Build your Own PC

by **Mr Eagle x** Tue 4 May - 10:18

How to build your own PC.

If something goes wrong it is not my fault the makers(you) has all responibility as of now and bare in mind that this is from 18 june 2008 so it is a pretty old tut

Step 1: Materials Needed:

This tutorial is intended to assist you in building a basic PC. There are obviously a plethora of possible PC configurations and hardware that you could put into your new PC if you choose. But, what we are trying to do here is help you put together a basic PC. For this reason, we are only requiring the basic components and tools to get you up and running.

Tools Required

* Screwdriver – A Phillips-head (cross-point) screwdriver is what is used in most PCs.

*Screw Extractor – If you have surgeon’s fingers you may not need this. But, if you’re human, it is likely you might drop a screw into your PC during this procedure and be too big-thumbed to get it out. A screw extractor can help you grab those screws and get them out without messing with the hardware. You definitely do not want to run your PC with loose screws in there. It could cause a short circuit.

*Flashlight – Unless you are in a fantastic lighting situation, you will likely need a flashlight to get a look of the landscape in your PC while you’re working.

* Tweezers – May be helpful for you in switching jumpers later in the tutorial.

Hardware Required

* PC Case
* Floppy Disk Drive
* Hard Drive
* CD-ROM Drive
* Processor
* Processor Cooling Fan
* Motherboard
* Memory Modules
* Power Supply
* Video Card
* Keyboard & Mouse

To build a basic PC, you will need at least a motherboard, a memory module, a processor with cooling fan, a power supply, a hard drive, a floppy drive, a video card and a CD-ROM.

Most electrically sensitive hardware comes in a static bag which is designed to protect the electronics from static electricity shock. Leave your hardware in these bags until you are ready to install them.

Software Required

* System Disk
* Device Drivers (these usually come with the hardware above)
* Operating System (for the purposes of this tutorial, we will assume you are choosing Microsoft Windows as your operating system – PC Mechanic has lots of great information on Linux and other alternatives)

Cables and Miscellaneous

* Drive cables
* Motherboard spacers (usually come with the motherboard, but are used to space the motherboard up off the mounting plate)
* Screws (usually a whole pile of screws will come with your PC’s case, but if you are using a case you happened to have around, you will need to collect some screws)
* Power cords (for both your PC and your monitor. They usually come with the hardware when you buy it, of course)
* CPU Cooling Compound

STEP 2 : Remove Case Cover

This is a very easy step. Basically, you are just taking the cover off your new case. If you have a standard case, you take a screwdriver and remove the four or six screws located around the edge on the back of your case. Hang on to these screws and put them in a place where they will not be scattered and can be easily found later in this procedure. Once they are removed, the entire case cover comes off in one piece. With this design, the front of the case (also known as the bezel) does not move. Only the top and sides come off as a single cover.

Some cases (such as the one being used in making this tutorial) use thumb screws rather than standard screws. It works the same way, obviously, except that you do not need to use a screwdriver to loosen and remove them. Simply twist them loose using your fingers.

Still other cases come apart differently. Some manufacturers have developed cases using a “screwless” design. These cases are designed such that you can remove the cover simply by un-latching the parts from the chassis. With this design, you usually take hold of the bottom of the front bezel of the case and give it a nice solid yank. The front then pulls off. It is my experience that this usually requires a few tries and some muscle. These cases are usually pretty durable so you really don’t have to worry about hurting them. The sides then lift and slide off as does the top. Your case, in essence, comes apart in four pieces. Other cases come apart in a similar way, but after you take the front off, the top and sides come off together.

Each case is a little different in how it comes apart. There are almost as many designs as there are companies that make them. You may find some where you don’t even have to remove the front, and rather you just slide the sides off. With others, you can remove the whole motherboard mounting plate and card rack combo from the case by sliding it out the back. This is convenient for making quick changes to the system, although you still have to disconnect the various cables to get it out all the way. Whatever case style you have, remember to look it all over before you attempt to gain entry. You don’t want to force it and break anything – take your time.

Now that this is done, you are ready to move on.

STEP 3 : Case Preparation

At this point, you should have the new case in front of you with the cover removed. Before you can use it for a new system, you must prepare it for use. Go through the following checklist to make sure it is prepared. Not all of this may be necessary on your case, and if you’re using a case you already had, much or all it has likely been done already. Nonetheless, this is a useful guideline.

Now that the case is open, now is a good time to go through the screw supply provided with the case. These are usually held in a small plastic bag nestled inside the case. Inside this bag you should find:
* Chassis screws – this is the type used to tighten down cards, etc.

* Smaller screws – just like the chassis screws, just with a smaller diameter. It is used to fasten the motherboard in.

* Standoffs – these are screws that are used to hold the motherboard about 1/8″ from the motherboard mounting plate. Their ends have a threaded opening in them that accept the smaller chassis screws. If you have an AT case, you may find small white standoffs. These serve the same function as the metal standoff, but are simply punched through the board and slid into slots on the case. They are rather clumsy to use compared to the metal standoffs, but they get the job done. Lastly, some cases use small metal clip-looking stand-offs. They are pinched together and slipped into small rectangular holes in the motherboard mounting plate and they snap in. These are, too, a bit awkward.

* Washers. These are typically small, loose washers, not the metal kind you’ve seen in your toolbox. These will be used to cushion your motherboard from the screws you will be using to hold it in. Some motherboards have metal plates around the holes to keep the screws from shorting the circuitry, and in this case, washers are not necessary and may not be included.

Now, verify a few things have been done, if they need to be done.

1. Clean Case – If the case is new, this should be no big deal. But, if the case has been used before, it could probably stand a cleaning. Clean out the inside with a rag or compressed air. Make sure the fan in the power supply is free of furry dust. Also take a rag and wipe it off.

2. Inspect the Power Supply – Make sure it is tightly attached to the case, make sure it is free of dust, and make sure it is set to the proper voltage of your area- 110V for U.S. and 220V for outside countries.

3. Inspect Power Switch – Make sure the power switch is securely tightened and correctly connected to the power supply. In ATX cases, the power switch will have one loose wire coming off of it. This wire will then connect to the Power Switch connector on the motherboard.

4. Install Feet – These are little tabs inserted into holes at the bottom of the case. The case sits on these tabs when on your desk. If the case has been used before or it is a more expensive case, this may not need to be done.

5. Install Case Fan – Sometimes, you may want to install a separate fan that screws onto a rack next to the vent on the front of the case. This helps increase circulation of air through the system. Many cases already have this installed, so you may not need to worry about it. Some like to put a little filter over the hole so as to prevent dust from being drawn in. An ideal and simple setup for proper airflow is to set the front, lower fan to pull air in, and have the higher, rear fan exhaust.

6. Free Up the Drive Bays – Brand new (cheaper) cases sometimes have the drive bays sealed with metal plates. It’s the most annoying thing. If you want to install any drives, and you probably do, you’ll need to remove these. Choose the drive bays you want to use (usually the ones at the top on tower cases) and remove the metal plates. These are attached by metal, so they take some cutting, prying and twisting to break them free. Be careful not to hurt the case or yourself. The plate will likely have sharp edges once removed. Better cases have these bays covered with plastic, replaceable plates which are a lot easier and make infinitely more sense.

7. Replace I/O Shield. The Input/Output shield is a piece of metal with various holes punched in it that allow for the motherboard connections, such as mouse and keyboard, USB
and LAN to poke out the rear of your case. All cases will come with one but since all motherboards are laid out differently, you’ll need to install the one that came with your board. Remove the old one simply by pushing it from the rear of the case inward. It usually will pop out easily, if not use a flat-head screwdriver to pry the edges so it comes loose. Push the new one in from the inside of the case and allow it to pop into place. Check to be sure it is secure.

STEP 4 : Install Power Supply

Some cases come with power supply unit pre-installed for you. Likewise, if the case you are using has been used before, it may have a power supply already installed. In that case, you only need to make sure it is an adequate unit for the computer you intend to build. Also, if you are building an ATX machine, you must make sure that the power supply is an ATX power supply.

If the power supply is not already installed, you will need to install it now. Here’s how:

1. Take the power supply unit and line it up for placement into the PC case. The fan should blow toward the rear and the wires should face forward.

2. Insert the PSU into the case. Sometimes this takes a little maneuvering to get it into position

3. Once the unit is in place, check the back of the case and make sure the holes on the rear of the PSU line up with the screw holes on the case. If they do not, you may need to turn the power supply over.

4. Using your screwdriver, tighten the PSU down using standard chassis screws.

5. Make sure the voltage is set correctly. There is a little switch on the back that lets you switch between 120 or 220 volts. In the United States, its 120. If you are in a country overseas, its most likely 220. If you use 220, make sure the cord is rated for it. It should say on the side of the cord. Its easiest to just check this now while you’re thinking about it.

STEP 5 : Install the CPU

The next step is to install the processor onto the motherboard. Now, at this point, the motherboard should just be sitting on your work space, preferably inside of the static protection bag in which it came. Over the next few steps, we will be installing some hardware onto the motherboard before it is installed into the case. The reason is that, in most cases, it is a LOT easier to do this with the motherboard out the case than with the motherboard in the case. The chief reason being room to maneuver your big hands.

Installing the CPU is a pretty straight-forward process. The real risk is to the CPU. Doing this step too fast or carelessly can result in damage to the processor. Therefore, don’t get nervous. It is an easy step, but do it with care.

There are several common interfaces for CPU’s today: Intel currently uses Socket T (775) and AMD uses Socket 939. The older generation of boards uses Socket 478 for Intel and Socket 754 or Socket A (462) for AMD. The numbers correspond to the number of pins on the CPU. But, they all boil down to two basic types: The Zero Insertion Force (ZIF) socket and the slot. Most processors in use today use a socket to connect to the motherboard, and the type of socket in use is typically the ZIF socket. The ZIF socket opens and closes using a small lever. When the lever is down, the CPU is locked into place. When in the upright position, the processor is loose and can either be installed or removed.

All modern systems make use of the zero-insertion force (ZIF) socket. Therefore, this procedure is relevant with that setup. To install a processor using this type of interface, follow this procedure:

1. Check the pins. Turn the chip over and inspect the pins. Are they bent? They should all stick straight up. If many of them are bent, then it is best to request a replacement processor. If only a couple are bent and the bend is not that much, then you may be able to use a screwdriver to gently bend the pins back into place. Do so VERY carefully.

2. Open ZIF Socket. This is done by grabbing the lever on one side of the socket and opening it. Pull the lever from the closed, level position, to the open, vertical position. You may need to pull the lever out a bit before it will open. Do this slowly and don’t force it. You don’t want to break the socket. On the way up, you may experience a little more force. This is normal. The top part of the ZIF socket will slide over a bit.

3. Orient The Chip. This involves locating Pin 1 on both the chip and the socket. This is easy to do. The chip is always marked at Pin 1. The mark may be a little dot on one corner, a slightly notched corner, or a mark at one of the pins under the chip. On the socket, there is usually a notch on one corner, or a big “1″. These corners will be matched up for correct installation.

4. Insert Processor. Bearing in mind the orientation determined in Step 3, insert the chip into the socket. With a ZIF socket, the chip should install very easily. It should almost fall into the socket with all pins lining up. That’s why they call it the Zero Insertion Force socket. If not, the socket is probably not open all the way. If you do not have a ZIF socket (God forbid!), you need to exercise extreme care. Lay the chip on the socket. Make sure all pins line up. Then, slowly push the chip into the socket. Use your thumb and push on one side of the chip until it starts to go in. Then proceed to another side and repeat. Do this around the chip several times until it is completely installed.

5. When done, there should be basically no gap between the bottom of the processor and the socket.

6. Close ZIF Socket. Just close the lever. You will probably feel some resistance. This is normal and it should close anyway. If you really need to lean on it, though, check to be sure the chip is installed correctly. When down, make sure the lever snaps into place.

7. Some retail processors come with the heat sink
and fan already attached to the CPU, in which case you will need to attach the CPU fan to the socket at the same time as you close the ZIF socket. After you lock the CPU into place, take the retention clips on either side of the CPU fan (which should line up automatically for you if you inserted the processor correctly in step 4 above) and push them down until each side clips over the tabs on either side of the socket. Sometimes it takes using a screwdriver as leverage to be able to get the retention clips out and over the tabs, but if you do this be very careful not to slip and jab your motherboard with the screwdriver.

STEP 6 : Install Heat Sink/Fan

Today’s processors are running quite hot. Advancements are being made to make them run cooler at higher speeds, but the importance of a high quality heat sink and fan cannot be overstated. PCs that are not properly cooled can be quite unstable, or at its worse, it may not even boot properly.

It used to be that you could attach a heat sink and fan to your processor directly and not worry about it. Today, though, processors run too hot to do this and expect a reliable PC. One must use heat sink compound to seal the gap between the heat sink and the top of the processor.

Some heat sinks have a rubber heat pad on the bottom of them. In these cases, you don’t really need to use heat sink compound because the rubber pad will create the seal. It should be kept in mind, though, that if you are using a heat sink which has been used before and had a heat pad, that heat pad is now likely melted in the spot where the previous processor contacted it. In these cases, you cannot use the heat pad again as it will be ineffective. Instead, you need to clean the old rubber pad off of the heat sink using a non-abrasive cleaning compound. Many people use isopropyl alcohol and a broken old credit card to scrape the rubber off without damaging the heat sink. When the pad is removed, you can use the heat sink again using heat sink compound.

1. Attach the fan to the heat sink. This step is almost always already done for you, but if not, you must do it yourself. This is done using the four screws that came with the CPU fan.

2. Clean the top of the processor. Using a lint-free cloth and isopropyl alcohol (or some other non-abrasive cleaning solution), ensure that the surface of the processor is clean and free of dust and finger oil. Do the same to the bottom of the heat sink. Pay attention to the note above on heat pads if your heat sink had or has a rubber heat pad.

3. If you are using a cooling shim, place it onto the top of the processor now. Not all processors require shims. In fact, no processors require shims; they are completely optional. But, some people like to use them because they help to increase the surface area of the top of the ship and spread the weight around evenly. See, some processors (such as the Athlon XP) actually have the core sticking up slightly from the rest of the processor. So, when the heat sink is placed on top, all of its weight comes down on the core. If the fan is a real tight fit for the motherboard, it could really create a weight load on the processor core, and some people have actually crushed their CPU core by accident. A shim is simply a thin piece of metal, especially designed for a particular processor, which fits over the processor and evens out the height and helps to alleviate the crushed core problem. When installing a shim, be extra sure you are aligning it correctly. They often have holes in them exactly placed so that the cache bridges on top of the processor can poke through. If the shim is not properly aligned, you could short out these bridges and actually burn out your processor if you run your PC that way. Additionally, a mis-aligned shim could cause the heat sink to not actually have full content with the CPU core, leading to overheating.

4. Apply the Heat Sink Compound. Assuming you are not using a heat pad on your heat sink, apply a very thin layer of heat sink compound to the top of the processor core. If, as is the case with Pentium IV processors, the top of the processor is totally flat, then apply the compound to the entire top surface of the processor. Many heat sinks come with heat sink compound in a small little package, usually just enough for a one-time install. You can pick up better quality compound online. Arctic Silver is a very popular choice. Be careful not to get compound on any motherboard electronics. Apply only a very small portion to the processor. Only a very thin layer is required. The compound must be spread out evenly across the top of the chip, forming that very thin layer. When spreading the heat sink compound, do not use your finger. Use the edge of a credit card, or you can use a rubber glove or even just a plastic bag over your hand. Do not apply any heat sink compound if you plan to use a heat pad.

5. Attach The Heat Sink. Place the heat sink/fan combo squarely on top of the processor, pressing down lightly. Do not do any twisting as you install the heat sink. Press down firmly, but straight down so as to preserve the heat sink compound layer you just applied.

6. Secure the heat sink. Most newer heat sinks use a set of clips on each side to fasten itself down. These clips attach to a pair of tabs on each side of the socket. It will probably take a little bit of force to bend the clip down over the tab. Other heat sinks wrap around the processor, then just sit on top, the compound being the only real attachment. Pentium IV motherboards have a heat sink retention bracket around the processor socket. When you install the P4 heat sink, you will fasten each of the four retention clips into the retention bracket and then close the clip levers on top of the heat sink to fasten the heat sink down onto the Pentium IV processor.

7. Double-Check. No compound should have oozed out from the sides. If it did then you applied too much and need to remove the HSF, clean both the heatsink and CPU and start over.

8. Attach fan to power source. Unless your CPU fan is powered via a standard power supply plug, it is probably powered by a wire attached to a 3-pin power lead on the motherboard itself. You can attach this now. The CPU_FAN power lead is located near the CPU interface somewhere. The lead will have two small pins on each side, and these pins surround the power plug and the pins are inserted into the holes in the plug. It should be pretty easy and obvious.

STEP 7 : Install Memory

You should now install your memory modules. For the purposes of this step, we are assuming that you have already chosen the appropriate memory for your PC in Step 1. So, we will jump right into installing the memory.

It is important that you consult the manual for your motherboard to see about any particular sequences in which memory should be installed on your board. Some boards require particular sequences of memory installation, usually depending on the memory capacity, type, etc. Other boards have no required sequence at all, and you can choose any slot you wish to install your memory. Most new boards support Dual Channel RAM. This is a technology that allows a performance increase when using 2 or 4 matched sticks of RAM. Consult your motherboard manual on which slots to use for dual-channel. It is not always slots 1 & 2.

The installation of module modules is basically the same regardless of type, even though each module type looks a little different.

1. Ground yourself by touching an unpainted metal object. This will discharge any built up static electricity in your body.

2. Pick up the memory module by its edges.

3. Decide which slots you are going to use and orient the memory module over it. The module slot will have a small plastic bridge which will be off-center in the socket. This matches up with a notch in the pin array of the memory module itself and ensures that you insert the module in the proper alignment.

4. Insert the memory module. With DIMMs (SDRAM or DDR RAM), they go straight in. Make sure the notches in the RAM line up with the little bumps in the slot.

5. Lock the module in place. With DIMMs and RIMMs, all you have to do is continue to press the memory module down until the ejector clips on either side of the memory slot automatically get pushed into the closed position. Sometimes, you may need to help the ejector clips close, but the idea here is that those clips need to close so as to lock the module into place. If they do not close, it is because the module is not inserted all the way into the slot.

6. Repeat this procedure for any other memory modules you are going to install.

7. If you are using DIMMs (and most are), then you are done. If you are using RIMM modules, then you need to fill each remaining RIMM slot with a continuity module. A continuity module does not contain any actual memory, but its purpose is to simply act as a pass-through circuit so as to provide for a continuous channel for the memory signal. The installation of a C-RIMM is exactly like that of a normal RIMM module.

STEP 8 : Configure the Motherboard

At this point, your have your processor, heat sink
and fan and your memory installed onto your motherboard. In most cases you are now ready to install your motherboard into the case. In some cases, however, it is necessary to do a little configuration on your motherboard beforehand. It is easier to do this with the motherboard sitting outside of the case.

The settings that may need to be configured are:

* CPU Speed
* Bus Speed
* CPU Voltage Setting

Most motherboards in use today make use of the CMOS settings to configure these options. In this case, you can skip this step because you will need to wait until your new PC is powered up in order to configure these options. If, though, you are using an older motherboard in which these settings are controlled via the use of jumpers, then we need to tackle this here.

Configuring a Board Which Uses Jumpers

You need to have the manual for your board available. If you do not have the manual, log on to the manufacturer’s web site and see if you can find this info there. You can also try their tech support via phone. In some cases, too, some of the jumper settings are printed onto the surface of the motherboard. If you don’t have any of this info, you are just out of luck. Unfortunately, you must have some form of documentation available simply because motherboards have so many settings to adjust. If you’re dealing with an older board, you may need to spend some time trying to identify the manufacturer so that you can see if they do support it. You can many times use the BIOS ID numbers to identify the board online.

Motherboard manuals come in two main formats. Some are friendly for hardware buffs by listing a separate jumper or DIP switch for CPU core voltage, I/O voltage, multiplier, and system bus speed. They then tell you the settings for each of these. This format is better because of the increased control. Other manuals list the settings next to a list of commonly used CPU’s, showing the common settings for each. While this format is easier for the end user for easy setup, it is tougher if you like increased control of the settings, for overclocking for example. The best manuals do both: list the jumper settings individually as well as provide a list of processors and the jumper settings for each.

When playing with the board, be careful with it. Avoid placing the board on the static bag it came in, as this can cause an electro-static shock to build up, which may very well fry the motherboard. Always place the board on a flat surface, wooden desks work best, not carpet or anything like that. And always ground yourself before handling the board. When handling the board, handle it by the edges only when at all possible.

Now, here is the basic procedure for motherboard configuration:

1. Read the Manual. Always. Read the listings for settings and locate all jumpers on the motherboard itself and what settings they control.

2. Set the voltage settings. Most older chips use one single voltage. The newer chips we use today use a split voltage. Most of these motherboards provide jumpers for the core voltage and I/O voltage. Set them to match your intended CPU. If you are using an older chip with one voltage, just set both voltages to be the same. Your best bet to choose the correct voltage is to see what is printed on the CPU itself. Most CPUs will have “core voltage” printed somewhere on it. That is your voltage. Some jumpered boards are designed to detect the voltage automatically and then use the correct voltage. In this case, you will not have to worry about it.

3. Set the processor speed. This is not usually done with a single jumper. It is, instead, done by setting the system bus speed and a multiplier. The multiplier is the number which when multiplied by the system bus speed gives the processor speed. There is a separate jumper for each of these settings. Configure these to match the intended CPU. If you know what you’re doing and would like to overclock the chip a tad, set these jumpers a little differently. Generally, though, I would recommend actually getting the system working before trying to overclock it. If your manual lists settings by CPU, just do what it says. You can sometimes infer from the manual which switches control voltage, multiplier, etc. Generally, if your board is jumper-controlled, you will need to consult the manual for the proper jumper arrangement, use the motherboard layout in the manual to find the jumper on the board itself, and use either your finger or tweezers to adjust the jumper to look like the diagram in your manual. When the jumpers in question look like they should in the diagrams, then you’re set. And, again, if your CPU settings are NOT jumper-controlled, you will be taking care of all this later on.

Some old boards make use of a jumper to set the cache size and type. Set this now, if need be. If you have internal cache, which most do, you won’t need to bother. Likewise, some boards give you the ability to use either AT or ATX power supplies. Depending on which type you will be using, you may need to set a jumper to tell the board what type of power to use.

If your board supports the asynchronous SDRAM clock speed, as most boards with Via chipsets do, you need to set the jumpers properly for this as well. This capability allows you to run the memory at a different clock speed than the rest of the system. This comes in handy, for example, when you want to use older memory yet run the rest of the system at the higher bus speed. You can set the system bus speed at 100MHz and then set the memory to run at 66MHz or 75MHz, for example. The instructions for properly setting this up are in your board’s manual.

If you’ve done that, most of the configuring is done. Now you want to double-check the other settings that were set by the manufacturer to make sure they are correct. Make sure the CMOS-clear jumper is set to normal so that you can change the BIOS settings later. Make sure the battery jumper is set to onboard battery instead of external battery. If you have a jumper enabling FLASH BIOS, make sure this is disabled. Also, check to see if all jumpers enabling or disabling onboard controllers are set correctly. All these settings are usually set correctly by default, but you need to make sure. Keep in mind that many boards control these feature via their CMOS and you will be setting them after the PC is up and running, not now with jumpers.

STEP 9: Installing the Motherboard

Now you need to install the motherboard into the case. If you’re following this tutorial, the CPU, fan and memory will already be installed onto the motherboard, so you will be installing this whole setup into the case now.

1. Turn your PC case onto its side and move all the power leads from the power supply out of the way so that you have clear access to the motherboard plate. If you are using a case in which the motherboard mounting plate can be removed, you may wish to remove it now and install the motherboard outside of the case itself.

2. Locate the holes on the motherboard and the holes on the case or motherboard mounting plate. You might want to hold the board just above the case motherboard plate and see which holes on the case line up with holes on the motherboard. All motherboards have mounting holes in different places.

3. Now gather your standoffs. Screw them into the holes in the case or mounting plate that line up with holes on the motherboard. You can tighten them with a 3/16″ nut driver or by hand. Some cases have small spacers that snap into place. With these, you push them through the mounting plate from the back side and they will snap into place.

4. For the holes on the motherboard that line up with an eyelet hole on the case (a hole that is very long so that you can slide things in it), install a plastic stand-off on the motherboard. The stand-offs should poke through the motherboard and expand to keep them in place. The little disk on the other end of the stand-off will later be used to slide into the eyelet holes. If your case does not provide eyelet holes, do not worry about this step. Most cases use only the metal standoff screws to hold the motherboard, which is a hell of a lot easier than the slide-in variety.

5. Take the motherboard by its edges and hold it over the case. Align it so that it is properly aligned with the rear connectors facing backward, etc.

6. Lower the motherboard into the case. Sit it on top of the standoffs you just installed so that each standoff lines up with a screwhole on the motherboard. If you happen to be using any of the slide-in standoffs, you will need to slide these into their eyelet holes as you lower the board into the case.

7. Inspect the screws you will use to tighten the board down. If the head of the screws are too wide, and you think they might contact any circuitry on the motherboard, place a plastic washer over each hole. I’ve had some ATX boards refuse to start up later because they were grounded somewhere to the case, probably by a screw.

8. Tighten the board down. Install the screws into each of the standoffs underneath, through the board and the washers if you used them. Tighten them down by hand first, then finish them with a screwdriver. Make sure you do not tighten them too much. You don’t want to crack your board. Just make them snug so that the board doesn’t wiggle around in the case. It may be necessary to adjust the position of the board somewhat in order to get the holes aligned enough with the standoffs to tighten down the screws.

9. If you were installing the board to a removable mounting plate, install the motherboard mounting plate back into the case. On some cases, the plate is installed from the side. On these, you insert the bottom edge of the plate into a guide rail on the bottom of the case and then rotate upward. The top edge of the plate will contact the case, at which point you can screw it in or a spring loaded handle will lock it in. On other cases, the plate may slide in a different way, from the rear for example. These plates are then easily removed later if you ever need to remove the motherboard.

10. Double check your work. Check to be sure that the back of the motherboard is not touching any part of the case or mounting plate. Make sure the slots and connectors line up with the holes on the back of the case. And definitely be sure that the board is rigid and tight. If you press down on the board at any point, it should not bend down.

STEP 10 : Connect Motherboard To Case

Now it is time to begin connecting your newly installed motherboard to the various wires of your case as well as it’s power source.

NOTE: If you have been working on a removed motherboard mounting plate, you will need to install the plate back into the case in order to be able to make the connections below.

1. Connect the power to the motherboard. On an ATX board, the power connector is one large 20 or 24 wire plug. It is keyed for correct installation. Just plug it in. The board may also require a square, 4pin +12v plug and even a spare 4pin Molex or two. Check your manual to make sure the board is fully powered.

2. Connect the CPU fan to the power. Many CPU fans connect to one of the power supply leads. They often, then, provide a pass-through so that you have a connector free for a drive, thereby placing the CPU fan on the circuit to a particular drive. Others have a little 3-pin lead that connects to a small connector on the motherboard itself. Just plug it into the motherboard. The connector is usually labeled CPU_FAN 1, or something to that effect. If your cooling fan uses the 3-pin type and you are following this tutorial to the letter, then this is likely already done.

3. Study the case connectors on the motherboard and match them up with case connector wires. The connectors are usually a big block of pins located in the lower section of the board. Some boards label the pins, but it is best to have your manual since it can sometimes be difficult to determine which label goes to which set of pins. If you have a good case, each connector will be labeled to tell you what case feature it leads to. If this isn’t the case, you may have to physically trace the wires back to see what feature it goes to. When connecting, consult the manual for pin 1’s, to make sure each connector is plugged in the right way. Remember, if the particular case feature is not working later, you may only have to turn the connector around on the motherboard. The next steps will walk you through connecting each wire.

4. Connect the power switch – On ATX machines, the power switch is connected to the motherboard instead of the power supply itself. Consult your manual. The connector is usually labeled PWR_SW, or maybe just PWR, but you must make this connection. Doing this wrong could cause your system not to start later.

5. Connect the reset switch. It can be plugged in any way, just make sure you connect it to the right pins. The pins may be labeled RST or RESET, but it is best to also consult the manual.

6. Connect Power LED/ Keylock Switch. Many system cases put these two devices on one 5-pin plug, but if you case does not have a keylock, it will be alone. The motherboard will probably be labeled accordingly. Just plug in the plug. If your system has separate plugs for each, connect them separately.

7. Connect the hard drive activity LED. Some come on a 2-pin plug. Others come on a four-pin plug, sometimes only two of the pins actually doing anything. Consult your manual, or play with it until it works. It is usually labeled HDD, HDD_LED, or something like that. If this is attached wrongly, the light may either never come on later or will stay on all the time when the PC
is running.

8. Connect the PC speaker. Most cases put this onto a 4-wire plug. Just plug it in to the 4 pins on the motherboard. Other cases put the speaker connector on two 1-wire plugs. In this case, plug them into pins 1 and 4. I never could figure out why they did that…

9. Double-Check your work, as always. Note that if an LED does not light up, its case connector needs to be flipped 180 degrees.

STEP 11: Install Floppy Drive

1. Choose which drive bay you want to install the drive to and remove the face plate off of that bay. Save the face plate for future use. Pick a bay that will fit the drive. If you have to install a 3.5″ drive in a 5.25″ bay, you’ll have to use a special front panel to adapt it. This panel sometimes comes with a new floppy drive when you buy it.

2.Now, slide the drive into the bay from the front. Make sure the front of the drive is flush with the front of the PC. Also make sure the screw holes on the drive align with the screw holes on the drive mounting rack.

3. If your particular case has a removable drive rack (as does the one we are using for this tutorial), then you may need to remove the rack from the system to secure the drive. But, in using removable racks, you need to pay attention to which set of screw holes to use on the rack which will result in the drive face being flush with the front of the PC. In some cases, it is still easier to install the drive from the front and make it flush just to see which screwholes to use. Then you can remove the drive rack, making note of which holes to use.

4. Secure the floppy drive. Using your screwdriver and screws, secure the drive to the drive rack. For removable racks, you can do this separate from the case. If the rack is part of the chassis itself, then sometimes it is easier to turn the case on its side to secure the drive so that you are not fighting gravity as you try to get the screws into the holes.

5. OPTIONAL: If you are installing a 3.5″ drive into a 5.25″ drive bay, you will need to use a rack system which will bridge the gap between the drive and the chassis. These racks are simply metal rails which are secured to the drive by screws. These effectively make the 3.5″ drive as wide as a 5.25″ drive. Then you can install and secure the drive as normal.

6. Connect the power supply to the floppy drive. On the 3.5″ drives, the plug is very small…the smallest coming out of the power supply. On the larger 5.25″ drives, the connector is a large 4-wire connector, just like the hard drive power connectors. These are a little harder to plug in, and may take some rocking. The mini-plugs are much easier to plug into the 3.5″ drives. It is designed so that it is obvious which way to attach it.

7. Attach the Ribbon Cable. Floppy cables have a twist in the cable. The “A:” drive goes AFTER the twist. If you have a second “B:” drive, this goes before the twist. You do not need to mess with master/slave jumpers. If you choose not to mess with the twist, you can, with later BIOS versions, swap the order of the drives in the BIOS. 3.5″ drives use a set of pins for the connection to the ribbon cable. 5.25″ drives use a card-edge connector, just like the typical edge of an expansion card. You need to use a cable with the proper connectors for each type you use. Many floppy cables come with connectors for each type on each side of the twist. Always check Pin 1 on the ribbon cable connector. The red edge of the cable is aligned to Pin 1 on the connector of the drive. If you accidentally reverse this, your drive won’t be damaged, it just won’t work, and the floppy drive light will stay on all the time until fixed. The connector on the far end of the ribbon cable connects to the floppy controller on the motherboard or I/O card (usually labeled FDD). Consult your motherboard’s manual to determine which is your floppy controller.

If you are installing any other 3.5″ drives (such as a ZIP drive), then you can install those the exact same way.

STEP 12 : Configure the Hard Drive & CD-ROM

Before physically installing your hard drive or CD-ROM, it is easier to configure them outside of the case. Configuring them involves changing jumpers, and doing this within the confines of the case can be quite difficult sometimes.

How to configure these drives depends on how many drives you intend to install and of what type.

Your motherboard has two built-in IDE channels, each supporting two devices. If two devices are on one channel, one must be the “master” and the other the “slave”. Usually, your primary hard drive (the one which contains the operating system) is the master and the other drive is the slave. If you only intend to install one hard drive and having nothing else on that IDE channel, then you can select the “cable select” setting for the drive, which tells the drive it is alone on the channel.

You can attach any IDE device onto your IDE channels in any order. But, it is recommend you use IDE1 for your hard drives and IDE2 for your CD drives. It is always best to keep the CD drives on a separate channel from the hard drives.

Configuring these drives is very easy. Often the jumper settings are printed on the top of the drive itself. On CD drives, the settings are described right above the jumper pins. On hard drives, the information is printed on the top of the hard drive, if it is printed at all. If not, then consult the manual for it or go online to try finding the specs. The manuals will also outline any special jumper settings such as use of the limiter jumper on Maxtor hard drives.

If a particular drive does not need to be jumpered at all, it is best to hang the jumper over one pin. This is the same as being unjumpered, but makes sure the jumper is there for future use if needed.

If you are using SATA Hard drives, you are in luck. Because each SATA drive uses its own channel, there is no need for jumpers or worrying about master/slave relationships.

TIP: If you want your PC to be fast, besides getting a motherboard with a faster FSB (front side bus) or installing multi-cpu’s, consider configuring it with multiple physical hard drives (like 3 or more). Get a RAID controller board that will allow you to configure your hard drives at DOS level (that is, before Windows boots up) so that the system see’s all your hard drives as if they all are only 1 physical drive. More drives = faster DATA throughput; faster data throughput = faster read/write operations. Duh?! Since all drives are reading/writing at the same time, it increases the amount of data that is read/written which in turn gives you faster data access. Needless to say, this can pretty much eliminate the bottleneck at the data read/write stage. Also a plus, when Windows reads/writes to its virtual memory file, it is much faster too! Smile You’ll notice that your system doesn’t seem like it’s grinding at your hard drive endlessly. Trust me, you’ll notice a difference (and your boot up stage will literally take only a few seconds).

STEP 13 : Install Drive

Before simply following the directions below on mounting the hard drive, pay attention to where you put it. Technically, you can put the hard drive in any free bay of your case, but there are a few considerations:

* Hard drives generate heat, especially the drives with the higher rotation speeds. Therefore, it is best to place these drives as far from other hardware as possible. Give them room to breathe.

* If it is necessary to install a drive cooler, make sure you have room for it.

* Some cases give room under the power supply to install a hard drive. Bad idea. A power supply is like a magnet, and magnets and your data do not go together. Don’t install a hard drive anywhere near the power supply. Keep your hard drive near the front of the case.

Okay, lets install the actual drive:

1. Determine which drive bay to install the hard drive into. In most cases, the hard drive usually goes into a 3.5″ slot toward the front of the case, near the bottom. These bays do not have a corresponding opening to the front of the case simply because there is no reason to see the hard drive from the front. Some cases use a removable drive rack to hold the hard drive. If your case uses this type of setup, remove the rack now.

2. Slide in the hard drive. If you are using a removable drive rack, just push the drive into the rack so that the screw holes line up. If your case has the drive rack as part of the chassis, then just lift the drive into the case and line up the screw holes on the drive with the drive rack. Be sure the drive connectors face toward the back of the case.

3. Fasten the hard drive into place using your screws. This is easy to do on removable racks. In non-removable racks, tightening down screws on the far side of the hard drive can be a problem, because the screws are not highly visible and thus it is hard to get to them with a screwdriver. It can take a little creativity to get at them. Most cases which have this problem have little holes where you can stick the screwdriver through and tighten the screw beneath. If the screw is not in there, I’ve even had to do a controlled drop of the screw onto the hole and then use the screwdriver to position it into the hole. It can be a real feat to do it sometimes, and this is one reason some manufacturers went to the removable racks. If you have a magnetic screwdriver that can hold the screw, this might be less of a problem for you.

4. If using a removable drive rack, you can now install the rack back into your case. Some racks are fastened into place using a simple thumb lever. Others need to be screwed in.

5. If you have any other hard drives which you are installing as you build your PC, then repeat the 4 steps above for the other drive.

6. Attach the power cable. Choose an unused power lead from the power supply and plug it into the power plug on the hard drive. The plug will be keyed so that it will only go in the correct way. SATA
power connectors are thin and black; they are obviously different from other white Molexes.

7. Attach the ribbon cable to the hard drive. The ribbon cable goes from the primary IDE controller of the motherboard
to the drive, usually labeled IDE1. Make sure the red edge of the ribbon cable is aligned with Pin 1 on the drive ribbon connector. If you can’t see Pin 1 marked, then it is almost always the pin closest to the power connector. If you place the cable on backwards, you may get strange errors that make your new drive sound like it has died already. As for the cable itself, usually you have two plugs closer together on one end of the cable and then a third plug on the far end of the cable. The far plug plugs into the motherboard. Of the two remaining cables, there are no requirements as to which plug to use on which hard drive. If you are only installing one hard drive, just use whichever one of those plugs reaches the drive best without stretching the ribbon cable out. If you are installing two hard drives, then plan it out so that you can use both connectors in whichever order works best. With SATA the ribbon cable goes to an SATA controller. Start with SATA_1 and move on if you have multiple drives.

SCSI Drives

If you are opting for a SCSI drive setup, then there are a few minor variations from the procedure above. First, you need to install a SCSI controller into one of your expansion slots (unless your motherboard has an integrated SCSI controller). Then proceed:

1. You need to set any switches or jumpers that need setting on the new drive. In SCSI setups, each device gets its own SCSI ID, numbered 1-7. #7 is usually given to the adapter card. You may pick, then, any other unused address. You may need to take into account any little quirks in your adapter, such as special likings to other addresses that could cause problems a little later. You’ll need the manual for this one.Z

2. Check for the correct termination. In SCSI setups, the adapter can hold up to seven SCSI devices. These devices are hooked up in a chain, usually with the adapter at one end and another device at the other end. This ending device must be set to be the terminating device, therefore ending the SCSI chain and making a complete electric circuit. In some cases, the adapter is in the middle of the chain, therefore you must terminate at both ends of the chain. You may need to consult the manual for any special termination techniques particular to your brand of drive. In general, a certain jumper setting will enable internal termination on the drive itself, eliminating the need for a special terminating plug.

3. The procedure for actual installation is the same as the procedure above for IDE drives.

STEP 14 : Install the CD-ROM(s)

Whether you are installing a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a CD-R/RW, or even a DVD-R/RW, each of these drives install the same way. The installation is quite simple.

1. Choose which drive bay you wish to install the drive in.

2. If you have not yet removed the drive bay cover, do so now. This is usually done by pushing two tabs together and pushing the plate out from the front of the case. As I mentioned in the case preparation step, if you have a metal plate covering this bay that has not been removed, you will need to pry it out before you can install the drive. When you are done, the drive bay should be open from the front of the case.

3. If your case makes use of drive rails to hold the drive into place (the case we are using does use such rails), then fasten these drive rails to the sides of the CD drive. In order to determine which set of holes is the one to use, it may be necessary to temporarily slide the drive into the drive bay. However you decide to do it, the drive rails should be positioned such that when the drive is put into place in the case, it will be flush with the front of the case rather than being recessed or sticking out.

4. Slide the drive into position. Most of the time this is done from the front. If you installed drive rails in step 3, then make sure those rails are lined up with the drive rack as you push the drive in. Then push the drive all the way in until the clips on the drive rails snap into place. At that point, you can skip the next step and move to step 7.

5. If you are not using drive rails, then you will simply have the drive in place, but not fastened down inside the case. At this time, screw the drive into place. You might want to just place the screws in but not tighten them. This is done so that you can slide the drive out again later. When installing the cables later, you may need to slide the drive out a few inches so that you have enough room to work behind the drive. In many cases, especially mini-towers, one can have a hard time working behind the CD-ROM because it is pinned up against the front of the power supply. Sometimes it is helpful to put the case on its side as you tighten the drive into place.

6. When tightened into place, make sure the front of the drive is flush with the front of the case. If the front bezel is off the case on installation, make sure you don’t make the mistake of making the drive flush with the case frame. It needs to stick out a little so it will be flush with the bezel when you re-attach it. Also make sure it appears straight. While this doesn’t really affect functionality, it’s a matter of aesthetics. If the drive is in too far or sticking out too far, go ahead and re-adjust it now.

7. Attach the power supply to the drive. Just like a hard drive, just find a free 4-wire power plug and plug it into the power connector on the CD-ROM.

8. Attach the ribbon cable. Connect one of the two available plugs on the ribbon cable to the CD drive. Just choose the plug which can reach the drive best. If you have two CD drives, use the plug on the end of the ribbon cable for the top most drive, and the middle plug for the next lowest CD drive. Attach the plug on the far end of the ribbon cable to the secondary IDE port on the motherboard (usually labeled IDE2). Just like connecting any other drive, you must ensure that Pin 1 on the connector is lined up with the red edge of the cable. Pin 1 is usually marked in some way on the drive and on the motherboard both. Sometimes, it is just a small mark on one corner of the cable connection port, and that indicates that that corner pin is your pin 1.

9. Attach the Audio Cable. This small 3-wire connector goes from an “Audio” plug on the back of the CD-ROM to a 3-pin plug on the sound card. If you happen to have on-board audio circuitry on your motherboard, the CD-IN plug will be on your motherboard and you can connect this now. Since you likely do not have a sound card installed at this point, you can connect one end of this cable now to the CD drive and leave the other end free to connect once the sound card is installed. Some CD drives have both an analog and a digital audio out. Most of the time, people just use the standard analog audio, but if you wish, go ahead and use the digital. Your drive should come with audio cables for both options.

STEP 15 : Install The Video Card

You must have a video card installed in order to complete this tutorial so that you can see the output from your new PC once you turn it on. Installing a video card (or any expansion card for that matter) is incredibly straight-forward and easy.

1. Find an expansion slot ideal for your video card. You can consult the bottom right image for a look at the three types of video card slot types: ISA, PCI or AGP. Most video cards in use today are using the AGP slot, which uses the topmost slot (usually brown) on your motherboard. Other cards use the PCI bus, which most motherboards have several of and the slots are usually white. The very old video cards use the larger ISA bus, but it is unlikely you will be using this type of video card unless you are building a PC out of incredibly outdated hardware.

2. Remove the case insert that corresponds to the slot on the motherboard. This is usually done by unscrewing, but some cases have punch out inserts. If unclear, what we are referring to by “insert” is the small plate which covers up the rear slots on your case which your expansion cards will emerge from.

3. Insert the video card in the slot. You might need to rock the card in, inserting one end first, then rocking the rest of the pins into place. The old ISA cards may be tougher because of their length. You might not be able to rock them. Most of you, though, will not be dealing with ISA video cards anymore. When pushing down, make sure the motherboard does not flex. If the board tends to bend, it may be necessary to place one hand underneath the board to hold it up. Also, in some cases, you may have a problem with the leading edge of the video card’s metal plate hitting the case behind the motherboard. The result is that it keeps you from being able to push the card in all the way. I’ve tried all sorts of weird crap to fix this problem, including taking pliers to the card and actually bending it. Sometimes, you can grab a flat-head screwdriver and pry the hole wider that the card’s lip protrudes into. But, in most cases, just playing with it for a bit will do the trick. It might also be worth noting here that AGP video cards are typically installed “upside down”, meaning the circuitry side of the video card will face down. ISA and PCI cards are usually installed “right side up”.

4. With the video card inserted into the correct slot, it will probably sit there with no support at all. It is still, though, necessary to tighten it in using a screw. The card’s metal plate will have a notch for a screw and it will line up with a screwhole on the side of the expansion hole on the rear of the case. Just insert a screw into that hole and tighten it.

5. Double-check your work. Make sure the card is securely in place and, if your video card has a cooling fan on it, make sure no ribbon cables or power leads are getting into the fan blades.

STEP 16 : Post-Assembly

Well, you have gotten this far. Congratulations! You have now completed the hardware portion of putting together your PC

Admittedly, if you are following this tutorial to the letter, your PC is rather bare-boned at this point. It is highly likely you will be installing some additional hardware such as a network interface card (NIC), a sound card, maybe a dial-up modem or other hardware. Some people like to install everything right away. Usually when I build a PC, I like to start with the basics. The reason is that it makes the installation process of your operating system easier. Once you have your operating system installed, you can then go in and install your additional hardware and get those items working one at a time. It can be a little daunting to try to get everything working at the same time, especially simultaneously to installing the operating system itself.

Now, you are about ready to turn your new PC on for the first time. But before we do so we need to give everything the once over and make sure we didn’t miss something. So, with a flashlight, check all of your work. It is better to “waste” the time than to engage in wasted time trying to track down why the system will not boot.

Review all your connections and installations as completed in prior steps. Here is a bulleted list of highlights to guide you:

* Drives properly connected to the power supply

* CPU fan attached to the power supply or to the power connector on the motherboard

* If this is an older AT machine, ensure the P8 and P9 main power connectors are installed properly, with black wires in middle.

* The 110/220 volt switch on the back of the power supply is configured properly for your area

* Ribbon cables attached correctly and securely. If using rounded cables, the arrow on the connectors indicating Pin 1 should be aligned with Pin 1 on all drive connections. On gray cables, ensure the red edge is aligned with Pin 1.

* All connections tight, no connectors off by one set of pins

* If there are any key motherboard settings which are jumper-controlled, ensure these settings are correct

* No wires or ribbon cables protruding into fan blades

* Power switch connector on ATX machines properly connected to the PWR_SW pins on the motherboard. If this is not properly done, the machine may not even turn on when the switch is pressed.

Part Two is Coming in another topic.