Mini Tower System Reference and Installation Guide

Using the System Setup Program 2-11
accommodate a controller card installed in an expansion
slot.
As part of the boot routine, the system first checks for a
primary hard-disk drive controller card installed in an
expansion slot. If no card is found, the system enables the
built-in EIDE interface to use IRQ14 and IRQ15.
If a primary controller is detected on the expansion bus,
the built-in EIDE interface is disabled.
Selecting Off disables the built-in EIDE interface.
Diskette
Diskette controls the operation of the system’s built-in
diskette drive controller.
With Auto (the default option) selected, the system turns
off the built-in diskette drive controller when necessary
to accommodate a controller card installed in an
expansion slot.
With Write Protect selected, nothing can be written to
diskette drives and tape drives using the system’s built-in
diskette drive controller. (The system can still read from
the drives.) When this option is selected, the Auto option
(whereby the system turns off the built-in diskette drive
controller as necessary) is also in effect.
Selecting Off turns off the built-in diskette/tape drive
controller; this option is used primarily for troubleshoot-
ing purposes.
Speaker
Speaker determines whether the on-board speaker is On
(the default) or Off. A change to this category takes effect
immediately (rebooting the system is not required).
System Data Categories
The following categories, which are not selectable,
display information about the system:
•
Level 2 Cache displays the size of the integrated
cache (512 kilobytes [KB]).
•
System Memory indicates the entire amount of
installed memory detected in your system, except for
memory on Expanded Memory Specification (EMS)
expansion cards. After adding memory, check this
category to confirm that the new memory is installed
correctly and is recognized by the system.
•
Video Memory displays the amount of video
memory detected in your system.
•
Service Tag displays the system’s five-character
service tag number, which was programmed into
NVRAM by Dell during the manufacturing process.
Refer to this number during technical assistance or
service calls. The service tag number is also
accessed by certain Dell support software, including
the diagnostics software.
•
Asset Tag displays the customer-programmable asset
tag number for the system if an asset tag number has
been assigned. You can use the Asset Tag utility,
which is included with your software support
utilities, to enter an asset tag number up to ten
characters long into NVRAM. For information on
using the utility, see “Using Drivers and Utilities” in
your online System User’s Guide.
U
sing the System Password Feature
Your Dell system is shipped to you without the system
password feature enabled. If system security is a concern,
you should operate your system only with system
password protection.
You can assign a system password, as described in the
next subsection, “Assigning a System Password,”
whenever you use the System Setup program. After a
system password is assigned, only those who know the
password have full use of the system.
When the System Password
category is set to Enabled,
the computer system prompts you for the system
password just after the system boots.
To change an existing system password, you must know
the password (see “Deleting or Changing an Existing
System Password” found later in this section). If you
assign and later forget a system password, you need to
be able to remove the computer cover to change a
CAUTION: The password features provide a basic
level of security for the data on your system. How-
ever, they are not foolproof. If your data requires
more security, it is your responsibility to obtain and
use additional forms of protection, such as data
encryption programs.