primary
device driver that allows the use of EMS is the EMM386.EXE. This program frees up conventional
memory by allowing unused portions of the reserved memory area to be used for DOS drivers and
memory-resident routines.

Extended Memory
The 80286 microprocessor and its protected operating mode made it possible to access physical
memory locations beyond the 1-MB limit of the 8088 and 8086 microprocessors. Memory above this
address is generally referred to as extended memory. This area of memory is also called extended
memory specification (XMS). XMS is the primary memory area used by Windows 9x. A device driver
that is loaded by the operating system controls this memory area. Windows 9x loads the XMS driver
called HIMEM.SYS during startup. HIMEM.SYS makes extended memory available to Windows 9x
and other compatible MS-DOS programs. Figure illustrates the allocation of extended memory.

High Memory
After the XMS driver is loaded and extended memory becomes available to the operating system, the
first 64 KB of extended memory is called the high memory area (HMA). HIMEM.SYS usually
activates the DOS=HIGH option, which allows the MS-DOS kernel used by Windows 9x to be copied
into the HMA. DOS uses the HMA, which frees up conventional memory for use by applications. .

Memory management tools


There are several tools that can be used to manage and optimize system memory. Some of these tools
and how they are used are explored in this section.
EMM386.EXE – This memory manager emulates expanded memory and thus makes upper memory
available for use by the operating system. It can be used as follows:

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To add MS-DOS TSR utilities into upper memory blocks, include this line in CONFIG.SYS:

Device=C: \Windows\Emm386.exe NOEMS

The NOEMS (No Expanded Memory) option tells the OS not to convert extended memory to
expanded memory. This is shown in Figure .

The file IO.SYS adds the following statement to the memory configuration to make UMBs available
to MS-DOS TSRs:

DOS=UMB

To add MS-DOS applications needing access to EMS memory, include this statement in
CONFIG.SYS:

Device=C: \Windows\Emm386.exe RAM

This statement, shown in Figure , converts XMS memory space to a common pool of XMS/EMS
memory that is available to both Windows 9x and DOS applications. Note that again the DOS=UMB
statement is added by IO.SYS to make unused UMBs available to MS-DOS TSRs.

HIMEM.SYS – Load this device driver to convert memory starting at 1 MB available as XMS or
extended memory. It is loaded from the config.sys file. The syntax for this command is:

DEVICE=C: \DOS\HIMEM.SYS

DOS=HIGH – Option added into Config.sys file to tell the operating system to move a portion of itself
(such as MS-DOS Kernel) into the High Memory Area. Usually combined with DOS=UMB to tell it
to create an upper memory block using this syntax:

DOS=HIGH, UMB

DEVICEHIGH/LOADHIGH – DEVICEHIGH (used in CONFIG.SYS) and LOADHIGH (used in


Autoexec.Bat) both put upper memory blocks to use, once HIMEM.SYS and EMM386.EXE have
been loaded. To load a mouse driver high, for example, use this syntax:

DEVICEHIGH=C: \DOS\MOUSE.SYS

Other system memory tools include MemMaker, included with DOS 6.0, to help simplify the task of
placing TSRs into upper memory. Use this utility to make the needed entries in the CONFIG.SYS and
AUTOEXEC.BAT files.

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6. BACKUPS
(I) Computer Data Backup
Data backup involves the saving of your data in two or more locations, so that if something happens to
your computer, you still have your data reserved in backup. This allows you to keep your data even if
you lose your computer. While you might think that the chances of having a major loss of data on your
computer or even having your entire computer crash are very small, disasters happen and it is always
best to prepare for the worst, especially when it comes to something as irreplaceable as your files.

Why Backup?

Data loss can happen in many ways. One of the most common causes is physical failure of the media
the data is stored on. You probably have everything saved on your PCs hard drive. That hard drive will
not live forever. To quote a friend of mine, "there are only two types of hard drives - the ones that have
failed and the ones that will fail." Yes, normally hard drives will live for years without incident. But
eventually they will die. It might happen gradually, by more and more bad clusters accumulating until
most of the drive is unusable. Or it might happen suddenly, the hard drive just dies without warning.

Another bad storage media are floppy disks. They are good for temporary storage and maybe
transporting information, but not for permanent data storage. I've lost count of how many floppies I've
tossed because they were bad. And I have talked to countless people who saved valuable data to a
floppy only to find out when they needed to access it that the floppy was bad and the data inaccessible.

Another possible cause for data loss is power failure or spikes. It can result in loss of the document
you are currently working on because you did not save it before the power failed and your PC shut
down, or in loss of your entire hard drive because a power surge fried your motherboard and destroyed
the file allocation table of your hard drive.

Also worth mentioning is data loss through virus attacks. There are plenty of nasty computer viruses
out there that will delete files on an infected machine. That's why Virus Protection is just as important.

What data should you back up?

Let's start with your favorite places on the Internet and that long list of bookmarks. Do you want to
lose all those? How about the e-mail addresses from all your friends? That would take a long time to
accumulate those again. What about that to-do list you wrote? Or about that nice picture somebody e-
mailed you and that you saved? How about that family history you collected over the years and put
into a database? Maybe you have a document for work, like a presentation or a spreadsheet that you
created at home and don't have a copy on your work PC? Think about that saved game of your favorite
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game where it took you weeks or months to get to that level. These are just the most common
examples, and I know that after thinking about it for a while you will realize that there is a lot of
information you don't want to lose. That's why you should back up your data.

Selecting Backup Devices and Media

Many tools are available for backing up data. Some are fast and expensive. Others are slow but very
reliable. The backup solution that's right for your organization depends on many factors, including:-

• Capacity. The amount of data that you need to back up on a routine basis. Can the backup
hardware support the required load given your time and resource constraints?
• Reliability .The reliability of the backup hardware and media. Can you afford to sacrifice
reliability to meet budget or time needs?
• Extensibility The extensibility of the backup solution. Will this solution meet your needs as the
organization grows?
• Speed. The speed with which data can be backed up and recovered. Can you afford to sacrifice
speed to reduce costs?
• Cost. The cost of the backup solution. Does it fit into your budget?

(II) Selecting Media for Backup


There are many different types of media on which backups can be stored. The type of media you use
will depend largely on preference, availability, and file size. How frequently you do the backups will
depend on how critical it is to have an up to date copy of your files. Here are some of your main
options for creating backups:-

• Network Server
• USB Pen Drive
• CD-R(W)
• DVD-R(W)
• Floppy Disk
• Zip Disk

Network server

All students have 80MB of space on the student servers. While working in the Open-Access Labs you
can save your files on the M: drive (on a Windows PC) or on your Home directory (named with the
letter S, followed by your Matriculation number on a Mac). This drive is backed up once a week. You
can backup data from your home computer by copying it to your Home space on the student server via
floppy, pen drive or CD.

USB Pen-drives

A USB pen-drive is a small, portable means to store and carry your computer files. It is accessed
through the USB port on your computer. The main advantages of USB pen drives are that they are
highly portable and store much more data than a floppy disk.
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The USB port is usually found at the back of your PC, it is a narrow socket about 1cm wide by 0.5cm
high. The USB pen-drive will only connect to this socket. In some labs the USB port will be located
on the front of the PC below the CD-Rom drive.

Insert the pen-drive into the USB port by gently pushing it into the slot. Be sure to check the alignment
of the drive when inserting it into the slot, as forcing it into the USB port can damage the Pen-drive.

To safely extract the pen-drive, click the on the Safely Remove Hardware button in the System Tray
(the area of the Taskbar with the clock and other icons) and follow the instructions to safely eject the
pen-drive. To see this button, you may first have to reveal the full list of buttons with the Show Hidden
Icons arrow.
The message Safe to Remove Hardware will appear and you can then remove the pen-drive.
Remember to take your pen-drive with you. You will be responsible for looking after your own pen-
drives and other removable media, preventing them being damaged by water, heat, or strong sunlight.
Magnetic fields should also be avoided.

CD-Rom drives and CD Writers

A CD-Rom drive has a wide door marked compact disc and an eject button. A CD-Rom writer can be
recognised because it often has indicated some numbers as 24x10x40 on the front panel. These specify
the speed for writing, re-writing and reading. You should also look out for the word Writable or
ReWritable as part of the standard CD logo.
To insert a CD, first press the eject button. A tray will slide out. Place the CD in the tray shiny side
down and press the eject button again. The tray will retract back into the machine. Do not press on the
tray. Usually once the tray has retracted you will hear the disk begin to spin and the light on the drive
may flash or come on constantly. (Occasionally you will come across a computing lab machine with a
trayless CD-Rom drive. In this case the CD is inserted directly into the slot and is automatically drawn
in to the machine.)

DVD-R(w) drives

A DVD-Rom drive is very similar in appearance to a CD-Rom drive, but the front panel will have the
standard DVD logo printed on it. If the drive is a Writable DVD drive, then the DVD logo will usually
include the word 'Writable'. These drives are not as widespread as Writable CD-Rom drives. 'Combo'
drives are quite popular, and they are capable of reading and writing CDs, but only of reading DVDs.
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Numbers such as 24x10x40 on the front panel are usually indicative of the CD writing speed, so they
will not tell you whether the drive is capable of writing to DVDs.

Floppy Disks

Almost all machines have floppy disk drives. A floppy disk drive will normally have a small light and
a button very close to it (often just below the slot). Insert a disk into the drive by gently pushing the
disk into the slot with the metal slide entering first and the label facing upwards. The disk can be
ejected by pushing the eject button. The floppy disk drive light will come on when the computer is
reading information from or writing information to the disk. Simply insert the floppy disk into the
drive, and copy or save files to it. (The floppy drive will almost always be the A: drive on a Windows
PC.) When the activity light goes off, it is safe to eject the disk.
Note: Although floppy disks are convenient because of their widespread use, they are slow,
notoriously unreliable, and hold very little data. If you are planning to keep backups on a floppy disk,
you should always make sure that you have another backup on a different media.

ZIP Disks

A ZIP disk is thicker than a normal floppy disk and can contain much more information. It has its own
type of disk drive which is different to a floppy disk drive. The PC must have a ZIP disk drive in order
to accept a ZIP disk. These are not commonly available, but can be identified by a label reading
Iomega on the front panel. The drive slot is also thicker than a floppy drive. To operate and handle the
ZIP disks, follow the same instructions as for the floppy disk.
Approximate sizes of media

Type of Media Size of Media


USB Pen Drive 128 Mb, 256 Mb, 512 Mb, 1 Gb+
CD-R(W) 700 Mb
DVD-R(W) 1.4 Gb, 4.7 Gb
Floppy Disk 1.44 Mb
Zip Disk 100 Mb, 250 Mb, 750 Mb

Creating a Backup and Recovery Plan

Data backup is an insurance plan. Important files are accidentally deleted all the time. Mission-critical
data can become corrupt. Natural disasters can leave your office in ruin. With a solid backup and
recovery plan, you can recover from any of these. Without one, you're left with nothing to fall back on.

Figuring Out a Backup Plan

It takes time to create and implement a backup and recovery plan. You'll need to figure out what data
needs to be backed up, how often the data should be backed up, and more. To help you create a plan,
consider the following:
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• How important is the data on your systems? The importance of data can go a long way in
helping you determine if you need to back it up—as well as when and how it should be backed
up. For critical data, such as a database, you'll want to have redundant backup sets that extend
back for several backup periods. For less important data, such as daily user files, you won't
need such an elaborate backup plan, but you'll need to back up the data regularly and ensure
that the data can be recovered easily.
• What type of information does the data contain? Data that doesn't seem important to you may
be very important to someone else. Thus, the type of information the data contains can help you
determine if you need to back up the data—as well as when and how the data should be backed
up.
• How often does the data change? The frequency of change can affect your decision on how
often the data should be backed up. For example, data that changes daily should be backed up
daily.
• How quickly do you need to recover the data? Time is an important factor in creating a backup
plan. For critical systems, you may need to get back online swiftly. To do this, you may need to
alter your backup plan.
• Do you have the equipment to perform backups? You must have backup hardware to perform
backups. To perform timely backups, you may need several backup devices and several sets of
backup media. Backup hardware includes tape drives, optical drives, and removable disk
drives. Generally, tape drives are less expensive but slower than other types of drives.
• Who will be responsible for the backup and recovery plan? Ideally, someone should be a
primary contact for the organization's backup and recovery plan. This person may also be
responsible for performing the actual backup and recovery of data.
• What is the best time to schedule backups? Scheduling backups when system use is as low as
possible will speed the backup process. However, you can't always schedule backups for off-
peak hours. So you'll need to carefully plan when key system data is backed up.
• Do you need to store backups off-site? Storing copies of backup tapes off-site is essential to
recovering your systems in the case of a natural disaster. In your off-site storage location, you
should also include copies of the software you may need to install to reestablish operational
systems.

The Basic Types of Backup

There are many techniques for backing up files. The techniques you use will depend on the type of
data you're backing up, how convenient you want the recovery process to be, and more.

If you view the properties of a file or directory in Windows Explorer, you'll note an attribute called
Archive. This attribute often is used to determine whether a file or directory should be backed up. If
the attribute is on, the file or directory may need to be backed up. The basic types of backups you can
perform include:-

• Normal/full backups. All files that have been selected are backed up, regardless of the setting
of the archive attribute. When a file is backed up, the archive attribute is cleared. If the file is
later modified, this attribute is set, which indicates that the file needs to be backed up.
• Copy backups. All files that have been selected are backed up, regardless of the setting of the
archive attribute. Unlike a normal backup, the archive attribute on files isn't modified. This
allows you to perform other types of backups on the files at a later date.

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• Differential backups. Designed to create backup copies of files that have changed since the
last normal backup. The presence of the archive attribute indicates that the file has been
modified and only files with this attribute are backed up. However, the archive attribute on files
isn't modified. This allows you to perform other types of backups on the files at a later date.
• Incremental backups. Designed to create backups of files that have changed since the most
recent normal or incremental backup. The presence of the archive attribute indicates that the
file has been modified and only files with this attribute are backed up. When a file is backed
up, the archive attribute is cleared. If the file is later modified, this attribute is set, which
indicates that the file needs to be backed up.
• Daily backups. Designed to back up files using the modification date on the file itself. If a file
has been modified on the same day as the backup, the file will be backed up. This technique
doesn't change the archive attributes of files.

In your backup plan you'll probably want to perform full backups on a weekly basis and supplement
this with daily, differential, or incremental backups. You may also want to create an extended backup
set for monthly and quarterly backups that includes additional files that aren't being backed up
regularly.

Tip You'll often find that weeks or months can go by before anyone notices that a file or data source is
missing. This doesn't mean the file isn't important. Although some types of data aren't used often,
they're still needed. So don't forget that you may also want to create extra sets of backups for monthly
or quarterly periods, or both, to ensure that you can recover historical data over time.

Differential and Incremental Backups

The difference between differential and incremental backups is extremely important. To understand the
distinction between them, examine Table 14-1. As it shows, with differential backups you back up all
the files that have changed since the last full backup (which means that the size of the differential
backup grows over time). With incremental backups, you only back up files that have changed since
the most recent full or incremental backup (which means the size of the incremental backup is usually
much smaller than a full backup).

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Table 14-1 Incremental and Differential Backup Techniques

Day of Weekly Full Backup with Weekly Full Backup with Daily
Week Daily Differential Backup Incremental Backup
Sunday A full backup is performed. A full backup is performed.
A differential backup
An incremental backup contains changes
Monday contains all changes since
since Sunday.
Sunday.
A differential backup
An incremental backup contains changes
Tuesday contains all changes since
since Monday.
Sunday.
A differential backup
An incremental backup contains changes
Wednesday contains all changes since
since Tuesday.
Sunday.
A differential backup
An incremental backup contains changes
Thursday contains all changes since
since Wednesday.
Sunday.
A differential backup
An incremental backup contains changes
Friday contains all changes since
since Thursday.
Sunday.
A differential backup
An incremental backup contains changes
Saturday contains all changes since
since Friday.
Sunday.

Once you determine what data you're going to back up and how often, you can select backup devices
and media that support these choices. These are covered in the next section.

(iii) Backup Process in Windows Xp


Get Started

Before you can even think about creating a backup, you have to get your files in order. This doesn't
mean you need to make compulsively rearrange every file in every folder. Just check to make certain
all your essential data files are stored in one easy-to-find location.

Windows XP makes this task especially easy by giving every user account its own personal profile,
which consists of a set of subfolders in the Documents and Settings folder. Your profile holds your
personal files (in the My Documents folder), Outlook Express e-mail messages, Internet Explorer
Favorites and cookies, and information about your settings and preferences. If you have personal data
stored elsewhere, consider moving it into the My Documents folder to make backing up easier. If
you're unwilling or unable to move those files, make a note of where they're located so you can be sure
you add them to your backup set later.

Open Windows XP Backup

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Windows XP includes its own backup program, although you may need to do some digging to find it.
You can also take your pick of third-party programs (listed at the end of this column) that add bells and
whistles you won't find in the basic Windows XP Backup utility.

If you use Windows XP Professional, the Windows Backup utility (Ntbackup.exe) should be ready for
use. If you use Windows XP Home Edition, you'll need to follow these steps to install the utility:

1. Insert your Windows XP CD into the drive and, if necessary, double-click the CD icon in My
Computer.
2. On the Welcome to Microsoft Windows XP screen, click Perform Additional Tasks
3. Click Browse this CD.
4. In Windows Explorer, double-click the ValueAdd folder, then Msft, and then Ntbackup.
5. Double-click Ntbackup.msi to install the Backup utility.

With that chore out of the way, you're ready to begin backing up. By default, the Backup utility uses a
wizard that makes the process straightforward. To start Backup:

1 Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and
. then click Backup to start the wizard.
2 Click Next to skip past the opening page, choose Back up files and settings from the
. second page, and then click Next. You should see the page shown in Figure 1, which
represents your first decision point.

Figure 1

Decide What to Back Up

You might be tempted to click All information on this computer so that you can back up every bit of
data on your computer. Think twice before choosing this option, however. If you've installed a slew of
software, your backup could add up to many gigabytes. For most people, the My documents and
settings option is a better choice. This selection preserves your data files (including e-mail messages
and address books) and the personal settings stored in the Windows Registry.
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If several people use your computer—as might be the case on a shared family PC—select Everyone's
documents and settings. This option backs up personal files and preferences for every user with an
account on the computer.

If you know that you have data files stored outside your profile, click Let me choose what to back up.
This option takes you to the Items to Back Up page shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2

Select the My Documents check box to back up all the files in your personal profile, and then browse
the My Computer hierarchy to select the additional files you need to back up. If some of your files are
on a shared network drive, open the My Network Places folder and select those folders.

This option also comes in handy if you have some files you now you don't want to back up. For
instance, I have more than 20 GB of music files in the My Music folder. To keep my data file backup
to a reasonable size, I click the check box next to the My Music folder. This clears the check box from
all the files and subfolders in My Music.

Decide Where to Store Your Backup Files

On the Backup Type, Destination, and Name page, Windows asks you to specify a backup location. If
you're one of those exceedingly rare individuals with access to a backup tape, the Backup utility gives
you a choice of options in the Select a backup type box. No tape drive? No problem. Backup assumes
you're going to save everything in a single file; you just have to choose a location for that file and give
it a name.
By default, Backup proposes saving everything to your floppy drive (drive A). Although that might
have made sense 10 years ago, it's hardly a rational choice today. You'd need dozens, perhaps hundreds
of floppy disks to store even a modest collection of data files, especially if you collect digital music or
photos.

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Instead, your best bet is to click Browse and choose any of the following locations:
• Your computer's hard disk. The ideal backup location is a separate partition from the
one you're backing up. If your hard disk is partitioned into drive C and drive D and
your data is on drive C, you can safely back up to drive D.
• A Zip drive or other removable media. At 100-250MB per disk, this is an option if you
don't have multiple gigabytes to back up. Unfortunately, the Windows Backup utility
can't save files directly to a CD-RW drive.
• A shared network drive. You're limited only by the amount of free space on the
network share.
• An external hard disk drive. USB and IEEE 1394 or FireWire drives have dropped in
price lately. Consider getting a 40 GB or larger drive and dedicating it for use as a
backup device.

After you've chosen a backup location, enter a descriptive name for the file, click Next to display the
wizard's final page, as shown in Figure 3, and then click Finish to begin backing up immediately.

Figure 3

Set a Schedule—and Stick to It

If you're disciplined enough, you can repeat the above steps once each week and perform regular
backups when you're ready. If you'd rather not count on remembering to perform this crucial task,
however, set up an automatic backup schedule for Windows. When you get to the final page of the
Backup Wizard (see Figure 3 above), don't click Finish. Instead, click the Advanced button, and click
Next to open the When to Back Up page. Choose Later, and then click Set Schedule to open the
Schedule Job dialog box shown in Figure 4.

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Figure 4

This example shows the settings for a weekly backup on Friday afternoon—a good way to make sure
your week's work is protected. But you can set almost any schedule you want by poking around in the
extensive set of options available in this dialog box. After you click OK to save your changes,
Windows XP runs the backup automatically. Just remember to leave your computer turned on.

All in all, you can count on backing up 5 GB of data in as little as 10 minutes. And you don't need to
worry about shutting down running programs, either—thanks to a feature called volume shadow copy,
the Backup utility can safely create a copy of any file, even if it's currently in use.

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7.VIRUS

(i) Computer Infections


The infamous virus is not the only thing that can infect your computer. There are numerous other
programs that can cause problems in your computer. Anti virus software is only designed to protect
you from viruses, worms & trojans. There is a serious and fast growing threat from spyware, hijack
programs, keyloggers, adware and similar malicious programming that are not always detected by anti
virus software.

These programs are very easy to get and may be very difficult to detect and remove. Most non-
malicious spyware finds it's way into your computer when you go to a web page that places a cookie
in your computer that contains information about your visit to that site. Most of these type of programs
can be detected and removed with a good spyware checking program.

The more invasive and dangerous types of programs that invade computers today are programs that
hijack your browser to undesirable sites, pop up advertising banners on you screen or in some way
attempt to divert you to other sites to promote products or services sold on-line. Some of these
programs may extract more personal information from your computer as well as your e-mail address.
These malicious advertising processes can also be advertising products to protect your computer from
adware but are really smoke screens to infect your computer with more adware. The biggest danger to
your computer created by hardware is not just the annoyance of the in-your-face advertising, but the
effect they have on the performance of your computer. The bigger the collection of these types of
programs you have on your computer, the slower it will operate and your Internet access can he
seriously compromised as well.

Unfortunately there are no programs that can find and remove all the malicious software and adware
you could possibly have on your computer and prevent further infections. Numerous tests run by
various experts in the field indicate that the best anti-aware programs on the market can only find and
remove 70% to 80% of the invasive programs and this can only be accomplished by using at least 2 or
3 different programs together. Most anti adware programs on their own rate much lower than 70%
detection and removal.

Most malicious adware finds it's way on to your computer when you download and install free
programs form the Internet. Free programs, especially ones that advertise themselves as performance
enhancers, faster Internet access, add-on browser tool bars, or protection programs, potentially come
with any number of adware programs to infect your computer. The most invasive programs you can
install on your computer are free music exchange programs. Most come with some kind of adware and
the also install Peer-to-Peer Networking software that sets up your computer to be accessed by anyone
on the internet. Any protective firewall software or hardware you have on your computer cannot
protect you from invasion when you install Peer-to-Peer Networking. This program opens a path of
access to your computer for the world, thus bypassing your firewall protection and allowing access to
your computer for other people to download music from your computer. This Peer to Peer Networking
provides an access path to your computer not only for music exchange, but also for people with
malicious intent.

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Removal of invasive adware and other malicious software can be a daunting and time consuming task.
Any programs you may have that are not detected or removed by the best adware removal programs
on the market have to be located and removed manually. Some adware programs, that are detected and
removed by cleanup programs, are designed to be re-activated the next time you re-start your
computer and some of these programs are loader programs that are designed to contact other sites on
the Internet and download more adware re-infecting your computer all over again.

Manual removal of invasive and damaging software from your computer can be a very arduous task
that takes up a lot of time and cannot guarantee that every bit of malicious code has been located and
removed. The only way to be assured that your computer has been completely cleaned, is to back up
your important files and re-format your hard drive and re-install your operating system and programs,
then restore your backed up files. This is a task that may be beyond the capabilities of the average user
to accomplish on their own.

Cleaning up your computer will be all for naught if you don't take steps to protect yourself better than
you did in the past.You must educate yourself about the dangers on the Internet and how to avoid the
traps and enticements that are offered by unscrupulous companies and individuals that prowl the
Internet searching for unsuspecting users to exploit. Without installing security software and
implementing personal security procedures it won't take long before your computer is infected again.
Studies, by professionals, have shown that an unprotected computer may be infected as fast as 30
seconds when re-connected to the Internet. Some of the software you had on your computer before it
was disinfected may have recorded the unique IP address of your computer which will allow them to
access your computer and re-infect it if you don't take steps to protect your computer before you
connect up to the Internet again.

Different types of Infections

When you listen to the news, you hear about many different forms of electronic infection. The most
common are:

• Viruses - A virus is a small piece of software that piggybacks on real programs. For example, a
virus might attach itself to a program such as a spreadsheet program. Each time the spreadsheet
program runs, the virus runs, too, and it has the chance to reproduce (by attaching to other
programs) or wreak havoc.

• E-mail viruses - An e-mail virus travels as an attachment to e-mail messages, and usually
replicates itself by automatically mailing itself to dozens of people in the victim's e-mail
address book. Some e-mail viruses don't even require a double-click -- they launch when you
view the infected message in the preview pane of your e-mail software [source: Johnson].

• Trojan horses - A Trojan horse is simply a computer program. The program claims to do one
thing (it may claim to be a game) but instead does damage when you run it (it may erase your
hard disk). Trojan horses have no way to replicate automatically.

• Worms - A worm is a small piece of software that uses computer networks and security holes
to replicate itself. A copy of the worm scans the network for another machine that has a
specific security hole. It copies itself to the new machine using the security hole, and then
starts replicating from there, as well.

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Symptoms of worms and Trojan horse viruses in e-mail messages

• The infected file may make copies of itself. This behavior may use up all the free space on the
hard disk.
• A copy of the infected file may be sent to all the addresses in an e-mail address list.
• The computer virus may reformat the hard disk. This behavior will delete files and programs.
• The computer virus may install hidden programs, such as pirated software. This pirated
software may then be distributed and sold from the computer.
• The computer virus may reduce security. This could enable intruders to remotely access the
computer or the network.
• You receive an e-mail message that has a strange attachment. When you open the attachment,
dialog boxes appear, or a sudden degradation in system performance occurs.
• Someone tells you that they have recently received e-mail messages from you that contained
attached files that you did not send. The files that are attached to the e-mail messages have
extensions such as .exe, .bat, .scr, and .vbs extensions.

(ii) Computer Virus


What is a Computer Virus?
Computer virus is a computer program that can copy itself and infect a computer without permission
or knowledge of the user or is a program or piece of code that is loaded onto your computer without
your knowledge and runs against your wishes or is a is a small software program that spreads from one
computer to another computer and that interferes with computer operation.

The original virus may modify the copies, or the copies may modify themselves, as occurs in a
metamorphic virus. In computer virus terms, metamorphic code is code that can reprogram itself.
Often, it does this by translating its own code into a temporary representation, edit the temporary
representation of it, and then write itself back to normal code again.

Why do people write and spread viruses?

It is difficult to know why people write them. Everyone has their own reasons. Some general reasons
are to experiment how to write viruses or to test their programming talent. Some people just like to see
how the virus spreads and gets famous around the World. The following is a list from news group
postings alt.comp.virus and tries to explain why people write and spread viruses.
They don't understand or prefer not to think about the consequences for other people
• They simply don't care
• They don't consider it to be their problem if someone else is inconvenienced
• They draw a false distinction between creating/publishing viruses and distributing them
• They consider it to be the responsibility of someone else to protect systems from their
creations
• They get a buzz, acknowledged or otherwise, from vandalism
• They consider they're fighting authority
• They like 'matching wits' with anti virus vendors
• It's a way of getting attention, getting recognition from their peers and their names (or at least
that of their virus) in the papers and the Wild List
• They're keeping the anti virus vendors in a job

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What Computer Viruses Infect?

Viruses can enter computers in many ways. Once a virus has entered a system, it will generally hide
until it is unknowingly run by the user. A virus will not act until it has been run or some pre-
established condition has been met, such as a specific date. The effects of a virus may not be noticed
for some time after it has infected a computer.

Viruses can infect several components of a computer's operating and file system including:

• System Sectors/Boot Records - Viruses can infect the parts of the system that are used to run
programs and perform functions such as start up and shut down.
• Volume Boot Records of floppy disks and hard disk partitions
• Files - Viruses can infect program files. These viruses stick to program files such as .com, .exe,
.sys, etc. Some viruses hide in the memory of the computer at first, while others simply attack a
specific software program, such as Microsoft Word.
• Companion Files - Viruses can create companion files that are a special type of file that adds
files that run on the hard disk.
• Macros - Viruses can infect macro or data files.
• Disk Clusters - Viruses can infect files through the disk directory.
• Batch Files - Viruses can use batch files to infect a computer.
• Source Code - Viruses can be in additional code that is added to actual program source code.
• Visual Basic Worms - These worms use the Visual Basic programming language to control a
computer and perform tasks.

Symptoms of a Computer Virus

The following are some possible indications that a computer has been infected by a virus. These
problems can also be caused by non-virus problems, but they are the most reported symptoms of a
computer virus infection.
• Computer programs take longer to load than normal.
• The computer's hard drive constantly runs out of free space.
• The computer stops responding, or it locks up frequently.
• The floppy disk drive or hard drive runs when you are not using it.
• New files keep appearing on the system and you don't know where they came from.
• Applications on the computer do not work correctly.
• The computer crashes, and then it restarts every few minutes.
• Strange sounds or beeping noises come from the computer or keyboard.
• Strange graphics are displayed on your computer monitor.
• Files have strange names you don't recognize.
• You are unable to access the hard drive when booting from the floppy drive.
• Disks or disk drives are inaccessible.
• Program sizes keep changing.
• Conventional memory is less than it used to be and you can't explain it.
• You cannot print items correctly.
• An antivirus program is disabled for no reason. Additionally, the antivirus program cannot be
restarted.
• New icons appear on the desktop that you did not put there, or the icons are not associated with
any recently installed programs.
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(iii) Spread of Computer Viruses


A virus can only spread from one computer to another when its host is taken to the uninfected
computer, for instance by a user sending it over a network or the Internet, or by carrying it on a
removable medium such as:-
• Floppy disk
• CD
• USB drive.
• Additionally, viruses can spread to other computers by infecting files on a network file system
or a file system that is accessed by another computer.

Viruses are sometimes confused with computer worms and Trojan horses. A worm can spread itself to
other computers without needing to be transferred as part of a host, and a Trojan horse is a file that
appears harmless until executed.

Many personal computers are now connected to the Internet and to local area networks, facilitating the
spread of malicious code. Today's viruses may also take advantage of network services such as the
World Wide Web, e-mail, and file sharing systems to spread, blurring the line between viruses and
worms.

Effects of Computer Viruses

Viruses are programmed to damage the computer systems and data by


• Damaging programs
• Deleting files
• Reformatting the hard disk

What to do when you find viruses

First thing what you should do when you find virus is count to ten and stay cool. You should keep
notes on what you do and write down what your virus programs and you computer tells you. If you are
not sure what to do, you should call the administrator for future action. In some cases it is not good to
start you computer from hard disk, because the virus may active and then do some harm.

Second, make sure that you should get sure that it is virus and what virus it is. It is important to know
what kind of virus we are dealing with. Companies that make anti-virus programs knows what
different viruses does and you can ether call them and ask about that viruses or you can go to their web
pages and read about the virus you have.

When you start you computer you should do it from a clean (non-infected) floppy diskette and after
that run the virus program. The boot diskette should be write protected so that virus can not infect the
boot diskette too.

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It is good to take a backup of the file that was infected. Virus program could do some damage to the
file and that is why it is good to have a backup.

It is good to let you administrator to know about the virus, so viruses would not spread around so
much.

How to protect your computer against viruses


To protect your computer against viruses, follow these steps:
• On the computer, turn on the firewall.
• Keep the computer operating system up-to-date.
• Install Computer Ant virus software on a computer
• Use updated antivirus software on the computer.
• Use updated anti spyware software on the computer.

(vi) How to remove a computer virus


Even for an expert, removing a computer virus can be a difficult task without the help of computer
virus removal tools. Some computer viruses and other unwanted software, such as spyware, even
reinstall themselves after the viruses have been detected and removed. Fortunately, by updating the
computer and by using antivirus tools, you can help permanently remove unwanted software.

To remove a computer virus, follow these steps:

• Install the latest updates of an Ant Virus from Microsoft Update on the computer.
• Update the antivirus software on the computer. Then, perform a thorough scan of the computer
by using the antivirus software.
• Download, install, and then run the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool to remove
existing viruses on the computer.
• Scan all removable medium with an updated Ant virus

Different anti-virus programs


There are three different kind of anti-viral packages: Activity monitors, Authentication or Change-
detection software, and Scanners. Each type has its own strengths and weaknesses. Commercial anti-
viral programs have a combination of the above mentioned functions.

There are over ten good anti-viral programs. Most knows programs are Data Fellows F-Prot, EliaShim
ViruSafe, ESaSS ThunderBYTE, IBM AntiVirus, McAfee Scan, Microsoft Anti-Virus, Symantec
Norton AntiVirus and S&S Dr Solomon's AVTK.

On a day-to-day basis, the average corporation should be very interested in the scan time; these impact
strongly the users, who should be scanning hard drives and disks on a daily basis. If a product takes
too long to carry out these basic tasks, users will be unwilling to wait, and will stop using it. This is
clearly undesirable - the perfect anti-virus product would be one which takes no time to run and finds
all viruses.

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8.practical

Computer cases and system units


This section will focus on the issues and concerns that affect the purchasing and gathering of parts to
assemble a computer.

Whether buying a tower or desktop, it is recommended that it conforms to the ATX standard and has at
least a 250-watt power supply. Make sure that the case purchased comes with a tray that allows easy
access to the internal components and provides enough room for expansion. Look for spare drive bays,
easily removable motherboard mounting plates, and drive racks. Be sure to verify the sturdiness of the
case because some of the cheaper ones can be quite flimsy.

A system unit is typically a metal and plastic case that contains the basic parts of the computer system.
The three basic system unit styles are desktops, towers, and portables. Each design is used to adapt the
system for different environments. These characteristics include mounting methods for the printed
circuit boards, ventilation characteristics, total drive capacity, footprint, which is the amount of desk
space they take up, and portability. The desktop and tower design styles will be examined in the
sections that follow.

Desktops
The desktop design as shown in Figure , is one of the more familiar case styles. Desktop units are
designed to sit horizontally on the desktop. Note that the first IBM computers, the original IBM-PC,
XT, and AT designs use this case style. The two sizes of most desktop cases are slim-line and regular.

There are two important characteristics to consider when choosing a desktop case style for a computer.
Available desktop space is important when the computer has to share the desktop with the monitor and
other peripherals. If this is the case, avoid buying the slim-line unit because these are generally small,
have little room for expansion, and are designed for business environments.
The form factor is another characteristic to consider. The form factor describes the general layout of
the computer case, the positioning of the slots in the case, and the type of motherboard the case will
accommodate. Cases come in different form factors. The newest form factor, and the one most often
encountered, is the ATX. The ATX form factor is designed for better airflow and easier access to the
common components.

Towers
Tower cases are usually designed to sit vertically on the floor beneath a desk. To provide more usable
workspace on the desktop, some users in the past resorted to standing the desktop cases on their sides
under the desk. This has prompted computer makers to develop cases that would naturally fit under the
desk. In general, tower cases have enough bays to hold floppy drives, CD-ROM drives, tape drives,
DVD drives, and anything else that might be installed. The internal design of a tower system
resembles that of the desktop unit. Tower cases come in three sizes:
Mini towers
Mid towers

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Full-size towers
Mini towers and mid towers and , are shorter and less expensive than their full-size counterparts as
shown in Figure . The one major drawback when choosing the smaller towers is that there is not
enough room for internal add-ons or disk drives.

Note: External devices can be added to mini and mid tower computers if there is insufficient room
inside the case for an internal device. Typically, these external devices cost slightly more and use
external ports.

Many easy access schemes have been built in to allow quick or convenient access to the inside of the
system case. Some towers, for example, use removable trays that allow the motherboard and I/O cards
to be plugged in before being slid into the unit. Other tower cases use hinged doors on the side of the
case, allowing the system and I/O boards to swing away from the chassis. Either of these features will
facilitate the process of assembling the computer.

It is important to note that the ventilation characteristics of some tower units tend to be poor due to the
I/O cards that are mounted horizontally. When the heat generated by the boards rises it passes the
upper boards, which are then subjected to additional heat. Because of this, most tower cases include a
secondary case fan to help increase the airflow and dissipate any excessive heat.

Preparing the Motherboard for Installation


Motherboard location map
A motherboard location map shows where the major components and hardware are located on the
motherboard. A motherboard map can be found in the documentation that comes with the
motherboard. Typically, everything listed in the specifications section of the motherboard manual is
depicted and labeled on the location map. This map is intended to help orient the board layout so
components can be identified and properly installed according to the instructions. For example, it may
be noticed on the location map that the processor socket location is labeled “Slot 1 Type CPU”.

The location map also provides additional information that will be useful during installation and
assembly. Notice that on the map in Figure , the main memory is subdivided into slots, and the slots
are identified and numbered in sequence DIMM bank 1, DIMM bank 2, and DIMM bank 3. This
indicates that when the dual inline memory modules (DIMMs) are installed, they must be installed in
the sequence indicated on the map. Study the motherboard location map before proceeding with any
installation.

Note: The tiny “1”s next to the jumper of 3 pins or more indicates the position of pin 1 for that jumper.

The more the user knows about a particular motherboard, the easier it will be to assemble the rest of
the computer. If working with a lab partner, study the map together.

Motherboard configuration
The configuration of the motherboard, also known as setting the system hardware, is an important
task. Motherboard configuration requires the following:
• Installing the CPU
• Installing the heat sink and fan
• Installing RAM

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• Connecting the power supply cables to the motherboard power connectors and connecting
miscellaneous connectors to the correct switches and status lights on the front case panel
• Setting the system BIOS

In the sections that follow, installation of the CPU, RAM, and heat sink or fan will be discussed. The
process for connecting the power supply cables to the motherboard is discussed in another section.
Instructions for setting the system BIOS will be discussed at the end of the module.

Configuring the Connectors


Location maps allow the correct configuration of the motherboard for the case controls and monitor
lights on the front case panel, sometimes called bezel or faceplate. For the disk controllers, always
remember that a colored stripe on the data cable is pin 1. Most modern connectors are “keyed” by a
missing pin or a blocked connector, so they cannot be connected incorrectly. Usually, the colored wires
in a power cable are positive and the white or black wires are ground or negative. I/O connectors
generally follow industry standard conventions. It is recommended that the motherboard manual be
reviewed for more information.

Configuring the BIOS


The ROM BIOS and Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS, pronounced “see-moss”)
chip contain the software that sets and records the master configuration for all components in the
system, including those on the motherboard and the logic chip sets. The BIOS typically has an
interface that can be accessed after the initial POST diagnostic tests are run. The BIOS sets up other
components such as the type of hard drive, CD-ROM, and floppy settings. The BIOS interface can be
keyboard driven, or it can be graphical and mouse driven. When drives are replaced, memory is
upgraded, or adapter boards are added, the BIOS setup will need to be updated to reflect the
configuration changes and then saved to the CMOS chip. The BIOS is discussed more thoroughly later
in this module.

Configuring the Processor


The motherboard must be configured for the frequency of the installed processor. These settings will
differ for each motherboard and processor type. All specifications come from the manufacturer and are
found in the manual included with the product. Typically, the motherboard manual will detail how the
CPU and bus frequencies are related. Make sure that the CPU being used supports both the bus speed
and CPU clock speed. The fact that the motherboard is capable of all these speeds does not imply that
the CPU is capable of running all of the variations that can be configured.

CPU voltage configuration is discussed later in the CPU installation section of this module. In
practice, when working on most new systems, motherboard configuration parameters will be handled
by plug-and-play BIOS. It is still important to know how to configure these parameters to be able to
check the BIOS setup. It is also important to ensure that everything is configured according to the
manufacturer specifications.

Motherboard jumpers
A jumper is a pair of prongs that are electrical contact points set into the computer motherboard or an
adapter card. When setting a jumper, place a plug on the prongs that completes or closes the contact.
Closing or opening the circuits establishes logic levels to select functions for the operation of the
board. Data generally does not travel through these circuits. Most jumpers will relate to the CPU on
newer motherboards.

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Motherboard jumpers are configured by using a jumper to bridge a pair of pins that are to be
connected together on the board. Removing or inserting jumpers on a set of pins will enable or clear a
given option, as specified in the motherboard manual. For all settings, it is recommended that the
instructions found in the motherboard manual be followed closely. Remember that the jumper
specifications for any board are provided by the manufacturer.

Caution: Do not move any of the jumpers with the power on. Always turn off the power and
unplug the power cord from the computer before changing jumpers.

Additional information regarding motherboard jumpers can be found by going to the manufacturer
website for the motherboard.

Additional Jumpers
There are several additional jumper settings that may have to be set along with the general
motherboard configurations. These are summarized as follows:
• BIOS recovery – This jumper is for recovering BIOS data from a diskette in the event of a
catastrophic failure. Leave this to the default values. Check the technical product specifications
for details.
• Clear CMOS – This jumper, when provided, is used to reset the CMOS settings to the default
values. This procedure must be done each time the BIOS is updated.
• Password clear – Use this jumper, if provided, to clear the password if the password is
forgotten. The default setting is "password enabled".
• BIOS setup access – This jumper enables or disables access to the Setup program. The default
setting is "access enabled".
• Processor voltage – This jumper, when provided, sets the output of the onboard voltage
regulator. The two choices are usually standard voltage and Voltage Regulator Enhanced
(VRE).

Caution: When installing a processor in the motherboard for the first time or upgrading to a new
processor, check the processor documentation for the correct voltage setting. Operating the processor
at the wrong voltage can cause unreliable performance or damage to the system components.

Any jumper pins that need to be removed should be saved with other spare parts. Because jumper pins
can be easily lost, it is possible to disable a jumper without removing the pin by connecting the jumper
to only one pin. This is known as parking the jumper; the procedure disables the jumper while keeping
the pin from getting lost.

Installing the CPU


Microprocessor installation is not a complicated process but it is important to handle the
microprocessor with extreme care.

There are two main types of CPU interfaces. These are the socket type and the slot type. Socket 7 has
been the standard interface, although the most recent systems are now using different sockets.
It is the only interface used by at least one generation of Intel Pentium processors, Pentium I,
as well as AMD and Cyrix chips. Older technology processor chips, such as Intel P24T, P24D,
80486DX4, 80486DX2/DX/SX-SL, 80486DX2/DX/SX, AMD AM486DX4/DX2/DX, Cyrix
CX486DX2/DX/S, and 5X86, attach to the motherboard by means of a specially designed
socket, commonly called socket 3. These technologies are quite old so it is unlikely that they
will be encountered.
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Slot type interfaces use a slot similar to an expansion card. Slot 1 is the Single Edge Contact (SEC)
interface used only by the Intel Pentium II processor family. SEC is a cartridge containing the CPU
and L2 cache chips. The installation of the CPU will differ depending on the processor being used and
the interface type.

This course gives instructions on how to install a socket 7 chip. All the newer socket type interfaces
are derived from socket 7, differing mainly by the number of pins they have. The latest technologies,
such as socket A and Socket 370 are installed using the same basic steps as socket 7.

The Step-by-Step Installation of the CPU


Almost all socket 7 systems make use of the zero-insertion force socket, commonly referred to as
"ZIF". To install a socket 7 or similar chip, follow this general procedure:

Step 1
First, turn over the chip and inspect the pins to make sure that none are damaged. All pins
should stick straight out.

Step 2
Position the chip by locating pin 1 on both the chip and the socket. Notice that the chip is
always marked at pin 1. The mark might be a little different for different chips. On the socket
itself, pin 1 is commonly identified by a notch on one corner, a big "1" or sometimes an arrow
on the motherboard pointing to that particular corner of the socket. As always, consult the
motherboard manual for additional guidance. Align pin 1 on the chip with pin 1 on the socket
for a correct installation.

Step 3
After positioning the chip, open the ZIF socket. Shift the lever slightly away from the socket,
from its default closed position and raise it to the open position. Do this with great care to
avoid breaking the lever. A little resistance on the way up is normal. When fully raised, the top
part of the ZIF socket will slide over.

Step 4
With the socket open, it is time to insert the processor. Aligning pin 1 according to the
orientation that was determined in Step 2. Insert the processor chip into the socket so that all of
the pins slide into the matching holes. With any ZIF socket, the CPU pins should slide easily
into the corresponding holes in the socket. Generally, the chip can go in only one way. Avoid
forcing the processor into the socket as the pins can be damaged.

Step 5
Check to make sure that there is no gap between the bottom of the CPU chip and the socket. If
there is a gap, then the processor chip needs to be reinserted.
Step 6 Finally, to secure the installed chip, push the lever gently back down to the closed
position. A little resistance may be felt, but the lever and ZIF socket should close fairly easy.

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Configuring the CPU Voltage
It is important to make sure that the right voltage is present for the proper performance of the
processor. Most CPUs are very specific about the amount of voltage they can handle. Pentium II and
most current CPUs adjust automatically to the voltage, so they do not require voltage configuration.
While this has been a great development, it has yet to be done to the older CPUs. If the proper voltage
is not set, then damage to the system could occur. With some hands-on experience, voltage
configuration for any motherboard can be set. Remember to keep grounded, check CPU specifications,
and follow the motherboard manual.

The information needed for voltage setting should be contained in the "Jumper Settings and
Connectors" section of the processor manual. CPU voltage varies between 1.8v and 3.5v. Dual voltage
requirements accompany some CPUs. This means that two separate voltages, a core voltage and an I/O
voltage, are required for these CPUs to function as shown in Figure . The AMD-K6 CPU family, for
example, requires dual voltage power for operation.

Installing the heat sink and fan

Most microprocessors will produce a lot of heat, which can cause the system problems. One way to
dissipate heat from processors is to use the heat sink and cooling fan. Proper installation is crucial to
the performance of this unit. Although the heat sink can be mounted before installing the processor
chip on the motherboard, there is a risk of causing damage to the pins on the chip. Only on Pentium II
processors is the fan attached before the CPU installation.

Use the following steps when installing a heat sink and fan to socket 7 and other socket-type
processors:
Step 1
If the CPU fan did not come with the heat sink already attached to it, then use the screws that
came with the fan to attach it to the heat sink.

Step 2
Some setups use heat sink compound or thermal grease. Apply the heat sink compound to the
surface of the chip. Apply a thin layer, just enough to cover the surface of the chip. The heat
sink compound or thermal grease improves contact between the CPU surface and the heat sink,
thereby permitting better heat dissipation.

Step 3
Now attach the heat sink carefully. Place the heat sink squarely on top of the processor and
press it down gently. The most recent heat sinks use a set of clips on each side to hold them
down. A little force may have to be used to bend the clip in place. If the orientation is not right,
the clips will be difficult to bend down into the right position. Sometimes it takes a few trials to
get the right position. In other cases, the heat sink compound is the only attachment between
the heat sink and the processor.

Step 4
At this point, check to make sure that the heat sink maintains a good contact with the processor
chip surface. Usually when the heat sink is inserted backwards, the chip surface and heat sink
become staggered. If this happens, remove the heat sink, turn it around, and try to reattach it.

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Step 5
Wipe off the excess heat sink compound or thermal grease that may have oozed out the sides of
the contact surfaces.

Step 6
Carefully plug the power cord from the fan to the fan power pins provided on the motherboard.

Boxed processors come with the fan and heat sink already attached to them. They cost more but are
more convenient and safer to install. Boxed processors are referred to as original equipment
manufacturer (OEM) processors and have a better warranty coverage than processors without the fan
and heat sink attached.

Configuring Memory
The motherboard manual will usually show the permissible combinations of DIMM types that can be
installed in the system. New motherboards do not use SIMMs. It may be found, for example, that the
DIMM sockets on the motherboard map are grouped into three or four banks of one slot each. identify
DIMM1 and DIMM2. DIMM1 and DIMM2 are Bank 0 and Bank 1. In some cases, motherboards
have more than two slots for RAM. These slots would be DIMM3 and DIMM4 and the memory Banks
are Bank 2 and Bank 3. Each bank can have any type of synchronous dynamic random access memory
(SDRAM), which is the most commonly used form of RAM.

Installing RAM

There are two types of memory modules used on most PCs. These are 168-pin dual inline memory
module (DIMM) cards and 72-pin single inline memory module (SIMM) cards, DIMMS and SIMMS
both share common edge connectors and fit into slots on the motherboard called RAM sockets. RAM
sockets used for DIMM cards are often called DIMM sockets, while those used for SIMM cards are
called SIMM sockets. When either card is inserted into the slot, each edge connector makes contact
with a corresponding gold trace on the motherboard. Each gold line represents an individual data path.
Just as the gold lines leading to the CPU make up the processor bus, all these gold lines make up the
memory bus. The memory bus data "highway" is used to transfer data between the RAM and the CPU.
For information relating to memory modules that use other access technologies, see a note at the end
of the section.

It is recommend that the memory banks be filled in the exact combinations shown in the system board
manual. For example, the manual might state that the maximum memory size is 512-MB and that the
size of each DIMM can be 8-MB, 16-MB, 32-MB, 64-MB, or 128-MB. Any combination of these
sizes can be used depending on memory needs. When DIMM sizes are mixed on the motherboard, it is
important to remember to put the DIMM with the largest memory size in the first bank. The system
automatically reads the size of the first DIMM and records it as the largest. If a smaller DIMM were
put in the first bank, the system would read it as the largest and might fail to recognize or use the
additional memory capacity of the DIMMs placed in the subsequent banks.

Banking with SIMM modules is slightly different. Each bank of memory for a SIMM has two sockets.
Users must fill the first bank before moving onto the next. Additionally, each bank must be filled with
RAM modules that have the same access time and size.

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Step-by-Step Installation of RAM


Step 1
First, decide on which slots to use and then orient the SIMM or DIMM chip over it. Both
SIMMs and DIMMs are keyed, so they can only go in one way.

Step 2
Insert the DIMM module straight into the slot. The SIMM module is inserted at an angle of
about 45 degrees.

Step 3
Now, the memory module must be locked into place. With a SIMM, rotate it from the angled
position to the vertical position. Some resistance is normal. Do not force it. If difficulty is
encountered, the chip might be backwards. Rotate it and try again. When the SIMM is vertical,
the little metal or plastic clip should snap in place, securing the SIMM vertically in the memory
slot.

With a DIMM, simply close the levers on either side of it. If the levers do not close, it is
usually because the DIMM is not inserted all the way into the slot or it is installed backwards.
In most cases, if the DIMM is inserted properly, the levers will snap in place without further
action.

Step 4
Repeat Steps 1 to 3 for the rest of the memory modules. When finished, check the work to be
sure that each module is well seated in the slot on both ends.

Note: When using other types of memory modules such as Rambus inline memory modules (RIMMs)
know that other considerations have to be taken into account. Unlike DIMMs and SIMMs, RIMM
modules use only the direct Rambus memory chips (RDRAM). Some systems require that RIMM
modules be added in identical pairs, and others allow single RIMMs to be installed. Information on
specific memory types can be found in their manuals, the motherboard manual, or on the manufacturer
websites.

Installing the Motherboard


Installing the motherboard into the case
Before installing the motherboard, review the section on motherboards in Module 2. It is important to
make sure that the board is handled carefully by the edges. The following steps summarize the
motherboard installation process:

Step 1
Locate the holes on the motherboard and the corresponding holes on the case. Hold the board
just above the case to allow the holes on the case and motherboard to be seen for alignment
purposes. The expansion card slots give a good indication of how the board should be oriented.

Step 2
Insert the spacers that came with the motherboard securely into the holes on the case or
mounting plate.
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Step 3
Install plastic standoffs into the holes on the motherboard that line up with an eyelet, a hole that
is very long and key shaped so that users can slide things into it. Some cases do not have an
eyelet but instead use the metal spacer screws to hold the motherboard in place.

Step 4
At this point, carefully slide the board into the case, making sure that it sits on the spacers and
that all the spacers line up with an available hole on the motherboard.

Step 5
Inspect the screws to be used. It is a good practice to insert plastic washers on each screw
before they are installed. This will prevent the metallic screws from overlapping and possibly
destroying or shorting any part of the circuitry near the holes.

Step 6
Now tighten the board to the case, first by hand, and then finish with a screwdriver. The screws
only need to be tight enough to prevent the board from moving around in the case.

Step 7
Check the work to make sure everything is right. Verify the following:
The back of the motherboard is not touching any part of the case.
All the slots and connectors line up properly with the holes on the back of case.
The board is securely held in place.
When pressed at any point, the board does not bend.
The steps outlined above are very general. Some cases have additional features. After
becoming familiar with assembling PCs, some of the steps can be combined or bypassed
altogether.

Attaching the LEDs, keylock, and speaker


Light emitting diodes (LEDs), or status lights, are useful indicators of whether or not components
inside the computer are on or working. Connecting the LEDs is usually the next step of assembling a
computer once the motherboard is securely installed. Possible LEDs that could be installed are for
power, turbo, and the hard drive. The following list shares some important tips when connecting them:
• Turbo – These are now mainly legacy items, both the turbo LED and turbo switch, and many
new computer cases may not include them. If a case does have one, the LED can be connected
by plugging it into the corresponding pins. This step may be skipped. Sometimes the turbo
LED might be connected to a different component, such as the SCSI adapter, where it serves as
the SCSI drive activity light.
• Power LED – On older systems, the power LED can be found combined with the keylock
switch as one 5-pin plug. Check the labels on the motherboard for a matching connector. To
connect the LEDs, just plug the connectors into the corresponding plug on the system board.
Make sure that the LEDs are connected separately if the system provides separate plugs for
each.
• Hard drive activity LED – These come in either 2-pin or 4-pin plugs. Occasionally, only 2 pins
of the 4-pin plug actually provide the connectivity. Consult the manual for installation
procedures.

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• The keylock and speaker are two other wire leads that are usually connected at the same time
as the LEDs. They all make up a group of small connectors and plugs that need the same
amount of attention to attach them.
• Keylock switch – The keylock switch is common with older systems. It was mainly used to
prevent unauthorized individuals from booting the computer and changing the BIOS settings.
They are rare in newer systems. As mentioned previously, most AT or older systems combine
the keylock switch with the power LED as one 5-pin plug. Check the motherboard manual for
additional instructions to plug in the keylock switch.
• PC speaker – Most computer cases have this in a 4-wire plug. Plug the speaker wire into the
designated plug making sure that it plugs into pins 1 and 4.

Additional information about connecting LED devices, the keylock switch, and PC speaker can be
found in the user's manual. Because LEDs involve very small connectors, sometimes one or two
connections could be wrong. If the wrong connector is used, the LED will not light up when the
computer is powered up. Simply turn off the system and switch the connectors between different plugs
until all of the LEDs illuminate. Note that LEDs are polarity sensitive, and the connector may have to
be reversed if they do not light up properly. Figure shows an HP Vectra that has hard drive activity
and power LEDs, and a keylock switch.

Connecting power supply cables to the motherboard


After successfully installing the motherboard in the computer case, proceed with attaching the
appropriate power supply connectors to it. This process is easy with an ATX because there is only one
connector that is also keyed to fit only one way. Take more care with the older AT systems because
there are two separate, but physically identical connectors that must be plugged in a specific way. This
is covered in the next section.

The following are the steps for connecting the power supply cables to the motherboard:
Step 1
On an AT system, first locate the two large wire leads from the power supply labeled P8 and
P9.

Step 2
Locate the large 12-pin power connector on the motherboard. It is usually found right behind
the keyboard connector.

Step 3
Plug the P8 and P9 wire lead connectors in the 12-pin power connector.
Caution: Make sure the black wires are in the middle, right next to each other. If this
configuration is reversed, the motherboard is likely to be damaged when the power is turned
on. Pressure might have to be applied to insert the connectors. On an ATX system, there is one
large 20-pin (P1) connector. It is keyed for easy installation.

Sometimes it is helpful to delay attaching the power connector to the board until all the components
have been installed that need to go on the motherboard. This allows for more working space inside the
case.

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Attaching the floppy drive to the case
The step-by-step process for installing the floppy drive is used for installing either a 3.5 in. drive or
5.25 in. drives. Make sure that the floppy cables and power cables are long enough to reach the drive
before starting. Verify the drive is mounted right side up or it will not work..

Step 1
First, select which drive bay will be used for the floppy drive. Remove the faceplate of that
bay. Save the faceplate for future use. The two bays to be chosen from are a 3.5 in. and a 5.25
in. bay. Be sure to choose the correct bay for the floppy drive that is being attached. To mount a
3.5 in. drive into a 5.25 in. bay, a special bracket may be needed that usually comes with the
new floppy drive.

Step 2
Without connecting anything yet, insert the drive into the chosen bay, making sure it fits
properly.

Step 3
Select the right size screws or use those that came with the drive. If using brackets to hold the
drive in place, secure them now, or simply use the screws to attach the drive to the bay. First,
tighten the screws by hand, and then use a screwdriver to secure the screws. Make sure they are
not too tight, and take care not to cross thread or strip the screws.

Step 4
Attach the power and ribbon cable to the drive. If other drives are to be installed, this step can
be skipped. This provides more maneuvering room in the case, especially if there are no
removable drive bays. The drive cable and power cord can then be connected after all of the
drives have been installed.

Step 5
Check the work.
Test Tip: Know what makes a floppy drive A or B and how to set up the drives to function as
either master or slave.

Attaching the hard drive and CD-ROM to the case


This section describes how to attach both the hard drive and CD-ROM to the case.
Before proceeding, make sure that the interface cable will reach the drive in its intended location. With
IDE/ATA drives, the length of the cable is limited to 45.7 cm (18 in.) or less, in some cases. Also,
make sure that the power cable will reach the drive from the power supply. Do not mount the drive
upside down or backwards. Verify the label of the drive is up and the circuit board is down.

The first step is setting the jumpers.

Master/Slave Jumper Settings


The designation of a hard drive or CD-ROM drive as either master or slave is generally determined by
the jumper configuration. The only exception is if the drive is set to “cable select” and both the system
and ribbon cable support cable select. In this case, master and slave are determined by the position on
the data ribbon cable. Depending on how the system controls the cable, the select line on the ribbon
cable determines where the master and slave need to be attached. Refer to the system manual for more
information on this. This description applies only to a situation where both drives are attached to the

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same IDE channel, where the CD-ROM is set to slave. For better performance, always attach the
drives to separate channels. The hard drive should be attached to the primary IDE channel as primary
master and the CD-ROM to the second IDE channel as secondary master.

It is easier to configure these drives before installing them in the computer case because there will be
more room to set the jumpers. Before setting the jumpers, determine the types and number of drives to
install. It is assumed here that there are two IDE drives. The jumper settings are often printed on top of
the drive itself. If not, consult the manual. In either case, use needle-nosed pliers or tweezers to set the
jumpers. Always save spare jumpers for future use by hanging them on one pin. Hanging the jumper
on one pin means the same as not jumpered, that is, no circuit configuration has been selected. This is
also known as “parking” a jumper.

In a basic system that only has one hard drive, set the jumper to “master”. Some drives have another
setting called “single”. This setting essentially tells the drive that it is alone on that IDE channel and
works the same as the master. It is recommended to use this setting, if available, on a one hard drive
system. The CD-ROM is also easy to configure. However, jumpers may be located in different places
on each drive and may even be labeled differently. Set the CD-ROM to “master” if it is the only drive
connected to the second IDE channel.

Attaching the Hard Drive


Technically, the hard drive can be inserted in any free bay in a computer case. However, there are
some things that should be considered:
• Hard drives, especially the newer 7200-rpm and 10,000-rpm drives can generate a lot of heat.
Therefore, keep these drives as far away from other hardware as possible.
• If it is necessary to install a drive cooler, make sure that there is enough room.
• Install a hard drive away from the power supply. Poorly designed cases may give room under
the power supply to install the hard drive. This is not a good place for a hard drive. Power
supplies act like magnets and can damage data.
• Finally, try to keep the hard drive near the front of the case. It will benefit from the cooling
effect of the air current drawn into the case through the front by the system cooling fans.

With the above considerations in mind, here are the general steps for mounting a hard drive:

Step 1
Set the hard drive jumper to master, as previously explained.

Step 2
Slide the drive into the selected drive rail of the case. Recall that the faceplate in this area does
not need to be removed. Modern ATX cases usually provide a hard drive bay without a
faceplate. If the drive is smaller than the bay, add rails or a mounting bracket to make it fit.

Step 3

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Select the right size screws or use those packaged with the drive. Screw the drive into place,
making sure not to force anything. Tighten the screws by hand first and then tighten them with
a screwdriver

Step 4
Now, attach the ribbon cable and the power cord to the hard drive, the same way as with the
floppy drive. How to connect the ribbon cable will be discussed in the next section.

Attaching the CD-ROM and DVD


CD-ROM and DVD player installation is similar to hard drive installation. For the CD-ROM, remove
the drive bay cover first. Then set the CD-ROM jumper to master since it will be connected to the
secondary IDE channel. Now slide the drive into the bay from the front, making sure that it is flush
with the front panel, and screw it in place. The same procedure is used when installing a DVD player.

Note: Do not tighten the screws until the cables have been connected to the drive.

In some computer cases, particularly the mini towers, it can be quite challenging to work behind the
CD-ROM because of its length and also because it is obstructed by the power supply.

Role of Drive Rails


As with the hard drive, the physical installation of the CD-ROM and DVD depends on the case design
or type. Some cases come with drive rails to help install hardware. Simply screw a drive rail in the
correct direction to each side of the CD-ROM. Then slide the CD-ROM into the computer case from
the front, using the rails as a guide until it snaps into place. Use the same procedure to install a DVD
player. Drive rails make hardware installations relatively easy.

Connecting the floppy drive, hard drive, CD-ROM, and DVD to the
system
The floppy drive, hard drive, CD-ROM, and DVD player communicate with the rest of the system
using ribbon cables. This section discusses the types of ribbon cables used as well as how to connect
them to the various drives.

Characterizing Ribbon Cables


Ribbon cables are widely used to connect peripherals such as floppy drives and hard drives internally.
They are rarely used outside of the system case. They are thin, flat, multiconductor cables that must be
connected correctly or the component will not work.

Floppy Drive Cable


The floppy drive exchanges data with the motherboard devices, including the microprocessor, via a
34-pin flat ribbon cable. The ribbon cable typically connects from a 34-pin male connector at the rear
of the floppy drive to a 34-pin male connector on the motherboard. The cable plugs, drive connector,
and floppy controller interface are all keyed for proper alignment. Usually, a red stripe on the edge of
the cable identifies pin 1.

Lining the red-stripe edge with pin 1 of the drive connector or drive controller interface assures correct
alignment.

Caution: Pin 1 on most floppy data connectors is usually on the near side to the power connector.
However, floppy drives from different manufacturers may have their data connectors reversed so that

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pin 1 and the red wire on the ribbon cable points away from the power connector. Also, some floppy
disk drives are not clearly marked as to which is pin 1 on the data connector. In these cases, an
incorrectly oriented cable becomes immediately apparent on power up by the fact that the floppy drive
LED light comes on immediately and stays on.

Current system BIOS versions can support up to two floppy drives on one controller through a daisy
chain cable arrangement. Cable pin-outs 10 through 16 are cross-wired between the middle drive
connector and end drive connector. This produces a twist that reverses the Drive Select (DS)
configuration of the drive plugged into the end connector of the ribbon cable. The twist consists of 7
data wires. This feature, called cable select, automatically configures the drive on the middle
connector as Drive B and the drive on the end connector as Drive A. This greatly simplifies installation
and configuration of the floppy drives. In this example, only one 3.5 in. floppy, drive A is being used.

HDD and CD-ROM cables


The hard drive, CD-ROM, and DVD player exchange data signals with the controller on the
motherboard by means of a flat ribbon cable, just like the floppy drive. The ribbon cable pin-outs and
cable width are dependent on the type of interface. In this course, the IDE interface will be used. The
ribbon cable used in this case looks physically similar to the floppy cable mentioned above but it is
wider. Pin 1 is also identified by a red edge. However, an IDE cable typically has 40 pins and can also
have two devices attached to it like the floppy cable. In this case though, one device must be set as the
master and the other as a slave using jumpers. A second cable is called IDE 2, and it can have a master
and a slave. The cable connectors and plugs, just like the floppy cable, are keyed for proper alignment.

After becoming familiar with ribbon cables these components can now be connected to the system
board.

Connecting the Floppy Drive


The following steps detail how to connect the floppy drive to the motherboard.

Step 1
Identify the appropriate ribbon cable that goes with the floppy drive. It has a seven-wire twist
towards one end and is smaller in width, 34-pins, compared to the 40-pin IDE ribbon cable.

Step 2
Identify pin 1, the red edge of the cable, and align this with pin 1 on the rear of the floppy
drive. Gently push on the cable connector until it is fully inserted. In most cases, the connectors
are keyed. If any resistance is experienced as the cable is attached, then recheck the pin 1
alignment. Since this drive is being installed as drive A, be sure to use the connector past the
twist in the cable.

Step 3
Now identify the floppy controller on the system board by consulting the motherboard manual.
Attach the connector on the far end of the ribbon cable to the floppy controller on the board.
Make sure pin 1 is properly aligned for the cable and controller interface connectors.

Step 4
Check work at this point, making sure that no pin is bent or displaced.

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If pin 1 has accidentally been reversed, the drive will not work and the drive light will stay on
until it is corrected.

Connecting the Hard Drive, CD-ROM, and DVD


The following steps detail how to connect the hard drive, CD-ROM, and DVD player to the
motherboard:

Step 1
Identify the two 40-pin IDE ribbon cables that go with the hard drive and CD-ROM. These are
wider than the floppy cable and have no twist at one end.

Step 2
Attach one end of one cable connector to the rear of the hard drive connector and one end of
the second cable to the rear of the CD-ROM. The CD-ROM may have to be slid out a few
inches to have enough access at the rear. Both cable connectors are keyed. Make sure that pin 1
is properly aligned for the cable and drive connectors. The end of the cable with the longer
span is usually connected to the motherboard.
Step 3
Now, attach the free end of the hard drive cable to IDE controller no.1, the primary IDE, on the
motherboard. Attach the free end of the CD-ROM cable to IDE controller no.2, the secondary
IDE, on the motherboard. Make sure pin 1 on each cable is aligned with pin 1 of the
corresponding controller interface. Installing the hard drive and CD-ROM on separate IDE
channels may improve performance.

Note: Pin 1 on both the hard drive and CD-ROM drive is usually located on the side closest to
the power connector. Pin 1 might be labeled on the back of the hard drive. Conversely, pin 1 on
the motherboard might not be properly labeled, so consult your manual to make this
determination. The CD-ROM drive audio cable can remain disconnected until a sound card is
installed.

Step 4
Check the work, making sure all cable connectors are properly seated, none of the pins are
displaced, and all pin 1s are aligned.
If the hard drive cable is placed backwards, there may be some strange errors that make the
new drive appear as if it has “died” already. If this happens, remove the hard drive cable and
reinstall.

Connecting power cables to the floppy drive, hard drive, and CD-ROM
Small cable drive connectors from the power supply provide power to the floppy drive, hard drive, the
CD-ROM, and the DVD player. The cable connectors have a female 4-pin plug that connects to a male
4-pin connector at the rear of each drive. The pin-outs or wire scheme are color-coded in order to
identify the proper voltages of the wires.

Power Voltage Requirements


Two different power voltages are required for the proper functioning of these drives. The circuit board
and the logic chips that each drive uses are designed to use the +5v power. The drive motors use the
+12v power,

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Connecting the Drives
All the connectors are keyed and can only be inserted one way. This makes it easier to attach the
power cables to the drive. Verify the proper connector is going to the appropriate drive, as described
below:
• Floppy drive – Identify the proper connector that goes with the 3.5 in. drive. These connectors
are usually the smallest plugs coming out of the power supply. Push the plugs in gently. Do not
rock them back and forth to secure a connection.
• Hard drive, CD-ROM, DVD – Identify the proper power connectors for these drives. They are
larger than those for the floppy, and sometimes the labels will be P1, P2, P3, and so on, on
these power plugs. They are harder to push in so rock them gently back and forth if needed
until they snap into place.

As always, double-check all of the work, to make sure that all power plugs are properly inserted and
secure.

.
Step-by-step installation of the video card
This section addresses the step-by-step installation of the video card.
The video card, is the only expansion card that needs to be installed before booting the PC for the first
time. It is critical to display vital information needed to configure the BIOS during the initial boot
process. All the other cards can be installed once the computer is up and running.
Installation of the video card has four steps:

Step 1
Locate an expansion slot type that matches the video card. AGP is used for newer ATX
motherboards while ISA and PCI are used for older boards.

Step 2
Take out the slot insert that corresponds to the slot on the motherboard. Some cases have punch
out inserts while others have inserts that are screwed into place.

Step 3
Insert the video card into the slot by aligning the pins and gently applying pressure alternately
to the front and back of the board until all the pins are in place. Older ISA cards may be more
challenging to insert because of their length. When pushing the card into the slot, try not to let
the motherboard bend. Sometimes it might be necessary to put a hand underneath to push the
board up if it bends. Make sure to be properly grounded to the case.

Step 4
Once the card is in place, secure it to the case with a screw. Do not forget to check all work.
These general steps can be used to install other expansion cards such as modem card and sound
card.
Caution: Some motherboards have built-in video. If this is the case, it must be disabled in
the CMOS in order to install an external video card. Built-in video that is not disabled
will cause a system conflict that will need to be resolved before the new external video
card will be recognized.
If the video card is plug-and-play, the system will detect the new hardware and install the
proper driver. If the proper driver is not detected, the driver that came with the video card

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should be used. Current drivers can also be downloaded from the video card manufacturer
website.

Fitting the case together


Once all the components and parts have been installed in the case, it is time to complete the PC
assembly process. First, check the cable connectors. Check to make sure that all of the pin 1 indicators
on the cables match up with all of the pin 1 indicators on the sockets. Next, make sure that all of the
connections are secure. If a connection does not look correct, push on it gently to seat it. Do not force
any connection because the pins and circuit boards bend and break easily. No connection should be too
difficult to attach. After all the cables are secured, check to make sure that all of the screws are
properly tightened. These screws should be secured, but not overly tight. Finally, when securing the
case, make sure no cables or wires are sticking out or are caught between the parts of the case.

All of the extra components can be installed later in the system after the initial boot up. This ensures
the basic computer is working properly before adding new hardware. Take some extra time to double-
check all work before turning on the power for the first time. The list that follows is a postassembly
checklist that should be used before closing the case. Please make sure that everything included in the
list is completely and properly done:
• All expansion cards are fully inserted into appropriate slots.
• CPU fan is attached to power.
• The 110/220 volt switch is configured properly.
• Drives are properly connected to power.
• Ribbon cables are attached correctly.
• No wires are protruding into fans.
• CPU voltage settings are correctly configured.
• Power switch is off and power supply connectors are connected properly to the motherboard.
• All connections are sufficiently tight.
• Pins are properly aligned.

Close the newly assembled computer before testing it to avoid any accidental contact with the internal
parts while the machine is running since there is no grounding at this point.

Connecting the keyboard, mouse, monitor, and power cord


The very last step before turning on the power is to connect the basic input and output (I/O) devices
that the computer needs to start. These devices can be connected in any order. The following list
includes instructions for connecting these devices:
• Connect the keyboard to the back of the case – Older model motherboards use a 5-pin
connector, but most computers use a 6-pin PS/2 port. Sometimes the keyboard connector and
port are color-coded to distinguish them from the mouse.
• Connect the mouse to the back of the computer – The mouse is the next device to connect,
usually right next to the keyboard connection if it is a PS/2 mouse. Follow any color codes
where applicable. If it is a serial mouse, plug it in the serial port. Some motherboards have
numbered ports, and since it is the first serial device in the system, plug it in serial port number
one.
• Connect the monitor – If the motherboard has video capabilities, the connection point will be
near the mouse and keyboard connections. If the motherboard has a video adapter card, plug
the monitor into the connector located on that card. Since the connector is quite large, it

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normally has two screws to help hold it in place. Twist the tops of the screws until the
connection is secure.
• Main Power Supply – Finally, plug the AC power cord into the back of the power supply and
the other end into the wall socket. If there is a switch on the power supply, turn it on as well.
This will not always power the computer because it is just the master power switch for the
power supply.

The computer is normally started with the power switch on the front of the case. The computer can
now be turned on.

DOS Commands and Concepts


Introduction
DOS (an acronym for Disk Operation System) is a tool which allows you to control the operation of
the IBM PC. DOS is software which was written to control hardware. IDRISI, Atlas*GIS,
Microstation, AutoCAD, CPS/PC, and ARC/INFO are, in turn, application software which run under
DOS. By this we mean that, although IDRISI, Atlas*GIS, Microstation, AutoCAD, CPS/PC, and
ARC/INFO were written to accomplish a single task or application (in this case manipulation of
spatially related data), they must use DOS to pursue its work.
DOS can be used for a wide range of tasks far beyond the requirements. You will be able to manage
well if you master only a small subset of DOS commands and functions. These relate almost
exclusively to file and directory management and are introduced in this handout
Most of the common DOS commands you need to use for this class (copy, rename, delete) are
available to you in Windows through the Filemanager icon. And, since you can move back and forth
between DOS and Windows, it doesn't matter which option you employ. Some commands are faster in
invoke in Windows, some in DOS.

Backup Files
It is possible to lose files by mistake, although the more you practice the less likely it becomes. For
your own peace of mind, it is good practice to make backup copies of your most valuable files on a
separate diskette. Store your backup disk in a safe place and don't carry it through a metal detector.
Use the COPY command to create the backup.
There is no need to backup every file you create, only the ones in which you've invested much work.
Also, prune your backup diskette every week or two using the ERASE command. Backup files which
have been made redundant by subsequent additions will simply create clutter on your backup diskette.
An effective file naming convention is essential to keeping track of your backups.

Change the Default Drive


To change the default drive, simply type the letter of the your choice. The new default will be listed in
subsequent DOS prompts.
Example:
• C> A: [enter]
• Changes the default drive from C to A.
• A> C: [enter]
• Changes the default drive from A to C.
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[enter] means that you must press the Enter Key before the format command will execute. [Enter] is
required after any DOS command, it is assumed in all commands found below.

CHDIR (CD) Change Directory Command


Once you have located the directory you want, you may move from directory to directory using the
CD command (change directory)
Example:
• C> cd furniture
• Moves you to the directory called 'FURNITURE'
• C> cd \furniture\chairs
• Moves you to the directory called 'CHAIRS' under the directory called 'FURNITURE'.
• C> cd...
• Moves you up one level in the path.
• C> cd \
• takes you back to the root directory (c: in this case).

COPY Command
The COPY command can be used both to copy files from disk to disk or to create a second copy of a
file on a single disk. (There are many more uses of the COPY command, but only the basic operation
is discussed here.)
Example:
• C> copy c:kermit.exe a:
• Copies the file 'KERMIT.EXE' from the C drive to the A drive and gives it the same name.
• C> copy a:brazil1.dat c:\south\brazil2.dat
• Creates a copy of 'BRAZIL1.DAT' from drive A on drive c, putting it in the 'SOUTH'
subdirectory and renaming it 'BRAZIL2.DAT'.
The key to use this command correctly is to remember that the first file specified after the COPY
command is the source file, the second is the target:ehp1 file. The source is the file to be copied. The
target will be the location and name of the new file. If the file name and extension are omitted after the
target's drive specification, the new file will have exactly the same name as the source file.
Example:
• C> copy a:myfile.txt c:
• C> copy c:command.com c:com.com
• C> copy c:golly.gee a:whao.boy
• C> copy command.* a:
• C> copy a:mymap.dwg c:\maps
Note: it is always good practice to us the complete file specifications for both source and target files,
Be very sure of yourself before you accept defaults or employ wild-card characters. Otherwise you

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may end up with some interesting results. Incomplete or incorrect source names may result in errors,
such as the command: copy edlin a:myomy.bat. Try it and see what happens.

DIR (Directory) Command


The DIRECTORY command lists the names and sizes of all files located on a particular disk.
Example:
• C> dir a:
• Shows directory of drive A
• C> dir b:
• Shows directory of drive B
• C> dir \agis
• Shows files in a subdirectory on drive C (default)
• C> dir
• Shows directory of drive C
• C> dir /w
• Shows directory in wide format, as opposed to a vertical listing.
All the files are listed at the screen, you can stop the display by typing CTRL-BREAK. If you ask for a
directory on the A or B drives, be sure there is a diskette in the drive and that the diskette has been
formatted. If the drive is empty, or if the diskette is unformatted, the DOS will respond with an error
message.

DIR Options
Two little characters, '*' and '?', will make your life with computers much easier. Their use is illustrated
below.
Example:
• C> dir a:*.ex
• Lists all files on the A drive with an extension of 'EXE'.
• C> dir b:kermit.*
• Lists all files on the B drive with a filename of 'KERMIT'.
The asterisk is a wild-card character which allows the user to enter only a limited part of a file
specification to find a file. It is useful when you wish to locate a group of files with the same filename
or the same extension. On other occasions you may have forgotten part of a file specification. You can
use '*' in place of the parts of the specification you have forgotten. Similarly, '?' permits wild-card
searches keyed to single characters.

Example:
• C> dir a:labe?.com
• Lists all five-letter files with the first four letters 'LABE' and an extension of 'COM'.
• C> dir b:format.c??
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• Lists all files with a filename of 'FORMAT' and an extension beginning with 'C'.
Wild-card characters can be used in combination.
Example:
• C> dir a:labe?.*
• Lists all five-letter files with the first four letters 'LABE' and any extension.
• C> dir c:*.ex?
• Lists all files with an extension beginning with 'EX'.
Experiment with '*' and '?' to improve your ability to find files quickly. These wild-card characters can
also be used with several other DOS commands.

ERASE Command
The ERASE command deletes specified files.
Example:
• C> erase a:myfile.txt
• Erases the file MYFILE.TXT from the diskette in the A drive. If no drive specification is
entered, the system looks to delete the specified file form drive C (in this case).
IMPORTANT WARNING: This command is easy to use, but it is the most dangerous one you will
encounter in DOS (apart form FORMAT). If you aren't careful, you may delete a file which you--or
someone else--needs. And, unless you have saved a backup of that file, the erased file is gone for
good. For this reason it is good practice to use only complete file specifications with the ERASE
command (and to keep backups of your most valuable files). As a safety precaution, never use the
wild-card characters '*' and '?' in ERASE commands.

File-Naming Conventions
Careful file naming can save time. Always choose names which provide a clue to the file's contents. If
you are working with a series of related files, use a number somewhere in the name to indicate which
version you have created. This applies only to the filename parameter; most of the file extension
parameters you will be using are predetermined (or reserved by DOS for certain types of file).
Example:
• WORLD.DAT
• An ATLAS*GRAPHICS file containing data for a world map. The DAT extension is required
by ATLAS*GRAPHICS.
• BRAZIL.BNB
• A boundary file of Brazil in binary form.
• BRIT1.DAT

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• BRIT2.DAT
• BRIT3.DAT
• Three versions of a data file for a map of Britain.

FORMAT Command
You must format new disks before using them on the IBM computers. The format command checks a
diskette for flaws and creates a directory where all the names of the diskette's files will be stored.
Example:
• C> format a:
• Formats the diskette in the A drive.
After entering this command, follow the instructions on the screen. When the FORMAT operation is
complete, the system will ask if you wish to FORMAT more diskettes. If you are working with only
one diskette, answer N (No) and carry on with you work. If you wish to FORMAT several diskettes,
answer Y (Yes) until you have finished formatting all your diskettes.
BEWARE: Executing the format command with a diskette which already contains files will result in
the deletion of all the contents of the entire disk. It is best to execute the format command only on new
diskettes. If you format an old diskette make sure it contains nothing you wish to save.

MKDIR (MD) Make Directory Command


This command creates a new directory.
Example:
• C> mkdir mine
• Creates a directory called 'MINE'

Rebooting the computer (Ctrl-Alt-Del)


In some cases, when all attempts to recover from a barrage of error messages fails, as a last resort you
can reboot the computer. To do this, you press, all at once, the control, alternate and delete.
BEWARE: If you re-boot, you may loose some of your work--any data active in RAM which has not
yet been saved to disk.

RENAME (REN) Command


The RENAME command permits users to change the name of a file without making a copy of it.
Example:
• C> ren a:goofy.txt pluto.txt
• Changes the name of 'GOOFY.TXT' on the A drive to 'PLUTO.TXT'.

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This command is very simple to use, just remember two points: the file name and extension must be
complete for the source file and no drive specification is given for the target. Renaming can only occur
on a single disk drive (otherwise COPY must be used).

RMDIR (RD) Remove Directory Command


This command removes a directory. It is only possible to execute this command if the directory you
wish to remove is empty.
Example:
• C> rd mine
• Removes directory called 'MINE'.

Stop Execution (Ctrl-Break)


If you wish to stop the computer in the midst of executing the current command, you may use the key
sequence Ctrl-Break. Ctrl-Break does not always work with non-DOS commands. Some software
packages block its action in certain situations, but it is worth trying before you re-boot.

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