Anatomy of a PC

August, 2002
Summer Institute for Computer Studies Teachers
Presented by Celine Latulipe
Outline
• Introduction & Equipment
• Warnings
• Steps 1 & 2: Prep work
• Step 3: Remove and Label Components
• Step 4: Rebuild
• Steps 5 & 6: Plug in and Reboot
• Wrap-Up
Introduction
• Why bother disassembling and
reassembling a computer?
– Get over the fear of what’s inside
– Develop a better understanding of what
makes up a computer
– Build confidence
– Mostly: BECAUSE IT’S FUN!
Equipment
• Screwdriver
• A computer (these are old Pentiums
donated by the UW Library)
• Monitor, keyboard
• Small post-it notes
• Anti-static bracelets
• Handout
Warnings
• Disassembly: UNPLUG from wall first
• After reassembling, screw the lids onto
the boxes before powering up (the wires
from the power button to the power
supply are live, so you don’t want to be
near them when the computer is on)
• Rebooting: plug into the wall LAST
Warnings (cont’d)
• Ensure nothing is consuming large
amounts of power on the same circuit
(power outlet that the computer is
plugged into)
• Be careful - computers have sharp parts
inside (we have band-aids)
• Only remove what I tell you to remove!
Step 1 – Getting Ready
• Boot up the computer to make sure it
works (no Windows installed on these -
just DOS)
• Shut down computer
• Put on anti-static bands and clip them
to grounding mats
• Read over handout
Step 2 – Looking Inside
• UNPLUG all cables
• Remove cover
– Unscrew 4 screws at back closest to the
edge of the computer, then pull the sides
of the computer forward
– The front and side panels slide off the front
all in one piece
• Lay the computer on it’s side with the
motherboard closest to table
Back of
Computer

Remove these screws

power
supply CD-ROM
drive

floppy
drive
cards
hard
drive

motherboard
What these components do
• Motherboard – (body) acts as a manager for
everything on the computer – connects all the
other components together
• CPU – Central Processing Unit – (brain) this
does all the work of computing
• Hard Drive – (long-term memory) holds all of
the information that needs to be stored
between uses of the computer
What these components do
• RAM – Random Access Memory – (short-term
memory) holds data and program instructions that
the computer is currently using
• Floppy and CD-ROM drives – (mouth/ears) allow you
to give data to the computer and take data away
from the computer
• Power Supply – (heart) supplies power to all
• Network Card – (telephone) allows computer to talk
to other computers over a wire
What these components do
• Video card – (?) Does all of the
processing necessary to get stuff
looking nice on screen, quickly
• Sound card – (vocal cords) Allows
sounds from HD or CD-ROM to be
displayed
• Card Slots – (?) Allows other
components to be added to the
computer (joystick cards, tv cards, etc.)
Step 2 (cont’d)
• The handout has a listing of the parts to
be disassembled:
– Floppy drive, ribbon cable (unplug power)
– CD-ROM drive, sound cable, ribbon cable
(unplug power)
– Sound, Video and Network cards
– Memory
• Draw the component beside each name
on the handout
Step 3 – Taking it Apart
• Remove CD-ROM Drive
– UNPLUG sound cable from CD
– UNPLUG power cable from CD
– UNPLUG ribbon cable from CD
• Unplug other end of ribbon cable from
motherboard and label it ‘CD ribbon’
– Unscrew CD-ROM drive and slide out
– Label CD-ROM drive with a post-it note
CD-ROM
Drive
Hard Drive
We won’t remove this.
Step 3 (cont’d)
• Remove Floppy Drive
– UNPLUG power cable from floppy drive
– UNPLUG ribbon cable from floppy drive
• Unplug other end of ribbon cable from
motherboard and label it ‘floppy ribbon’
– Pull floppy drive out
Floppy Drive
Ribbon Cables

polarized
Step 3 (cont’d)
• Remove Video Card
– Video card is the one with the 15-hole
video port that the monitor was plugged
into
– Unscrew the card from the back of the
case
– Pull card straight up and out of PCI slot
– Label video card with post-it note
Video
Card
Step 3 (cont’d)
• Remove Sound Card
– Sound card is one with audio ports on it
– Leave sound cable (from CD-ROM)
attached to card
– Unscrew card where it attaches to back of
computer
– Lift sound card straight up and out of ISA
slot
– Label Sound Card with post-it note
Sound
Card
Step 3 (cont’d)
• Remove Network Card
– Network Card is the one that has a port
that looks like a phone jack
– Unscrew card from back of computer case
– Lift Network Card straight up and out of
PCI slot
– Label Network Card with post-it note
Network
Card
Step 3 (cont’d)
• Remove RAM
– Pull levers at each end of RAM away from
RAM
– At same time push RAM to one side
– RAM card will tilt to one side and can be
lifted out
– Most of these machines have 2 RAM cards
– Label RAM with post-it note
RAM
Step 4 – Putting it Back Together
• Put everything back, reverse order (remove
post-its as you re-assemble):
• Memory pops back in pretty easily
• If you unplugged power cable from
motherboard (to access RAM) plug it back in
• Slide floppy in and plug in power cable
• Plug ribbon cable into floppy and into
motherboard (it only goes in one way)
Step 4 – Putting it Back Together
• Slide CD-ROM back into case, replace
screws, plug ribbon cable into CD and
motherboard (it only goes in one way)
• Plug power cables back into CD (it only
goes in one way)
• Don’t worry about sound cable yet
Step 4 – Putting it Back Together
• Place video card back into slot it came
out of (press firmly), screw it back in
• Place network card back into slot it
came out of, screw it back in
• Place sound card back into slot it came
out of, screw it back in
• Plug sound cable from sound card into
the back of the CD-ROM drive
Step 5 – Getting Ready to Reboot
• Have Celine or Elodie check your work –
if it’s okay:
• Put the lid on the box and screw in
• Plug the cables back in, in this order:
– Monitor to computer (video cable)
– Keyboard to computer
– Monitor’s power cable into wall
– Computer’s power cable into the wall
Step 6 – Reboot
• Turn it on…
• If it works (you get a DOS prompt),
congratulations!
• If not, call Celine or Elodie over to
diagnose the problem
Wrap-up
• Unplug computers and monitors and
stack them at back of the room
• Hope you had fun! Thanks for
participating!