COMPUTER PARTS AND FUNCTION

Motherboard - The motherboard acts as the central backbone or the main circuit board of a
computer on which other modular parts are installed such as the CPU, RAM and hard disks.
CPU - The CPU is the brain of a computer, containing all the circuitry needed to process input,
store data, and output results.
Hard Disk Drive - A hard disk drive, also known as a hard drive or HDD, is used to store data long
term because HDD are permanent storage device.
CD-ROM DRIVE - The main functions of a CD-ROM drive involve reading data on a compact disk
and writing data on the same.
Floppy Disk Drive - A floppy disk drive, also called FDD or FD for short, is a computer disk drive
that enables to read and write data to removable diskettes.
RAM - RAM stands for random access memory and is the temporary storage device (short-term
memory) of a computer.
CMOS Battery - A CMOS or Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor battery provides the
necessary power to the CMOS chip to run even when the computer system is turned off. It is just
like a watch type battery that maintain the Date and time of computer.
BIOS Chipset - The main functions of BIOS in computer system is to recognize all the computer
peripheral devices like RAM, Processor, keyboard, mouse, hard disk, DVD-RW and their
configurations.
CPU Cooling System - Using a CPU cooling system to maintain CPU temperatures improves and
ensures efficiency and stability of the system.
Heatsink - The heat sink has a thermal conductor that carries heat away from the CPU and other
component like video card.
Video Card - The video card is an expansion card that allows the computer to send graphical
information to a video display device such as a monitor, TV, or projector.
RAM Slot - A RAM slot or memory slot is the place where we attach the memory stick or RAM
and the main function of RAM slot is to read and function the RAM.
IDE Cable - It is a ribbon cable with 40 pins that is used to connect mass storage devices such as
hard disks (HDD or SSD) and optical drives to a computer. The main function is to transfer the data
to Motherboard into Drive like CD-ROM, FDD and Hard Disk Drive.
SATA Cable - It is cable used to connect mass storage devices such as hard disks (HDD or SSD) and
optical drives to a computer. The main function is to transfer the data to Motherboard into Drive
like CD-ROM, FDD and Hard Disk Drive.
Northbridge Chipset - communicates faster components on the motherboard like Main Memory,
CPU, PCIe, ROM, and AGP.
South Bridge - The southbridge is an IC chip that manages and controls IO functionality on the
motherboard. It does not have direct communication with the CPU, unlike Northbridge.
PCI Slot - A PCI slot or memory slot is the place where we attach the expansion card like video
card and audio card. The main function of PCI slot is to read and function the expansion card.
PCIe x1 Slot - A PCIe x1 slot is the place where we attach the PCIe x1 expansion card like video
card, Lan card and audio card. The main function of PCIe x1 slot is to read and function the
expansion card.
PCIe x16 Slot - A PCIe x16 slot is the place where we attach the PCIe x1 expansion card like video
card, Lan card and audio card. The main function of PCIe x16 slot is to read and function the
expansion card.
AGP Slot - A AGP slot is the place where we attach the Video Card AGP type. The main function
of AGP slot is to read and function the Video card.
FDD Header – A FDD Header is the place where we attach the FDD IDE Cable. The main function
is to read the Floppy Disk Drive using FDD IDE Cable.
HDD and CD-ROM Header – A HDD and CD-ROM header is the place where we attach the Primary
and Secondary IDE Cable. The main function is to read the HDD and CD-ROM using IDE Cable.
SATA SLOT – A SATA Slot is the place where we attach the SATA cable. The main function is to read
the HDD and CD-ROM using SATA Cable.
CPU Socket – A CPU Socket is the place where we attach the CPU. The main function is to read
and function the CPU (Central Processing Unit).
Back Panel Ports - The back panel is the portion of the motherboard that lets you connect
external devices, such as your monitor, speakers, keyboard, and mouse. As seen in the picture
below, the back panel is on the edge of the motherboard.
PS/2 Port - PS/2 is a type of port used by older computers for connecting input devices such as
keyboards and mice.
PS/2 (green color) is for the mouse.
PS/2 (purple) is for the keyboard.
Serial Port - A serial port, also known as a communication port or COM port, is one of the oldest
kinds of ports that transmits and receives data bit by bit and is typically used to connect printers,
monitors and peripheral modems to a computer system.
Parallel Port - Parallel ports refer to a specific type of interface that was used in the earlier days
to connect peripheral devices to the early computers like Printers.
USB Port - USB, a short for Universal Serial Bus, port refers to the hardware interface that can
support connecting more than a hundred different types of peripherals.
LAN Port - A LAN port, also known as a network port, Ethernet port, or network connection, is a
socket that allows a computer or other device to connect to a network through a wired
connection
AUDIO Port - The motherboard of a machine has an audio port. This port is used to connect audio
devices like speakers, microphones, and home theater systems.
VGA Port - Abbreviated VGA, Video Graphics Array is a standard type of connection for video
devices such as monitors and projectors.
Power Supply Plug - The primary function of the Motherboard's Power Supply plug is to supply
power to the Motherboard and its attached components and peripherals.
i) 24 (20 + 4) ATX power supply
In modern PCs, ATX power supply is provided which is a 24 Pin(20 + 4) Main Power Supply
Connector (Older Pcs only have 20 Pin)
ii) 4 Pin or 8 Pin Connector
This port in the motherboard is to provide dedicated power to the CPU. Older PCs may not have
this Plugin motherboard but modern computers can do lots of work like overclocking so, a
dedicated cable is provided to the CPU.
iii) PCI-Express 6-Pin or 8-Pin Connector
This is required to power the PCI-E port. PCI-E slot required 75W power to operate.
THE older PC does not have this.
iv) Molex
Molex pin is 4 power pin which is required to supply power to older CDROM and hard drives.
Molex is nowadays used for Case Fan. (some have some do not have)
v) Berg:
It is used for floppy drives in much older PCs.
 COC1 Acronyms and Abbreviations
CPU – Central Processing Unit
ATX – Advance Technology Extended
PS/2 – Personal System 2
USB – Universal Serial Bus
VGA – Video Graphic Array
BIOS – Basic Input Output System
PCI – Peripheral Component Interconnect
CMOS – Complementary Metal-Oxide Semi-Conductor
IDE – Integrated Drive Electronics
HDD – Hard Disk Drive
FDD – Floppy Disk Drive
CD-ROM – Compact Disk Read Only Memory
DVD-ROM – Digital Versatile Disk Read Only Memory
CD – Compact Disk
DVD – Digital Versatile Disk
RAM – Random Access Memory
SATA – Serial Advance Technology Attachment
PCIe x1 – Peripheral Component Interconnect Express 1
PCIe x16 - Peripheral Component Interconnect Express 16
PSU – Power Supply Unit
SSD – Solid State Drive
UPS – Uninterruptable Power Supply
VRAM – Video Random Access Memory
GPU – Graphics Processing Unit
GUI – Graphic User Interphase
I/O – Input/Output
LAN – Local Area Network
PNP – Plug and Play
PATA – Parallel Advance Technology Attachment
DDR – Double Data Rate
DDR1 – Double Data Rate 1
DDR2 – Double Data Rate 2
DDR3 – Double Data Rate 3
DDR4 – Double Data Rate 4
DRAM – Dynamic Random Access Memmory
DVR – Digital Video Recorder
AGP – Accelerated Graphic Port