Computer Maintenance and Technical Support

Chapter Two
(Computer Cases and the Motherboard )

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 Chapter two
Computer Cases and the Motherboard
Computer cases
Safety and the computer
System Cover removal and replacement
System board defined
System board evolution
Removing and replacing motherboard
Troubleshooting the motherboard

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 Case/chassis
• A computer case is the enclosure that encases all the
components of a computer.
• All the computer’s components mount to the inside of the
case
• the case is essentially the mounting platform for all the
electronic devices that make up the computer.
• Typically, cases are square or rectangular boxes, usually
beige in color (although the current trend is for all-black
cases and matching peripherals), and made of steel,
aluminum, or plastic.

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Functions
1. The enclosure forms the mechanical foundation of every PC.
Every other subassembly is bolted securely to this chassis

2. The chassis is electrically grounded through the power supply.

Grounding prevents the building up or discharge of static
electricity from damaging other subassemblies.

Types of computer cases

there are 3 general classification of cases:

1. Desktop case
2. Tower case
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3. notebook cases

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Desktop case
• Come in a variety of shapes and sizes
• offer a lot more upgrade potential than baby case
• Two external drive bays and two internal drive bays
• Support power supply (usually 200-250 wt)
Tower case
• Designed to hold the maximum number of drives
• Four drive bays and four internal drive bays
• Often used for servers
• Power supply (300w+)
Notebook cases
• are used for portable computers
• The cost and power of notebook systems vary widely
• Notebook designs are often highly proprietary, but are
generally designed to conserve space, allow portability, use
less power, and produce less heat. 5
 Safety and the computer
• It is not difficult to keep your computer healthy and
in good working order. Maintaining a computer
involves three things:
– keeping it physically clean, protect from dust, liquid…

– protecting it from malware, and

– backing up important files.

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 System Cover removal and replacement
• Have a Phillips head screwdriver, tweezers or needle-nose pliers, and
a nonmetallic stick or similar prying tool.
• Turn off the computer. Disconnect the cables
• Transfer the computer to a clear, flat, stable work surface over a non-
carpeted floor.
• Ready the system case to remove and access the inside part of the
computer

Before starting, power off the computer and wait for components to cool
before starting these procedures.

This product contains components that can be damaged by electrostatic

discharge (ESD).

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System Cover removal and replacement

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 System board defined
• It is also called Main Board, Motherboard, Desktop Board

• Motherboard is the base of the modern computer system

• If the processor is the brain of the computer, then the motherboard is the
central nervous system and circulatory system
• Is the main circuit board in the computer where everything comes together

• To plug in processor, memory, cache, video card, sound card, NIC, modem
card, etc
• Used To connect all the peripherals

• Good understanding of motherboard is the most critical part of getting a

good understanding of how PCs work in general

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 …Continued
• The motherboard is the part of the computer to which every other
component is connected.
• It contains

 the processor socket(s),

 memory slots

 expansion card slots

 ports for mouse, keyboard, printer, etc

 electronic parts, known as the chipset to make everything run.

• Most motherboards contain some built-in components such as

 Video
 sound
 network adapter
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 The importance of motherboard
 Organization: In one way or another, everything is eventually connected to the
motherboard. The way that the motherboard is designed and laid out dictates how
the entire computer is going to be organized.
 Control: The motherboard contains the chipset and BIOS program, which
between them control most of the data flow within the computer.
 Communication: Almost all communication between the PC and its peripherals,
other PCs, and you, the user, goes through the motherboard.
 Processor Support: The motherboard dictates directly your choice of processor
for use in the system.
 Peripheral Support: The motherboard determines, in large part, what types of
peripherals you can use in your PC. For example, the type of video card your
system will use (ISA, VLB, PCI) I
 Performance: The motherboard is a major determining factor in your system's
performance, for two main reasons. First and foremost, the motherboard
determines what types of processors, memory, system buses, and hard disk
interface speed your system can have,
 Upgradeability: The capabilities of your motherboard dictate to what extent you
will be able to upgrade your machine.
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Motherboard diagram

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The important constituent components of an ATX Motherboard are
given below( number corresponding to figure above)

1. Mouse & keyboard

2. USB
3. Parallel port
4. CPU Chip
5. RAM slots
6. Floppy controller
7. IDE controller
8. PCI slot
9. ISA slot
10. CMOS Battery
11. AGP slot
12. CPU slot
13. Power supply plug in

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 System board evolution

• Motherboards differ in size, shape, position of mounting holes,

power supply connector type, and port types and locations.
Together, these differences define the form factor of the
motherboard. Form factor is a critical issue when you upgrade a
system because the replacement motherboard must physically fit the
case and use the existing power supply connectors. Form factor
doesn't matter when you're building a new PC. You simply select
the best motherboard for your needs, and then buy a case that fits it.
Many motherboard manufacturers build similar motherboards in
different form factors. Here are the form factors you may encounter:

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 System board evolution
• The motherboard divided into three factors, which are
1. Obsolete Form Factor,
Advanced Technology (AT), Baby AT, Low Profile
Extended (LPX) form factors
1. Modern Form Factor, and
ATX, Micro ATX, Flex ATX, Mini ITX and NLX form
factors
1. Proprietary Form Factor.
Some companies, such as Sony and Dell, created proprietary
form factors to be suitable for their special computer cases
Reading Assignment about System board evolution

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 Removing and replacing motherboard
Make sure it is disconnected from power and wearing anti –ESD bracelet
Remove the motherboard
1.Turn off the computer, and then disconnect the power cord and all
cables connected to the rear of the computer.
2.Remove the left side panel.
3.The motherboard is the large circuit board inside the computer.
4.For more stability, carefully lay the computer on its right side.
5.Inside the case, remove all add-in cards.
6.Remove all memory modules.
7.Remove the rear fan.
8.Disconnect all cables connected to the motherboard.
9.Remove the 4/6/8 screws that secure the motherboard in the case.
10.Slide the motherboard toward the front of the case about one-half
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inch, and then lift it out.
 Removing and replacing motherboard
Make sure it is disconnected from power and wearing anti –ESD bracelet/ gloves
Replace the motherboard
1.Place the motherboard in the case, but about one-half inch from the
rear of the case.
2.Slide the motherboard to the rear of the case until the ports are seated in their
openings and the holes in the motherboard align with the screw holes in the case.
3.Secure the motherboard with 4/6/8screws.
4.Connect cables to the motherboard.
5.Replace the rear fan.
6.Replace all memory modules.
7.Replace all add-in cards.
8.Replace the left side panel.
9.Plug in the power cord, connect all device cables to the rear of the computer,
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and then turn on the computer.
 Troubleshooting the motherboard
Motherboard failures can be divided into three types:
 Power failure

 Bus failure

 Component failure.

Due to the complexity in the structure and components in computer motherboards, the
failure rate is relatively high.

Repair the failure using the following fee steps.

1. Check that there is no sign of physical damage.

Determine whether the motherboard seems burned, blown, foam board, has a
broken connector, corrosion, exploded capacitors or dirty fans and chips, etc.

2. Check that BIOS battery provides sufficient voltage.

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 Troubleshooting the motherboard
3. Clean out the dust using a soft brush.
Clean the dust off the motherboard. Check the motherboard after each step. The
failure may have been caused by dust.

4. Using a multimeter, measure the motherboard supply voltages

(5V, 12V, 3.3V, etc.). If there is an abnormal voltage, check if the power supply
is faulty.

5. Check the all chip clock, input and output signals.

Until you find the problem

6. Remove and replace the failed component(s) with the same

type, then boot to test operation. Like RAM

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 Troubleshooting the motherboard
7. Find short routes line by line method.
If you find some signal line and ground or 5V voltage line short circuit, trace the
circuit board to determine the failure source.

•If the above steps fail to fix the problem, find a

motherboard with the same characteristics and
replace it completely.
Please consider all specification
of the motherboard before you
replace/buy a new board.
Like form factor type,
connector type, buss speed,
RAM/CPU socket type…..
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